A new grant-funded program in downtown Hartford will provide underemployed Connecticut residents with training for high-tech manufacturing jobs that are in high demand.
Dubbed “Innovation and Beyond: 3D Printing for the New Collar Workforce,” the initiative is funded by NBC Connecticut, Telemundo Connecticut, and the Comcast NBCUniversal Foundation’s Project Innovation, with an initial $80,000 grant to Hartford’s MakerspaceCT, a startup incubator with 25,000-square-feet of commercial space at 960 Main St.
“The frustration we hear expressed by employers… is that workers are often unprepared for the requirements of the new digital workplace,” MakerspaceCT Executive Director Devra Sisitsky said.
The first four-month session of the program begins this month, and will bring 10 people into the MakerspaceCT facility for 2.5 hours of hands-on training on equipment used in 3D printing, machining, coding and other technology skills that are increasingly important in manufacturing.
A second session will begin in February, according to MakerspaceCT, and applications for that program will become available before the end of this year.
Diane Hannes, president and general manager of NBC Connecticut and Telemundo Connecticut, said her company is funding the program as an effort to improve job prospects of Connecticut residents.
“Our vision and mission is to use making as a vehicle to lift up individuals and communities and to positively impact lives by enabling access, innovation, and education,” Hannes said.
