State STEM Advisory Council meets at Massachusetts Green High Performing Computing Center in Holyoke

HOLYOKE, Mass. (WWLP) – The Massachusetts STEM Advisory Council alongside Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll gathered in Holyoke Tuesday to discuss the future of emerging technologies and their role in the state’s economy.

Represented on the council are the full scope of state government and education along with university researchers and private sector leaders in STEM fields, all with the common goal of strengthening the state’s position as a global leader in emerging technologies.

“Think about right now how robust the STEM industry is and how many opportunities there are. We want to make sure people are aware first and foremost,” said State Secretary of Education Dr. Patrick Tutwiler.

The council chose Tuesday’s location to get a glimpse at a facility that has already put the state at the forefront of STEM research, the Massachusetts Green High Performance Computing Center. Some 300,000 computers are working together inside, teaming up to serve research opportunities at all of the states major research universities. Tuesday’s team meeting discussed how to earn more federal dollars and apply more state dollars to similar endeavors.

“We really need to proceed hands joined. Folks in industry, educators, people policy makers so that we are creating the right path forward for all who are interested in these careers.”

The Secretary of Labor & Workforce Development discussed a few active, and recently awarded, grant applications to bring federal dollars from the CHIPS and Science Act to the state. Among those awarded funds is to bring the state’s Quantum Computing hub to Springfield and a new bio-manufacturing facility to Worcester.

Already, 21-percent of the state’s workforce is employed by the STEM industry, far above the national average of 14-percent. Based on projections from the 2022 STEM report, the initiatives discussed Tuesday in Holyoke could boost that by another seven-percent by 2028.