CMRA with WCCC Receives Sub-award for Build Back Better for "AI Tech Training" program
By Vu Nguyen
October 16, 2023 - PITTSBURGH, PA -
We at the Carnegie Mellon Robotics Academy are proud to announce that we've received a sub-award for Southwestern PA's Build Back Better grant.
Through this grant, we are working with Westmoreland County Community College on a program (called "AI Tech Training"). The AI Tech Training program is a specialized training program that builds upon Carnegie Mellon Robotics Academy’s SMART Robotics Technician Program - a five micro-certification program that focuses on foundational concepts around Electrical, Fabrication, Mechanical, Software, and Robotics Integration. The AI Tech Training program will create a new learning track that features contextualized learning of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) along with fundamentals on Software Foundations and Robotics Integration.
This program works with Westmoreland County Community College to provide student trainers who will then implement the program with a local community organization to recruit students from Westmoreland County. The participants will get the opportunity to earn the new micro-certifications, a stipend, site visits with local training programs, tech/robotics companies, and also community college credits for completing the program.
Westmoreland County Community College has an incredible set of offerings for Robotics which are housed at WCCC's Advanced Technology Center (ATC). However, Westmoreland County does not have the same amount of programs that offer students pathways toward the field in comparison to what is available in Allegheny County. Due to this, CMRA and WCCC will work with WCCC's internal outreach department to connect with Westmoreland County youth and youth providers to recruit and give access to this program to participants. The hope is that this program will serve as a pilot for a continued program where a student teacher at WCCC will continue providing this program to students around the county.
To learn more, contact Vu Nguyen at vnguyen@cmu.edu.