Wake Tech and NC A&T University Sign Technical Education Partnership

RALEIGH, NC (October 10, 2022) – Wake Tech and North Carolina Agricultural Technology State University today entered into a technical education partnership agreement to accelerate new degree and career development opportunities for students in information technology and biotechnology programs. signed.

As part of the agreement, NC A&T will have access to classroom and office space at the Lilly Science and Technology Center on Wake Tech’s RTP campus for enrollment support and advice. Executive offices include two brands of NCAT-prioritized schedules on his first-floor classrooms and up to three of his third-floor faculty office spaces. The Lilly Center is also home to the new Wake Early College of Information and Biotechnology, and the degrees offered in the new partnership align with the program areas offered through Early College.

“North Carolina A&T and Wake Technical Community College are national leaders in technical education in their respective fields, and this new collaboration will further extend the impact of both institutions.” Together, this new partnership will create an unrivaled technology education pipeline at the heart of America’s premier technology employment hub.”

As October is recognized as Cybersecurity Awareness Month, A&T’s leadership in cybersecurity education and research is supported by the Department of Defense (DOD) It has consistently gained national recognition, including the national designation as National Security Agency Cybersecurity Center for Academic Excellence. Selected as one of six Historically Black Universities (HBCUs) selected to cohort.

A&T’s College of Science and Technology (COST) has departments in Applied Engineering Technology, Applied Science and Technology, Biology, Computer Graphics Technology, and Computer Systems Technology and has been ranked among the top 20 US News & World Report for online master’s programs. We are proud of the national ranking. COST will also be home to the new America’s Leading Edge (ACE) Regional Machine Tool Workforce Training Center this spring in partnership with the Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation Institute. ACE is a joint initiative of the DOD and the Department of Energy to reestablish U.S. leadership in the machine tool industry.

Harold L. Martin Sr. Chancellor said: Technology is critical to achieving our mission as we work to improve the human condition and promote economic prosperity for the people of North Carolina. ”

This new link between Wake Tech, the state’s largest community college, and A&T, the largest HBCU in the United States, will establish a pool of resources and opportunities along the North Carolina Innovation Corridor that will ultimately benefit students and the state. ‘s economy and reaffirmed North Carolina’s rating by CNBC as the best state to do business in Business Facilities Magazine.

A&T has emerged as one of the leading destinations for Wake Tech IT graduates due to the recent collaboration of the two institutions in cybersecurity, computer programming and network administration. Over 5,200 students are enrolled in the Wake Tech IT degree program.

In addition to further developing and improving existing articulation agreements, the two institutions are working to develop new articulation agreements in information technology, computer engineering, biotechnology and bioengineering.

They have also developed co-enrollment programs to support Wake Tech students enrolled in distinct programs such as information technology, biotechnology, associate degrees in engineering, science and science teacher preparation, and other STEM programs. and extend.

Additionally, Wake Tech and A&T have jointly offered Level I/Level II apprenticeship programs in software development/software engineering, biotech-biopharma/bioengineering, and other potential apprenticeship pathways such as cybersecurity and analytics. to develop Establish partnerships and funding protocols to engage Wake County tech employers and share the collective workforce development benefits of the Wake Tech/NC A&T Technology Education Partnership. Collaborate on plans for potential shared cybersecurity and BioAgCenters at the new technology facility on the RTP campus.

Wake Tech and A&T are among 37 members of the Task Force on Higher Education and Opportunity, which includes universities, McKinsey & Company, and the Strada Education Network. The task force was launched in 2020 to meet the challenges of the pandemic, support an inclusive economic recovery, and reimagine the future of higher education in a changing world of work.

A&T is Wake Tech’s second colocation partnership. East Carolina University has a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Technology from its Southern Wake Campus. The ECU will eventually be co-located at Wake Tech’s Eastern Wake 4.0 site, which will open in 2024.