Utah Space Grant Supports STEM Workforce Hub

MANTI, Utah — When you think about the people needed to get the next generation of spacecraft into space, astronauts and engineers may come to mind first.

But NASA needs something else, too: skilled workers who can build the parts that make those missions possible.

That is where Southern Utah University is stepping in.

SUU has been selected to lead a new statewide NASA aerospace workforce hub, part of a roughly $10.5 million, multi-year investment from NASA designed to strengthen the pipeline of skilled technical workers for the aerospace industry.

The effort could eventually connect thousands of Utah students and educators with opportunities in fields including welding, machining, electrical work, advanced manufacturing and other technical careers.

And in rural Utah, some of those skills are already being taught.

From the shop room to space

At Manti High School, students spend time learning skills they can use in the trades – from welding and woodworking to engineering and drafting.

Junior Cole Osborn says he is already considering a career in the trades.

“Welding would be pretty fun to go into, or anything with electrical or something like that,” Osborn said.

The new NASA initiative could give students like him a clearer connection between the skills they are learning in high school and the aerospace industry.

Melinda Pfundstein, SUU’s executive director of Community and Workforce Development, is helping lead the initiative. She spoke with FOX 13 from NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, where representatives from the seven newly selected state hubs are taking part in NASA onboarding and training.

“NASA has turned their attention toward building skilled technical workforce in aerospace through these hubs,” Pfundstein said.

She said the goal is to help students think beyond the traditional image of an astronaut.