Bridgeport’s Housatonic Community College (HCC) was awarded $1 million to support its Advanced Manufacturing Technology Center, the school announced this week.
U.S. Rep. Jim Himes chose Housatonic’s program from among 80 applicants to be funded in the omnibus appropriations bill, signed into law on March 15. The funds will pay for expanding the program.
HCC CEO Dwayne Smith said, “This investment in the HCC Advanced Manufacturing Technology programming will allow us to leverage private sector dollars, make important and necessary updates to the manufacturing labs and expand our offerings.”
The college’s Advanced Manufacturing Technology Center has prepared more than 400 students for jobs in Connecticut’s manufacturing sector, which faces a dire labor shortage.
Students in the HCC program prepare for jobs in aerospace, defense, biomedical technology, power systems and other advanced manufacturing fields.
The Advanced Manufacturing Technology Center program boasts a 96% retention rate and 100% employment placement over the last five years, according to HCC.
“Organizations like Housatonic are giving folks the training and education and flexibility to get the jobs that are out there, to give them the skills that will allow them to be in the middle class,” Himes said at an event on Monday celebrating the funding.
Contact Liese Klein at lklein@newhavenbiz.com.
