The State, through STEM Workforce Challenge Grants, seeks to spark the creation of lasting partnerships between industry and workforce training providers. These partnerships must result in:
- The identification of STEM-specific skills needed by employers in Nevada;
- The creation of programs that provide the education and skills training to workers that match the needs of employers;
- Are aligned with present and future workforce needs in Nevada as identified by relevant labor market information (LMI); and
- Are sustainable after grant funds have been exhausted.
Grant Information
Great Basin College (GBC) was awarded $300,000 to create a new Manufacturing Machining and Technology (MTT) Associates of Applied Science and Certificate of Achievement Program at its campus in Pahrump, NV. Graduates will learn manual operated machine tool practices and advanced CNC operations. Topics within the program include: CNC turning and machining centers, set-up and operation of CNC mills and lathes, machine computer programing, and employability skills such as working with people, problem solving, and critical thinking. Labor market information anticipates 475 openings in Southern Nevada for machinists and related-positions by 2024. This program fills a regional need as there are currently no Manufacturing Machining and Technology programs in Southern Nevada. A number of area employers contributed to the design of the program and committed to supporting it and interviewing its graduates for open positions. The program will initially enroll 12 students in the fall of 2019 and ramp up to an enrollment of 24 students in subsequent cohorts. The starting wage for program graduates is about $37,000 per year.