As semiconductor production ramps up in the Phoenix area due to a strong national focus on domestic chip manufacturing and new fabrication facilities under construction, there is a strong need for workers trained in both engineering and manufacturing.
Semiconductor chip manufacturer Intel — which has had a longtime presence in Arizona — is helping to boost the number and diversity of workers available in the industry through their Broadening Participation in Science and Engineering Higher Education grant program. The grants are distributed from Intel to educational institutions in states where the company has a strong manufacturing and engineering presence.
“Intel takes great pride in supporting Arizona State University’s semiconductor industry workforce development initiatives,” says Intel’s Arizona Public Affairs Manager Angela Creedon. “These programs are essential to enabling Intel and the industry’s growth in Arizona and to helping ensure our workforce reflects the incredible diversity of our community.”
Trevor Thornton and Hongbin Yu, both professors of electrical engineering in the School of Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering, part of the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at Arizona State University, have received grants to help train the semiconductor workforce of the future.