The Center for the Advancement of Nanotechnology (NanoCenter), at the San Bernardino Community College District (SBCCD), will offer two summer training cohorts this summer. One will start on May 23 and the other on July 25. Interested parties should visit www.attctraining.org or call 909.382.4001. Attendees may be able to take advantage of $4,500.00 worth of professional development training in Nanotechnology paid for by a grant from the U.S. Department of Labor. A registration packet and additional information about the Economic Development & Corporate Training division of the SBCCD are posted there.
The NanoCenter has recently completed instruction for the class that started in March. “These participants came from various walks of life,” said Dr. Jamail D. Carter, Assistant Director of Applied Technologies Training. “We’re so excited that they invested the time and effort to learn this emerging technology, which has many applications.”
“The instructor made the scientific principles easy to understand,” said Osabuogbe Igbinedion, a member of the evening class, shown accepting his certificate. The training program requires 90 hours to complete, and courses and topics covered include Electronic Devices, Optoelectronic Devices, Nano-Characterization, Micro-Nanofabrication, Materials Characterization, and Device Characterization.
Joshua Masiko and Emdadul (Bobby) Khan, two participants from a previous cohort, were recently offered positions; Mr. Masiko at a medical organization and Mr. Khan as the West Coast Manager of Operations Logistics for a scientific company. Both individuals believe that the Nanotechnology Technicians’ Training Program contributed to their new positions.
“It is satisfying when you hear stories like these,” noted Dr. Matthew Isaac, Executive Director, Economic Development and Corporate Training (EDCT). “This training program was designed to advance the economic development opportunities for Nanotechnology in our region, by developing a pipeline of skilled individuals ready for employment as technicians in the field of Nanotechnology and related fields. The experiences of both Joshua and Bobby show that we are making progress in this endeavor,” said Isaac.
“Solutions just don’t fall out of the sky for the unemployed. In order to be positioned to land a job in our region’s highly competitive job market individuals need to obtain new skills,” noted Carter. “ Our state’s unemployment is hovering around 12%.We (the SBCCD) are fortunate to have been awarded funding to introduce and train the Inland Valley in several emerging technologies, to help those in our community develop the skills needed to be successful in today’s economy. We’re proud to boast that nearly 1 out of 5 individuals who complete our program who were unemployed when they started land a job within ninety days after completion.”
Most of the classes take place here at the NanoCenter, located at 114 S. Del Rosa Drive in San Bernardino, with some components of the hands-on portions held at the Bourns College of Engineering Labs at the University of California at Riverside.”