TSTC's MEI program is offering pathways into data center careers
A Texas State Technical College program in Red Oak, Texas, is successfully training individuals for data center careers. The program has produced 22 graduates across two cohorts, with 21 finding jobs in the industry. Workforce Solutions for North Central Texas is monitoring the long-term sustainability of these positions.
The Dallas Morning News reported on a successful data center technician program at Texas State Technical College (TSTC) in Red Oak, Texas. The program, which caps cohorts at 12 students for a 12-week training period, aims to prepare individuals for the rapidly growing data center industry, with graduates potentially earning up to $40 an hour.
According to TSTC, 21 out of 22 graduates from the initial cohorts have secured employment, a promising early indicator. Vincent Deose, an electrician and military veteran from Glen Heights, Texas, is part of the third cohort, seeking to rebrand his career and enter the "new thing" of data centers.
Fedra Reder, Executive Director of Workforce Solutions for North Central Texas, emphasized that while getting people into the door is important, the long-term measure of success is whether graduates remain employed, achieve higher wages, and build stable careers. The program is viewed as a test case for sustainable workforce development in the region's expanding data center sector.