Collaborative research: epiic: collaborations with high-tech industry partners (chip)

This $400,000 federal Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships (CFDA 47.084) program will enable Youngstown State University (YSU) to establish partnerships, develop capacity, and secure future funding to support ongoing efforts in emerging technology fields and regional innovation ecosystems.

The key activities under this award include:

• Enhancing YSU's industry advisory committee structure by aligning it with the Business and Industry Leadership Team (BILT) model
• Creating a Center for the Future of Work to study and propose solutions to workforce challenges such as skills gaps, changing demographics, and adapting to hybrid work
• Embedding a Workforce Partnerships Team as the front door for business engagement

Through these initiatives, the project aims to improve the connection between the university and the broader workforce ecosystem, focusing partnerships around innovation, productivity, and empowering individuals in emerging industries. The award will leverage federal, state, and private funding opportunities to expand effective activities, pilot new programs, and launch research to address the growing need for workforce development in new and emerging technologies.

Abstract

Through the NSF epiic grant, cuyahoga community college (TRI-c), tuskegee university, youngstown state university, madison area technical college, and owens state community college will create partnerships, develop capacity, and secure future funding to support ongoing efforts in emerging technology fields and regional innovation ecosystems. To achieve this goal, the college will enhance its existing advisory committee structure by aligning activities with the business and industry leadership team (bilt) model, creating a center for the future of work, and embedding the workforce partnerships team as the front door to business engagement. The center for the future of work will study and propose solutions to challenges employers are facing regarding candidate scarcity, fewer job applicants overall, technical skills mismatch, interest MIS-match, misalignment between compensation and benefits expectations, changing demographics, employee burnout and mental health, and adapting to hybrid work models. The rapid pace of technological advancement necessitates continuous upskilling and lifelong learning to remain relevant in the future job market. The main goal of this project is to improve the connection between college to the workforce ecosystem. The project will focus partnerships within this ecosystem around innovation, productivity, and individual empowerment in emerging industries. The center for the future of work (CFW) will spearhead the engagement of partnerships to conduct sustained, coordinated research on the challenges facing our workforce ecosystem. The CFW will leverage federal, state, and private funding opportunities to expand the most effective activities, pilot new initiatives, and launch research. The project will address the growing need for workforce development in new and emerging technologies, by leveraging collective strengths and resources that can build sustainable partnerships that benefit our institutions, industry partners, and the broader community. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.- subawards are not planned for this award.