WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Ben Cardin and Barbara A. Mikulski, together with U.S. Representative John Delaney (all D-Md.), today announced that the National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded the Hagerstown Community College (HCC) $617,648 to support the development of a new advanced manufacturing technology degree program, an industrial technology certificate program and a basic electronics certificate program.
“So many great products are built in Maryland and the state is well-positioned to catalyze a new manufacturing revival. To make certain this occurs, we desperately need a highly trained workforce,” said Senator Cardin, whose “Made in Maryland” jobs tour celebrates the diversity of Maryland products and the Marylanders who make them. “I’ve traveled across the state talking to employers about what the federal government can do to create more family-wage jobs. Without fail, I hear about the urgency of cultivating a highly trained workforce. This federal investment will ensure that Hagerstown Community College is at the epicenter of educating the next generation of Maryland manufacturers.”
“The old saying goes, a country that doesn’t make something, can’t make something of itself,” said Senator Mikulski, Vice Chairwoman of the Senate Appropriations Committee and the Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations Subcommittee that funds the National Science Foundation. “These funds in the federal checkbook are investments in students at Hagerstown Community College to help them acquire the skills, training and education they need to succeed. By supporting hands-on training in high-tech manufacturing, we are preparing students today for in-demand jobs tomorrow.”
“Founded in 1946, Hagerstown Community College was Maryland’s first community college and has served Washington County students for decades,” said Congressman Delaney. “The world has changed since the forties, but the mission at HCC remains the same and I am hopeful that this federal grant will help position local students to compete in the high-tech job market of the future. By supporting new advanced manufacturing, electronics and industrial technology programs, this grant should help students, job seekers and employers in Western Maryland.”
The programs funded by this federal investment will include new courses regarding circuits, schematics, and test equipment; lean manufacturing; and principles of quality assurance and teamwork, as well as revised curriculum to address high-technology manufacturing topics. In addition, HCC will seek to provide increased opportunities for women and underrepresented minorities through an emphasis on girls in College for Kids classes and a goal to enroll 33% women/minority students. Finally, Summer Institute activities will target early college students, and HCC has set a goal that 50% of these students are to be first-generation college students and 25% will be low-income.
In July, Senator Cardin and Mikulski announced nearly $15 million in federal funding to fourteen Maryland community colleges, including HCC, as part of the Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training (TAACCCT) initiative. The TAACCCT program allows community colleges and other institutions to expand their ability to provide quality education and job training programs in two years or less.
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