WPI announces $2.5M vocational training grant
Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) on Wednesday announced a $2.5-million training grant for software and educational materials that will teach Massachusetts vocational students new skills in advanced high-tech machinery.
The grant is given in partnership with the Massachusetts Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MassMEP), which will provide the curriculum designed for a statewide manufacturing certification program, the Manufacturing Advancement Center Workforce Innovation Collaborative (MACWIC), according to a statement.
WPI will provide the software, known as LearnCNC Software. The trademarked program was developed by WPI to train long-term unemployed workers on computer numeric control (CNC) machines.
“The grant that we’re giving to the vocational high schools would not have been possible if we hadn’t been teaching this retraining class at WPI over the years,” said Torbjorn Bergstrom, director of the Haas Technical Education Center at WPI’s Washburn Shops, where classes for the unemployed take place.
Vocational schools interested in receiving the materials must first undergo baseline testing to determine student aptitude and workforce readiness, according to WPI and MassMEP; software and curriculum will be issued once those factors are verified. Most students will achieve MACWIC’s second level of credentialing, which will allow them to become machine operators and quality inspectors following high school.
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