The University of Arkansas – Pulaski Technical College (UA-PTC) has received a $2.5 million grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration to launch the first phase of its STEM Park Project. The university will match $653,230 in funding to remodel the existing Science building, labs and classrooms.
The STEM Park Project, which will be located on UA-PTC’s main campus in North Little Rock, is designed to provide increased educational offerings in STEM-related fields, such as allied-health, advanced manufacturing, business and information technology and cybersecurity.
“This is an incredible gift and opportunity for our college and for the State. It’s a huge win for students who receive training for STEM careers and a win for businesses with access to a deeper pool of trained employees.” UA-PTC Chancellor Margaret Ellibee said in a statement. “UA-PTC’s existing laboratory spaces can no longer serve student demand for our STEM classes, and we are turning away 200-300 students per semester due to inadequate and outdated facilities.”
There will be three phases to the $10 million STEM Park Project. The first phase, funded by the EDA grant, will be a remodel of the UA-PTC science building, while the second phase will be the construction of a two-story addition to the science building. The third phase will add a skybridge to join the science building with the business/information technology building.
As part of the project, UA-PTC will be upgrading its equipment and technology in its labs and classrooms.
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