The department is issuing nearly $100 million in grants to create 28 apprenticeship programs nationally that will teach a set of hard skills to people without a four-year degree.
N.C. State’s four-year grant program will focus on artificial intelligence. It was rolled out at a press conference with U.S. Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia, N.C. State Chancellor Randy Woodson and Lt. Gov. Dan Forest.
“At the Labor Department, we want to help ensure that all Americans have a path to a good job,” Scalia said.
“That path doesn’t have to involve a college degree. It certainly can, and here at N.C. State you can earn a very valuable college degree, but there are other ways to prepare for a rewarding career. Apprenticeships are one such path.”
At N.C. State, the grant will fund the “Artificial Intelligence Academy: North Carolina Apprenticeships for Innovation.” It will be affiliated with the College of Education’s Friday Institute for Educational Innovation. Its purpose is to enrich the skills of current information technology employees who are underemployed, unemployed or seeking a new tech career, including veterans and people from underrepresented backgrounds.
“[Apprenticeships] are a way for people to enter the workforce and acquire skills, while supporting themselves financially at the same time,” Scalia said.
Scalia said the N.C. State program would prepare up to 5,000 apprentices for careers in up to 21 different careers in artificial intelligence.
Participants will take 20- to 40-week programs with tuition and fees paid by industry partners and will receive classroom and hands-on components in collaboration with IT companies, including IBM and Citrix.
Scalia said N.C. State’s grant is “among the largest” made, and will be matched by an additional $2.7 million in private sector funds.
“The greatest strength of our AIA project is the exceptional industry partnerships we have formed,” said Carla Johnson, N.C. State science education professor and the director of the new AI apprenticeship program, in a press release.
“Our consortium will lead and inform the important work of building a pipeline of highly qualified and well prepared AI talent for North Carolina and beyond.”
©2020 The News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.). Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
