Alfred State College has been awarded a five-year, $3 million federal education grant to expand skilled-trades training, alongside a separate $150,000 award to improve computer-controlled machining equipment on its Alfred and Wellsville campuses.
Rep. Nick Langworthy announced both awards Monday. His office said the Education Department's Title III grant provides $1,797,430 in its first year, while the Appalachian Regional Commission award is for a separate machining project. The release did not provide a year-by-year breakdown for the rest of the Title III grant.
Equipment and training at two campuses
The $150,000 Appalachian Regional Commission award will update computer numerical control, or CNC, equipment used in Alfred State's trades courses. The college plans improvements at its Alfred and Wellsville campuses through a project the release calls Shaping Manufacturing.
Langworthy's office said approximately 180 students would receive hands-on training with the updated equipment. It expects at least 150 students to complete courses, earn credentials or graduate and enter the workforce, though those are projections rather than reported outcomes. The training is intended to prepare students for work in manufacturing, automotive, aerospace and electronics fields.
Larger grant covers technology and student support
The five-year Title III grant is intended to update equipment and laboratories for skilled-trades education, including manufacturing and construction programs. The $3 million is the stated total grant amount, not the amount available in the first year; the release identifies $1,797,430 for that first year.
The plan includes connected classrooms, upgraded technology infrastructure and curriculum that incorporates artificial intelligence. The release also describes opportunities for students to learn from industry leaders, alongside hands-on technical training.
Part of the larger grant would expand tutoring, coaching, financial-literacy instruction and access to tools and technology. Langworthy's office said those supports are meant to help more students complete their programs and move into jobs; it did not provide an implementation schedule, enrollment targets or a measure of expected graduation gains for the Title III project.
Langworthy said the equipment and technology investments are intended to give students practical experience with tools used in modern manufacturing. He tied the awards to a broader goal of preparing workers for the jobs his office says federal manufacturing policies seek to create.
The two awards total $3.15 million as described in the release. The announced next step is for Alfred State to carry out the equipment, classroom and student-support upgrades; the release does not specify when the new facilities or programs will be available to students.
FingerLakes1.com is the region’s leading all-digital news publication. The company was founded in 1998 and has been keeping residents informed for more than two decades. Have a lead? Send it to news@fingerlakes1.com.