The National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded a $3,000,000 Project Grant under the STEM Education (CFDA 47.076) program to the University of South Florida (USF) to develop and implement a comprehensive educational and research program in semiconductor design, manufacturing, and packaging. The 5-year project, titled "NRT: SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEERING, PROGRAM FOR UPWARD PARTNERSHIP (STEP-UP) FOR ADVANCING MICROELECTRONICS EDUCATION AND TRAINING", aims to train 75 Ph.D. and 133 M.S. students, including 15 Ph.D. and 8 M.S. funded trainees, across disciplines such as engineering, materials science, and computer science. The program will create a new interdisciplinary curriculum, feature novel semiconductor technology courses, and enable trainees to conduct convergent research projects with industry partners. This award reflects NSF's goal to support transformative models for STEM graduate education training in high-priority, interdisciplinary research areas aligned with evolving workforce needs.