$2 million for Suffolk County Community College to stimulate workforce training and redevelopment.
At a recent meeting of the Enterprise Council of the Long Island Council of the U.S. Naval Alliance, U.S. Navy Commander Joshua Sturgill, the senior enlisted leader for Submarine Command, announced a $2 million grant toward advanced manufacturing scholarships, funded by the Navy Submarine industrial base. Suffolk County Community College has been awarded a $2 million grant to fund the tuition of 500 certificate-earning students over five years.
The event represents the culmination of a year-long effort by the Long Island City Council’s Enterprise Committee to stimulate workforce training and redevelopment under the US Navy’s Accelerated Training for Defense Manufacturing (ATDM) program.
Walter A. Poggi, Board Chairman and President, Retlif Testing Laboratories, Inc., Ronkonkoma, NY, said: Long Island economy and Long Island defense manufacturers. It is also important to the US Navy as it will develop a highly educated professional workforce with knowledge of the fastest growing technologies in the Submarine Industrial Base (DIB) manufacturing sector. Their skills and nationally recognized credentials will make them well-positioned to achieve the Navy’s goal of developing cutting-edge submarines and other vessels. These capabilities are urgently needed today by U.S. shipyards, U.S. manufacturers, and the entire U.S. military and maritime industry. “
The event was held at Suffolk County Community College (SCCC) on the Brentwood, NY campus. Sixty people from more than two dozen well-known Long Island defense manufacturers and defense testing organizations, as well as stakeholders from higher education institutions and county, state and federal governments, were the first to learn of the happy news. In addition to keynote speaker Commander Joshua Sturgill, other dignitaries who spoke included Suffolk County Labor Commissioner Rosalie Drago and SCCC Chairman Edward T. Edward T. Bonahue. U.S. Navy Rear Admiral Scott W. Pappano, Executive Officer, Strategic Submarine Program, spoke via zoom conference.
About the U.S. Naval Union Long Island Commission.
About the Accelerated Training for Defense Manufacturing (ATDM) program.
The ATDM program is designed to help those seeking continuing education, including veterans transitioning to civilian life, gain the skills needed for a career in building the U.S. Navy’s next-generation submarines. Topics include training in additive manufacturing, CNC machining, metrology (QC inspection), and non-destructive testing and welding.
