WC joins regional partnership for semiconductor workforce development
Students at Weatherford College could benefit from new training, equipment and career opportunities through a regional partnership supporting semiconductor workforce development.
WC is one of seven community colleges participating in the Texoma Semiconductor Tech Hub, a consortium led by Southern Methodist University that received $23.9 million through the U.S. Economic Development Administration's 2025 Disaster Supplemental Grant Program.
The partnership also includes 13 universities and numerous industry partners focused on growing semiconductor manufacturing in North Texas and Oklahoma.
“This work has been two years in the making,” said Dr. Shannon Ydoyaga, WC’s dean of emerging technologies and workforce. “Our role is to provide a portion of the workforce for this growing sector.”
The college will help prepare students for careers in advanced manufacturing and related industries through its existing Robotics and Automation/Advanced Manufacturing Associate of Applied Science program and a proposed Associate of Applied Science degree in Logistics and Supply Chain Management.
“This funded grant and partnership with SMU and others is just one more step towards the goal of increasing our number of highly trained workforce program graduates,” said WC President Tod Allen Farmer. “Semiconductor workforce development, robotics, artificial intelligence, and cybersecurity are just a few of our rapidly expanding, high-tech workforce programs."
The partnership also creates opportunities to pursue additional funding for new academic programs, equipment and student employment initiatives tied to the semiconductor sector.
The funding will help train workers, support industry growth and expand facilities needed to attract and support semiconductor companies in the region. The investment builds on work that began when the Texoma Semiconductor Tech Hub received federal designation in 2023.