Workers interested in advanced manufacturing training at Edmonds and Everett community colleges may be eligible to receive grants of up to $5,000 for tuition and books. In January of 2007, Everett Community College and its Snohomish County workforce and education partners received a three-year $2 million dollar Triad II grant from the United States Department of Labor to award the grants.

Students can use the funds to earn a degree or certificate in Precision Machining, Welding and Fabrication, Aviation Maintenance Technology or Computer Aided Design at Everett Community College or in Materials Science Technology, a field of engineering used to develop stronger and lighter high-tech composite materials for use in jets, boats and medical devices, at Edmonds Community College.

The grant is a continuation of a $1.5 million aerospace industry award given in November 2004 to Edmonds Community College and its partners (Everett Community College, Workforce Development Council Snohomish County, the Snohomish County Economic Development Council and The Boeing Company and its suppliers) to develop training for aerospace workers.

That grant was used to develop of curriculum, career ladders and online classes for advanced aerospace technicians for the Boeing 7E7 supply chain. The training models developed may also be used in the marine, bio-medical, and construction industries. “This project’s business, education and workforce development partnership will help ensure its success in developing innovative approaches to address the workforce needs of business, while also effectively helping workers find good jobs with good wages and promising career pathways in the aerospace industry,” said U.S. Assistant Secretary of Labor Emily Stover DeRocco when she visited Edmonds Community College in 2004 to announce the award.

The grant was part of a U.S. job training initiative, the Triad Initiative, to prepare workers for new job opportunities in high growth sectors of the American economy.

Those interested in advanced manufacturing programs at Everett Community College should call Melissa Helmenstine, 425-388-9072 or email her.

Those interested in receiving the grants to train for Materials Science Technology at Edmonds Community College should call Stephanie Brockhaus at 425-640-1039 or email her.

For more information about Materials Science programs at the college call 425-640-1145 or go to http://mtech.edcc.edu.

Both schools are now enrolling for summer and fall classes.

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