RIT joins workforce development initiative for building semiconductors

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — The Rochester Institute of Technology has joined a prestigious network of semiconductor manufacturers.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Monday announced the college joined the Northeast University Semiconductor Network. That’s a workforce development initiative started by Micron, the company will soon open a huge computer chip plant in the Syracuse area.

Monday’s announcement is to help prepare the next generation of high-tech workers for thousands of jobs coming to New York.

“Please know that was not a small part of the decision making. That was a huge part of the decision making, for us to select Clay, New York as our site,” said Manish Bhatia, executive vice president of global operations at Micron. “It was the legacy of tremendous engineering capability, materials science research, and innovation as well as industrial and manufacturing activity.”

RIT’s president says the network will further bolster their ability to best educate the workforce that will keep the U.S. at the forefront of the semiconductor industry.