Grant Is Largest Ever Received in College’s History
Administrators at Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology have announced the College recently was a awarded a three-year, $2,507,000 PA State designated grant from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training Grants Program. Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology is the only college in the Commonwealth to receive this state-designated grant in the third round of this program.
This grant is designed to help higher education institutions create and expand innovative partnerships with businesses and Workforce Investment Boards to educate and train more workers with the skills employers need.
Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology will utilize this grant to develop 3 new programs and to help expand 3 existing programs. The three new programs include Electro-Mechanical Technology (also known as Mechatronics); Metal Casting Technology (Foundry) and Welding Technology. Current programs being expanded include Machine Technology & Computer Manufacturing; Metal Fabrication & Welding; and Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration.
“This grant allows Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology to bring forth new opportunities for manufacturing workforce training,” stated College President William Griscom. “Stevens has long been at the forefront of technical and trade-based education in Pennsylvania and this grant will continue to allow us to be a leader in training a new generation of workers.”
In addition to providing technical training for traditional post-secondary students, this grant helps the College partner with the Lancaster County Workforce Investment Board and PA CareerLink in offering more educational opportunities to adults who have lost their jobs due to outsourcing or foreign competition, military veterans, and the unemployed. More incumbent and unemployed workers can now be trained with the skills to be competitive in Pennsylvania’s growing manufacturing field.
With this grant, Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology can play a significant role in helping meet today’s workforce challenges, particularly in light of the aging baby boom generation and the rising skills required for today’s entry-level construction and manufacturing industries. Designed to increase the capacity of Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology as a whole, the federal grant comes at the perfect time when the College is developing new programs to be held at the College’s Greiner campus, recently acquired from the City of Lancaster. This $3 million land acquisition, coupled with nearly $21 million needed for equipment, etc. is a critical aspect of the College’s growth and continued focus on expanding programs to industries most needing high-skill employees. Between the acquisition of the Greiner campus and this grant from the federal government, the College is able to focus its growth on the high-demand, high-wage jobs available in manufacturing.
“For too long the College has faced a unique bottle neck in which we cannot accept enough students to ultimately graduate and go to work in the industries that need them most,” commented Dr. Griscom. “This grant will now allow us to engage in a much needed expansion of the campus and the programs in highest demand.”
The duration of the grant is from October 1, 2013 to September 30, 2016. The College has hired Pam McCarty as the Project Manager to oversee grant activities and report outcomes for the duration of the grant.
Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology is a premier residential, two-year, fully accredited technical college that provides a free education to financially disadvantaged citizens of Pennsylvania as well as serving tuition paying students. Stevens has expanded from its original student body of 15 to over 875 students who are enrolled in 19 high-skill, high-wage technical programs. Stevens has one of the highest placement rates in Pennsylvania at over 90%, with 100% placement in specific programs. Over 90% of the College’s graduates have remained in the Commonwealth since it’s founding in 1905. Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology is Pennsylvania’s only state-owned, two-year college of technology.
In 2011 and 2012, Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology was recognized by the Aspen Institute, an independent research panel, as one of the top 120 two-year colleges in the country. Thaddeus Stevens College was the only college in Pennsylvania recognized by the Aspen Institute.