Purdue Polytechnic Anderson Among STEM Recipients

The U.S. Economic Development Administration has selected recipients of its STEM Talent Challenge, a national competition that supports programs to train STEM talent. Purdue Polytechnic in Anderson was selected as one of the eight nationwide grant recipients and will receive $250,000 in funding.

The award from the EDA comes in addition to a local match of nearly $360,000 raised by Purdue Polytechnic Anderson. The administration says the school’s project will use a community-driven approach known as Strategic Doing to update the bachelor’s degree curriculum into micro-credentialing and job placement programs.

Through the programs, Muncie and Anderson residents will have access to a total of 975 new certifications and job placement of 525 trainees in the manufacturing and ag-tech industries.

The administration says the funding ultimately supports programs that put Americans on paths to good-paying STEM jobs and careers.

“The Biden Administration believes that a robust STEM-capable workforce is key to America’s competitiveness in the global economy,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “The STEM Talent Challenge projects will provide career pathways to fill the in-demand jobs that are critical to fuel business, innovation, productivity and good-paying jobs across the nation.”

The awardees were selected from a pool of 77 applicants. You can view the full list of recipients and their projects by clicking here.