How
can HFM BOCES schools and communities benefit from the growth of
New York’s Tech Valley?
GlobalFoundries
Community Forum explores the impact on local communities,
schools and business
 Broadalbin
– A community forum examining the impact of GlobalFoundries’ new
“chip fab” plant on schools and the local economy will take
place from 6:30-8:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Mar. 23, at
Broadalbin-Perth High School. The free event features a panel of
education, industry and community leaders who will discuss the
opportunities high-tech industrial growth presents to the HFM
BOCES region.
Parents, students,
teachers and community members are encouraged to attend the
forum in the Broadalbin-Perth High School auditorium to learn
what the new global economy, and the development of Tech Valley,
means for the local communities, schools and students’ future
careers.
The forum panelists
include: Mike Russo, Director of U.S. Governmental Relations for
Global Foundries; Dr. Dustin Swanger, President,
Fulton-Montgomery Community College; F. Michael Tucker,
President, Center for Economic Growth; Stephen Tomlinson,
Superintendent, Broadalbin-Perth Central School District; and
Michael J. Reese, President, Fulton County Economic Development
Corp. The program will be moderated by David Rooney, Senior Vice
President of Business Development and Marketing of the Center
for Economic Growth.
The forum is hosted
by the Hamilton-Fulton-Montgomery Business Education Alliance
(BEA), a coalition of schools, economic development agencies,
and chambers of commerce formed to help promote and strengthen
the career and job opportunities in the local communities.
"We believe that the
success of GlobalFoundries is directly linked to the success of
the communities in which it operates," Mr. Russo said.
HFM BOCES’
three-county region is poised to reap significant benefits from
the development of the Hudson River corridor known as Tech
Valley, particularly as hundreds of support businesses grow or
move here to benefit from the “chip fab” boom.
GlobalFoundries’
computer chip fabrication plant in Malta is located less than 30
miles from HFM BOCES schools and communities. Billions of
dollars being spent to build the state-of-the-art facility will
result in thousands of new jobs there and with the many other
technology-related companies setting up shop in the Capital
Region.
According to
TechAmerica’s CyberCities 2010 Report, Tech Valley is “one of
the fastest growing areas in the US for high-tech employment.”
GlobalFoundries’ $4.5 billion plant construction is currently
the largest commercial capital expansion project in the country,
and the company is expected to employ more than 1,600 people
when fully operational.
Success magazine
featured the growth of Tech Valley in a Dec. 2010 article,
claiming the increased job market “will enhance the area with
over $300 million per year in increased payroll.” Along with
GlobalFoundries, General Electric has contracted to build a new,
$100 million, sodium battery manufacturing facility that will
create approximately 350 jobs.
The technology
making all this growth possible is not just affecting careers in
math and science. From restaurants and hotels to government,
medicine and communications careers, 21stcentury technology has
exploded and continues to change just about every imaginable
career field.
Fueled by federal
and corporate investment, the University at Albany, RPI and
other area colleges are ramping up new degree programs and
facilities to help respond to the needs of local industry.
HFM BOCES, in a
collaborative partnership with Fulton-Montgomery Community
College and the National Science Foundation, is introducing
Engineering Technology, a new Career & Technical program, for
2011-12. The two-year program focuses instruction in current and
emerging technologies with heavy emphasis on STEM (Science,
Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) skills. Students will
utilize FMCC’s Center for Engineering and Technology
laboratories, including the chip fabrication clean room,
robotics lab, and electronics facility, and will be equipped to
pursue career opportunities in civil, electrical, environmental,
aerospace and mechanical engineering. |
