{"id":50535,"date":"2024-11-20T14:46:58","date_gmt":"2024-11-20T19:46:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.austincc.edu\/newsroom\/?p=50535"},"modified":"2024-11-20T14:46:58","modified_gmt":"2024-11-20T19:46:58","slug":"merit-america-and-americas-frontier-fund-foundation-partner-with-acc-to-bolster-nations-semiconductor-workforce","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.austincc.edu\/newsroom\/2024\/11\/20\/merit-america-and-americas-frontier-fund-foundation-partner-with-acc-to-bolster-nations-semiconductor-workforce\/","title":{"rendered":"Merit America and America\u2019s Frontier Fund Foundation Partner With ACC to Bolster Nation\u2019s Semiconductor Workforce"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Merit America, a national workforce development nonprofit, and the AFF Foundation, the charitable arm of America\u2019s Frontier Fund (AFF), in partnership with Austin Community College District (ACC), announced a national expansion of ACC\u2019s Advanced Manufacturing Production <\/a>(AMP) training program to be offered to low-wage workers nationally at no upfront cost, on Wednesday, November 20. This initiative aims to democratize access to high-quality technical training, bridge workforce gaps, and achieve significant economic uplift for marginalized workers by equipping them with the necessary skills to thrive in nationally critical technology sectors.<\/p>\n

ACC\u2019s cutting-edge AMP program was developed under the leadership of Dr. Laura Marmolejo, Dean for Advanced Manufacturing Programs at ACC, and combines three days of essential hands-on training with online coursework, creating accessible pathways to high-wage careers in manufacturing for a broader range of individuals. The College\u2019s program is the first to receive the SEMI Foundation\u2019s Fundamental Semiconductor Knowledge Certification\u2013\u2013 highlighting the highest standards and setting the stage for continued collaboration to support industry growth. During her visit to ACC, Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo<\/a> highlighted the program as a best-in-class approach to rapidly train workers for roles such as semiconductor technicians, for which there are a projected 109,000 positions in the U.S. that are expected to go unfilled by 2030. <\/p>\n

“Expanding our program nationally not only means delivering on our mission of expanding educational access, but also the potential for ACC to profoundly impact economic mobility,\u201d said Dr. Russell Lowery-Hart, Chancellor of ACC. \u201cWe’re proud to lead this charge alongside our partners, breaking down barriers to employment and setting a new standard for workforce development.”<\/p>\n

The Opportunity Coalition, led jointly by Merit America and the AFF Foundation, will enable ACC\u2019s program to become accessible nationwide, starting with a pilot in Central Texas with support from the Texas Institute for Electronics (TIE), a University of Texas at Austin-supported semiconductor consortium, and the Michael and Susan Dell Foundation. The pilot aims to establish Central Texas as a national center of excellence for semiconductor workforce development and a model for other regions as the initiative expects to scale in key markets such as Ohio, Arizona, New Mexico and New York. <\/p>\n

A major hurdle today is that credentials earned in one region may not be \u201cportable\u201d to another, since each region has the potential to develop its own standards and curricula. By collaborating with education, government, and employer partners nationally, the Opportunity Coalition will work to harmonize training standards and remove barriers for workers to achieve greater career mobility.<\/p>\n

Jordan Blashek, Co-Founder and President of the AFF Foundation, commented, “Our commitment through the Opportunity Coalition Fund is to forge a future where every American can access the education and opportunities needed to succeed in high-demand fields. This program is an important step towards achieving our vision of ensuring economic resilience by building up America\u2019s national competitiveness.” <\/p>\n

In partnership with Ascent Funding, a leader in learner-friendly educational financing, and support from funders including Ascendium Education Group and Blue Meridian Partners, the Opportunity Coalition will cover the cost of training, wrap-around services, and job placement support needed to upskill low-income Americans for in-demand roles facing talent shortages in the semiconductor industry. Ascent\u2019s Zero-Percent Loan comes with a guarantee: once learners earn over $40,000 annually, they begin to pay back their loan of ~$5,000 to ~$7,500 over five years, but only so long as they maintain earnings about $40,000, or increase them. Merit America\u2019s outcomes point to significant wage gains for participants under this model \u2013 their alumni have reported an average annual wage increase of $24,000 three or more months after program completion.<\/p>\n

Connor Diemand-Yauman and Rebecca Taber Staehelin, Co-CEOs and Co-Founders of Merit America, noted, \u201cNearly half of America\u2019s workforce is stuck in low-wage work as companies struggle to fill high-paying advanced manufacturing jobs. Our goal is to bridge this gap. We\u2019re thrilled to be scaling ACC\u2019s curriculum nationally, connecting talented individuals with family-sustaining careers while investing in our country\u2019s long-term competitiveness and security.”<\/p>\n

For more information about the ACC\u2019s AMP training program and the Opportunity Coalition, please visit: https:\/\/meritamerica.org\/opportunity-coalition\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Merit America, a national workforce development nonprofit, and the AFF Foundation, the charitable arm of America\u2019s Frontier Fund (AFF), in partnership with Austin Community College District (ACC), announced a national expansion of ACC\u2019s Advanced Manufacturing … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3930,"featured_media":50537,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12,13,17,18,19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-50535","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business-and-community","category-current-students","category-news-and-announcements","category-official-acc-press-releases","category-students-and-alumni"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.austincc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50535","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.austincc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.austincc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.austincc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3930"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.austincc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50535"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sites.austincc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50535\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.austincc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50537"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.austincc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50535"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.austincc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50535"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.austincc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50535"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}