The preparation of a workforce to fill thousands of jobs created by Micron and other companies took a leap forward Monday with a new partnership announced at Syracuse University by U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer.
The Northeast University Semiconductor Network brings together more than 20 universities, colleges and other stakeholders with federal funding from the National Science Foundation.
Micron Executive Vice President Manish Bhatia said it’s a transformational shift in how higher education will work together for the next decade or more.
“It'll help us to be able to train the engineers who to operate our semiconductor manufacturing fabs that are at the very leading edge of smart manufacturing, and to train and upskill and rescale, the technicians of the future who operate and maintain the equipment and facilities in these networks,” Bhatia said.
Institutions in the new network will collaborate with Micron and the Science Foundation to modernize a semiconductor curricula, create more access to cleanroom and teaching labs, and bolster research opportunities for students. Schumer said it was easy to get the colleges and universities on board.
“They wanted to be part of it, because this is the future," Schumer said. "And the idea that we are going to have some federal dollars to help train people for good paying jobs, through these great universities with their great teaching facilities. And their great experience is just a home run.”
Schumer said the presence of all of the institutional leaders at the announcement is a testament to the importance of the new network.
