Four Connecticut community colleges — Three Rivers, Manchester, Asnuntuck and Gateway — will benefit from a donation of manufacturing and product design software from Siemens. The gift has an estimated value of $315 million.
The software will be used at the colleges’ Advanced Manufacturing Technology Centers. It’ll be incorporated into day-to-day student coursework and projects related to computer-aided design, engineering simulation, industrial design, digital manufacturing and manufacturing management.
The grant will expand to all of the state’s 12 community colleges over the next 18 months.
“With the fourth industrial revolution underway, manufacturing today is increasingly software-driven. By providing students with hands on experience in industrial design software, we can help empower the next generation of digital talent for success in Connecticut’s high-tech economy,” Tony Hemmelgarn, president and CEO of Siemens PLM Software, said in a release.
Alabama
Gadsden State Community College will receive $25 million in limited obligation revenue bonds to construct a new science building and make facility improvements. The Alabama Community College System Board of Trustees authorized the issuance of the bonds in mid-March.
“The new construction and renovations are consistent with Gadsden State’s strategic plan, which we define as the 3 I’s – instruction, infrastructure and institution,” Gadsden State President Martha Lavender said in a release.
Georgia
Georgia Piedmont Technical College students will get more hands-on training thanks to a donation of a cement mixing truck from Ready Mix USA. Students at the college’s Regional Transportation Training Center can use the truck to get the skills required to become cement-mixer truck drivers.
New York
Queensborough Community College (QCC) was awarded a $125,509 grant from the Capital One Foundation. QCC will implement a new development model to provide insight into how alignment of credit and non-credit programs help prepare students for the workforce. The goal is to help students to acquire in-demand skills by combining academic courses with occupational skills training. QCC will assess, evaluate and improve upon how well content knowledge and workplace skills respond to employer demands.
South Carolina
Midlands Technical College (MTC) will use a $20,000 grant from the Flex Foundation to help students enrolling in the college’s advanced manufacturing programs. The funds will help provide tuition assistance to low-income students.
In appreciation for the grant, MTC named a classroom in its new, 34,000-square-foot Advanced Manufacturing and Skilled Crafts Center after the Flex Foundation.
Wisconsin
Milwaukee Area Technical College (MATC) has received its largest private gift in the school’s history: a $3-million challenge grant from the Al Hurvis Education Foundation. The college will use the funds to turn a downtown campus building into a transportation center, where students can train for careers in transportation, advanced manufacturing and engineering.
The grant provides $1 million in immediate funding, and up to an additional $2 million for every dollar MATC raises for the project over the next two years.
