, and outcomes of integrating entrepreneurialthinking into manufacturing curricula.2. BackgroundThe University of Arizona (UArizona), a public land-grant and Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI), has astrong ecosystem for promoting technological innovations. As a highly ranked public research institution,our diverse engineering student population has many opportunities to engage with faculty in innovativeresearch and coursework on new technologies. Additionally, students have access to free, asynchronousprogramming to promote an entrepreneurial mindset and develop their own startups. Students can alsoapply for formal mentorship through the startup process.Engineering education has long emphasized the importance of equipping students with hands
study, technicians are primarily characterized asmatriculants of 2-year community college programs or vocational technology high-schools.Roadmap Study: Workforce Education and Skills GapsAn education roadmap survey was developed for manufacturing operations managers across thesilicon-based PIC and fiber optics supply chain, to identify and prioritize workforce needs acrossthe supply chain. Over 50 firms evaluated their skills gaps, hiring and training challenges, andfuture worker demand for middle-skilled technical occupations, commonly known as technicianpositions. Results confirm an increasing demand for technicians in these two industries,especially for photonics technicians, CNC tool operators, and electrical engineering technicians(see Fig