Community College Manufacturing Program Receives $10K Grant

Quinsigamond Community College recently received a $10,000 Gene Haas Foundation Grant. Developed by Gene Haas, owner of Haas Automation Inc. The foundation was formed in 1999 to support the charitable needs within its local community of Ventura County, California. As the foundation grew, so did the need for a stronger manufacturing workforce. Reports such as, “The Skills Gap in U.S. Manufacturing 2015 and Beyond” projected that, “Over the next decade, almost three and a half million manufacturing jobs will likely need to be filled,” confirming the need for a skilled manufacturing workforce.

Today, the focus and mission of the Gene Haas Foundation is in line with the needs of the educational community, to support manufacturing and help introduce students to careers in machining and related technologies. To date, the Foundation has donated over $52 million to support educators. High schools and colleges are eligible to apply for the funds on an annual cycle.

Coordinator of QCC’s Manufacturing Technology Program, Lee Duerden, says the Haas Foundation Grant will be used for manufacturing scholarships that will be awarded in the spring.

Mr. Duerden said the hope is to use the funds to support further education in the field of computer numerical control (CNC) and could possibly be opened up to graduating vocational high school students and veterans. This is the first time the college has applied for the grant.

“The Haas commitment to education is visible in many ways; the Gene Haas Foundation is a significant portion of how we support educators to grow their pipeline and engage students to prepare them for amazing careers in advanced manufacturing. We are pleased to work with Quinsigamond Community College to build the future workforce in their region,” said Toni Neary, director of Education, for Trident Machine Tools (a Haas Factory Outlet, in Windsor, Ct.).