NASA taps Georgia Tech for $10.5 million push to build the space workforce

NASA's Office of STEM Engagement selected Georgia Tech to participate in a partnership designed to address a shortage of skilled technicians in the aerospace industry.

Elaine Ho, NASA's associate administrator for STEM engagement, said there is an urgent need for workers in roles including welding and machining. The initiative includes six other institutions and aims to reach students who may not pursue traditional four-year degrees.

"The whole idea behind these state hubs is to bring everyone together so that we can have more students going into these skilled technician roles faster," Ho said.

Georgia Tech was selected partly because of its relationships with technical colleges, high school programs and aerospace employers.

"When anyone thinks of NASA, you think of our exciting missions, and you often think about who does them and say, well, astronauts and rocket scientists. In reality, we really need people to build the hardware that we are using to go to the moon and to Mars and to explore the universe, and so we need welders, electricians, machinists and fabricators, and not enough students are going into those careers," Ho said.

NASA funded the program with $10.5 million to be distributed over three years. Ho said officials expect to see results after the first year.

The partnership is expected to establish a faster path for training students for high-demand, well-paying jobs in the aerospace industry.

"The goal is to reach students across the state of Georgia through these collaborations," Ho said.

The program will also help pay for students' courses if needed.

Georgia Tech officials said the program will offer courses leading to short-term certificates and associate degrees through partnerships involving Georgia Tech, the Technical College System of Georgia, Georgia Southern University and industry partners.

Stephen Ruffin, interim chair of Georgia Tech's School of Aerospace Engineering, said the program will offer courses that are typically shorter than those required to earn a degree.

"Many will be online and some in-person," Ruffin said.

"Georgia Tech has a manufacturing pilot facility. That facility right now does hands-on education for high school students that may go into the skill trades. Some of those students may choose to go into degrees too," he said.

The program will also provide internships in space-related industries and hands-on learning for people pursuing associate degrees. It will also serve industry workers who want to be reskilled in new technologies, including advanced manufacturing and AI-enabled manufacturing.

"We have a Space Research Institute that brings faculty that are experts in aerospace fields, and they will be directing their energy to this effort," Ruffin said.

NASA also funds the Georgia Space Grant Consortium, which Ruffin leads.

"We have been focused on kindergarten through Ph.D., but not really targeted at the skilled workforce training," he said.

Ruffin said he is excited to help get the program started and develop curricula aimed at strengthening the country's competitiveness in the aerospace industry.

"One of the reasons I am excited to operate this program in Georgia is because Georgia is a leader in aerospace. The number one export of Georgia is aerospace products, and that is an $57B industry in Georgia that supports over 800 companies in Georgia and 200,000 residents that are working in the aviation space, manufacturing, repair and operations," he explained. "So when we think about what is getting supported in this program, some of it will go to NASA's missions going to the moon and to space, but it is also going to be building and supporting the workforce in Georgia that is critical," Ruffin said.

The Georgia Aerospace and Defense Alliance is also a partner in the program.