Peters, Scholten tout $1M for GRCC Center for Automation

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — U.S. Sen. Gary Peters and newly elected Rep. Hillary Scholten toured the Grand Rapids Community College M-Tech building Friday.

The two Democrats announced the school is a recipient of nearly $1 million in federal funding after Peters helped secure the funding in a bipartisan bill passed in December. The money will go toward the creation of a Center for Automation, which should be open by the end of 2024.

“You do need to have specialized skills,” Peters said. “Those skills are taught right here at GRCC and other institutions through West Michigan. It represents the future, where we are going and the more people that are trained in artificial intelligence here in West Michigan will mean more job opportunities for everybody.”

The state-of-the-art, fully automated facility will serve as a training hub for students who pursue advance manufacturing and automation jobs.

“Students have been through so much these past two years,” Scholten said. “Making sure we have the workforce ready, the opportunities ready for them when they’re ready to graduate is just so important.”