Macomb Community College has begun work on an Advanced Technological Education Center to focus on advanced automotive technology as part of the college’s effort to help steer the region toward the economy of the future.
The college, working with a consortium that includes Wayne State University, Henry Ford Community College and Kalamazoo Valley Community College, was awarded a $150,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to develop an implementation plan for the new center, which would be based at Macomb’s South Campus in Warren.
The center will focus on the growing fields of hybrid electric, alternative fuel and fuel cell technology as they relate to all aspects of the automotive product life cycle: design, development, manufacturing, service and recycling.
“We believe this center will become the region’s premier storehouse of advanced automotive knowledge,” said Macomb Community College president Jim Jacobs. “That knowledge can then be shared with our students and with industry partners from around the region.”
The work on this project is part of a larger effort by the college to help the region’s residents and businesses successfully transition to the knowledge economy, Jacobs said.
“In addition to working on this center with the NSF, the college has created new education programs in health care, engineering technology and even a degree program for those who want to learn how to design video games,” Jacobs said. “As technology and the economy evolve, we will evolve.”
The grant from NSF will allow the consortium to harness the advancements being made in automotive technology knowledge and determine the best methods for teaching and developing the critical skills needed by the region’s workforce to be competitive in a 21st century economy. The consortium will also be working to create new partnerships with key industry leaders to encourage ongoing dialogue about advancements in automotive technology. The center will work with its partners to create a pool of highly skilled workers ready to serve the needs of industry.
“The automobile industry is facing dramatic changes, and this project is an effort to better prepare students in the region to work with the materials and technologies that will be essential to its future,” said Elizabeth Teles, lead program officer for NSF’s Advanced Technological Education program.
The project will capitalize on the strength of the region’s manufacturing heritage, as recommended in a 2006 study performed by Macomb County, as well as Macomb College’s long-standing commitment to partnership and collaboration to maximize resources and optimize results.
“Preparing our Southeast Michigan workforce with the skills to seize emerging opportunities in the new economy is critical,” said John Austin, director of the New Economy Initiative for Southeast Michigan. “Macomb Community College’s efforts and others like it can help our region and its workers both create new jobs and new economic opportunity.”
The project planning team, made up of representatives of the four institutions, as well as industry partners, will present a final plan for the center to the NSF in June 2009.
Macomb Community College (www.macomb.edu) serves more than 59,000 students annually. Macomb nationally ranks in the top 2 percent in the number of associate degrees awarded and as the largest grantor of associate degrees in Michigan. The college’s comprehensive educational programming includes pre-collegiate experiences, university transfer and career preparation programs, bachelor degree completion and graduate degree programs, workforce training, professional education and certification, and continuing education and enrichment opportunities.
The New Economy Initiative for Southeast Michigan is an eight-year effort to help speed the transformation of southeast Michigan to an innovation-based economy. Funded at $100 million by 10 local and national foundations, including several of the country’s largest, the initiative will work with other partners in the region and the state to sponsor and support activities that prepare, attract and retain talented workers; encourage innovation and entrepreneurship; and change the region’s culture to embrace learning, work and innovation.
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