Nassau BOCES receives $5 million grant from Small Business Administration
Nassau BOCES is the recipient of a $5 million grant by the U. S. Small Business Administration to advance manufacturing training and technical assistance for high school and adult learners. BOCES is one of 11 organizations nationwide to receive the Empower to Grow Manufacturing in America Grant. “SBA is looking for organizations that will provide technical. . . Read More
Nassau BOCES is the recipient of a $5 million grant by the U. S. Small Business Administration to advance manufacturing training and technical assistance for high school and adult learners. BOCES is one of 11 organizations nationwide to receive the Empower to Grow Manufacturing in America Grant. “SBA is looking for organizations that will provide technical proficiency and essential skills, including operating machinery, quality control, utilizing industrial software, and maintaining workplace safety,” the SBA’s grants page says. The grant money will be used specifically for Nassau BOCES’s “Long Island Defense Manufacturing Resilience Initiative,” which aims to bolster Long Island’s defense workforce and economy. “The companies that we’ve developed relationships and partnerships with will be working closely with us and identifying students who will be graduating from the programs as potential employees for the future,” Pete Dalton said, workforce development administrator for Nassau BOCES. “It’ll prepare them for entry into those careers. ”Dalton said that Long Island is home to approximately 3,200 manufacturers, with just under 400 having defense contracts. “It’s really opening up the doors to opportunities that they might not have been aware of prior,” Dalton said. The partnership with SBA will allow BOCES to improve and build upon its programs in welding, electrical systems, industrial piping and advanced manufacturing, such as operating computer numerical control machinery. “Not only are we going to be improving or upgrading some of our equipment and the infrastructure, but also having the ability to build out two mobile VR/AR training vans in partnership with Festo Didactic,” Dalton said. Brian Simmons, director of Nassau BOCES’s Department of Regional Schools and Instructional Programs, said that career and technical education allows learners to jump right into industry after they finish school. “It’s training all of the math, science and literacy skills that you would get in the most rigorous training programs, but it’s targeted towards employment,” Simmons said. “This is the hallmark of a strong education. ”Simmons said the SBA grant will allow BOCES to continue supporting the Long Island economy, just as it has for nearly 60 years. “This is really a spark plug for the Long Island economy,” Simmons said. “We’re at an inflection point where things can dramatically change, and this can be the engine that drives not only the local economy, but the national economy, based on all of the talent that we have right here on Long Island. ”Nassau BOCES will launch its advanced manufacturing program at Barry Tech for adult learners in January 2027 and for high school students in September 2027.