College of the Canyons has received a Perkins Reserve Innovation grant of $300,000 from the California Community College Chancellor’s Office to fund a network technology innovation and improvement project.
The federal grant will support the development of three COC programs: network technologies, electronic systems and cybersecurity launching in fall 2022. The grant money will be dispersed to the programs across the course of two years.
The project will create pathways to high-demand, high-wage jobs for students with a focus on awareness/outreach, workforce readiness, curricular relevancy and program excellence.
The project will also include middle school career exploration camps, bootcamps through Community Education with a focus on eSports and a marketing campaign with industry and community partners. It will engage student populations through coaching with academic advisors, career counselors and job developers to ensure completion, job placement and the advancement of diversity, equity and inclusion.
“We are very excited to have been awarded this Perkins grant in order to continue expanding these growing technological sectors,” said Harriet Happel, dean of career education, integrative learning and the employment center at the college. “The investment made in the network technologies innovation and improvement project will allow the college to realize program excellence in a sector that is critical to realizing social and economic mobility opportunities for our special populations and contributing to the economic recovery of the state of California.”
