The Calhoun College Foundation has been awarded a $500,000 grant from the Gene Haas Foundation. The funding was presented in a jumbo check Wednesday, March 2 at the Advanced Technology Center (ATC) exhibit hall on the Decatur Campus in Tanner.
According to Johnette Davis, Calhoun Foundation director, the funds were awarded in exchange for naming rights to the college’s Computer Numerical Control (CNC) Lab located in the ATC.
The “high bay” CNC lab has been renamed the Gene Haas Center for Advanced Manufacturing. The grant also helps fund any expansion plans and will create more training opportunities for future manufacturing technology students.
“The Gene Haas Foundation has been a consistent supporter of our advanced manufacturing students through scholarships over the years,” said John Holley, Dean of Technologies at Calhoun. “Calhoun’s technologies programs are recognized across the region as one of the best workforce development training facilities, and by partnering with The Gene Haas Foundation, that has only strengthened our efforts.”
Gene Haas is founder and president of Haas Automation, the largest machine tool manufacturer in the United States. They have over 45 state-of-the-art advanced manufacturing learning labs at top-level institutions across the nation. Their goal is to provide the best CNC training and advanced manufacturing education possible.
Hass training is designed to increase the supply of highly skilled graduates available to meet the workforce demands in North Alabama.
“It is an extraordinary honor for Calhoun’s Advanced Manufacturing Center to bear the Gene Haas name, and we are deeply grateful to The Gene Haas Foundation for its partnership and shared vision,” said Davis.
