The Maryland-based Electrical Training Alliance is providing a total of $400,000 in funding from Google.org to three Indiana electrical apprenticeship training partners.
The goal of the funding is to not only grow the number of electrical apprentices in Indiana but also integrate artificial intelligence tools to help them master AI skills.
The funding will be shared among the Electrical Training Institute of Indianapolis, Electrical JATC of Northern Indiana in Michigan City, and Fort Wayne Electrical JATC.
ETA Executive Director Todd Stafford told Inside INdiana Business that the funding will help ease the financial burden on the local apprenticeship programs.
“Having additional funding and support from outside parties directly benefits our industry,” Stafford said. “We’re privately funded. We’ll spend close to $400 million nationwide on our electrical apprenticeship programs. What we do all privately funded. So the monies that we get from outside sources—that just helps us expand even more what we’re trying to do on our own already.”
The ETA is an organization created by the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA). The Google.org funding will benefit Indiana Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committees managed by both entities.
The alliance said the funding will increase training capacity to support an additional 524 apprentices in Indiana by 2030. That is estimated to grow the projected pipeline of electricians in the state by 42%.
But according to Stafford, the effort is about more than just numbers. He said it’s also about equipping skilled professionals with the tools needed for a more modernized industry with the rapid growth of data centers and use of AI.
“If you want to have a sufficient system in place to be able to install AI systems and data centers, then you have to have a way to build it. That’s what we’re doing,” he said. “Expanding that workforce makes that capability that much faster and more efficiently for the future.”
Samuel Lacher, chapter manager for the Central Indiana Chapter of NECA, added that the funding will “tremendously boost” Indiana’s apprenticeship efforts.
“By expanding first-year apprenticeship opportunities…we are able to open doors for more men and women to build careers in the electrical trade,” Lacher said in written remarks. “Just as important, the focus on leadership development will ensure younger apprentices advance quickly into leadership roles and be fully prepared to lead large scale projects and teams with confidence and skill.”