Spectrum News: Cincinnati recruits high-tech manufacturing
UC shows Spectrum News how it is preparing graduates for new tech jobs
Spectrum News visited the University of Cincinnati's cleanroom in the Mantie Center to see how students are getting ready for Ohio's nascent microchip manufacturing industry.
Rashmi Jha, a professor of electrical engineering in UC's College of Engineering and Applied Science, told Spectrum News that UC students are preparing to work in Ohio's growing high-tech manufacturing industry with targeted training.
"At Intel, a lot of things will be automatic, but the fundamentals will be the same," Jha told Spectrum News.
UC College of Engineering and Applied Science professor Rashmi Jha talks to Spectrum News about how UC is preparing graduates to work in Ohio's growing manufacturing industry. Photo/Spectrum News
Intel is building two new microchip fabrication plants outside Columbus, a move that is expected to boost electronics manufacturing along the entire supply chain in Ohio. President Biden this week signed a bill that will provide more than $52 billion in subsidies for U.S. semiconductor production and research to spur American manufacturing.
UC microelectronics engineer Ronald Flenniken said graduates often leave Ohio to pursue careers in high-tech manufacturing.
"If you ever really wanted to do this as a living, you had to go to the East Coast or West Coast," Flenniken told Spectrum News. "Now with Intel being in the Midwest, it makes a big difference."
UC and a dozen other Midwestern universities and colleges created a new network designed to support semiconductor and microelectronics production in the United States.
"This network of Midwest academic institutions represents an enormous opportunity for our region to lead in microelectronics — both in technological advancement and workforce development," UC President Neville Pinto said.
Featured image at top: A UC College of Engineering and Applied Science student works in a microelectronics clean room at the Mantei Center. Photo/Spectrum News
Related Stories
'Paradigm-shifting' study confirms effectiveness of long-acting HIV treatment
February 26, 2026
The results of a clinical trial involving the University of Cincinnati, recently published in The New England Journal of Medicine, show people failing HIV treatments with oral medications were able to be treated successfully using injections.
How do horses whinny?
February 26, 2026
A horse makes the low-pitched part of its whinny by vibrating its vocal cords — similar to how humans speak and sing — and the high-pitched part by whistling with its voice box, according to a new paper published in the journal Current Biology and featured in Smithsonian magazine.
UC receives grant for AI use in medical education
February 26, 2026
The University of Cincinnati is turning to artificial intelligence to help solve a problem in medical training. The College of Medicine was awarded a grant valued at more than $1 million to use AI in advanced physician training through personalized learning.