Henderson college, 2 other colleges win high-tech grants

CARSON CITY — Three Nevada colleges will receive a combined $336,000 to develop workforce training programs focused on the needs of high-tech industries.

The STEM workforce challenge grants were announced Wednesday by the Governor's Office of Science, Innovation and Technology.

"As we seek to diversify Nevada's economy, our economic development strategy has targeted high-tech industries that pay good wages," Gov. Brian Sandoval said in a statement. "Now we need a workforce development strategy to match.

"The training programs funded by these grants are the beginning of that strategy and will supply the highly trained workforce required for the new Nevada economy," he said.

The grants are intended to create partnerships between Nevada's developing high-tech industries and workforce training providers.

Nevada State College in Henderson received a grant of $36,540 to increase the number of STEM teachers in rural counties. Rural students will be able to complete their teaching degree online, via distance education. Funding from the grant will be used to convert traditional courses into an online and interactive video format, and for the purchase of specialized camera equipment.

Truckee Meadows Community College in Reno will partner with Switch Inc. to develop a new training program for data center engineering technicians in anticipation of workforce demands created by Switch's new SuperNAP site in Northern Nevada. The college was awarded a grant of nearly $150,000.

Western Nevada College, based in Carson City, received a grant award of $150,000 to build a Mechatronics Training Center and implement the Siemens Mechatronics certified curriculum. Training will focus on automated systems used in advanced manufacturing.

Contact Sandra Chereb at schereb@reviewjournal.com or 775-687-3901. Find her on Twitter: @SandraChereb