The US National Science Foundation (NSF) has partnered with Micron and GlobalFoundries to support semiconductor workforce development initiatives at minority-serving institutions.
Under the terms of the partnership, the three organizations will work with industry leaders, government, and educational institutions to increase access and opportunities in the semiconductor industry from attendees of historically Black colleges and universities, Hispanic-serving institutions, and Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving Institutions across the US.
No financial commitment has been made public alongside the announcement.
However, under the terms of the US CHIPS and Science Act, which recently saw GF awarded $1.5bn and Micron receive $6.14bn, both companies agreed to invest in training and workforce programs to help provide access to jobs when their facilities are complete.
In April, when Micron was awarded the funding, the company said it would spend at least $40 million from the CHIPS funding to support training and workforce schemes. Global Foundries did not specify how much it would be contributing.
The news comes six months after the NSF announced it would be investing $18.8 million to support 27 teams at higher education institutions across the US, with each team eligible to receive up to $1 million for up to three years.
Through the NSF Future of Semiconductors program, the organization has also partnered with Ericsson, IBM, Intel, and Samsung to establish 24 research and education projects with a total investment of $45.6 million.
"Partnering with leaders in industry, government, and education to meet the needs of a growing semiconductor workforce in the U.S. is an essential part of nurturing the talent necessary to fill key openings in the semiconductor industry," said Erwin Gianchandani, NSF assistant director for technology, innovation, and partnerships.
"We look forward to collaborating with our partners to increase access to equitable education, address student programming and teacher and faculty professional development, and strengthen infrastructure through future funding opportunities."
Despite the significant investment from the US government to support the construction of semiconductor fabs across the country, concerns have been raised regarding the lack of skilled workers to man the facilities.
In 2023, TSMC delayed construction at its Arizona fab citing struggles with sourcing talent in the region.
A 2022 report from Boston Consulting Group titled ‘The Growing Challenge of Semiconductor Design Leadership’ stated that at the current rate of growth, demand for design workers in the semiconductor industry will exceed supply by nearly 35 percent in 2030.
