Cincinnati State lands $3M grant for manufacturing training upgrades

CINCINNATI (WKRC) — Cincinnati State has secured a $3 million grant to support a major renovation project focused on training future workers in advanced manufacturing.

Students are currently wrapping up projects in a workshop set for a significant overhaul as part of a broader $13 million plan to modernize the college’s advanced manufacturing training wing—one of the oldest community college facilities in the state.

“This is a very old building, one of the oldest community college facilities in the state,” said Monica Posey, president of Cincinnati State.

Student Alex Bloemer said the program’s hands-on approach drew him in.

“I like being able to take a piece of material — just start with a big block and end up with a completely custom part,” Bloemer said. “We built this car from the ground up.”

He added that the program has helped him gain experience using a wide range of advanced manufacturing equipment.

“I’ve learned to run all kinds of different machines doing advanced manufacturing,” he said. “Hands-on experience is the most important part. This is not something you can learn from a book. This is not from something you learn from watching YouTube.”

Posey said the renovation will modernize and open up the space to make it more visible and accessible.

“We want to really open up the space… so students, high school students, when they come through, they’ll be able to see what we do,” she said.

With the upgrades, the college aims to increase enrollment in the program from 300 to 550 students.

“We make sure that the students are truly prepared for real-world work,” Posey said.

The project also received an additional $3 million in federal funding. Greg Landsman joined other officials to present the funding and tour the facility.

“Every investment we make in Cincinnati State is an investment in the region,” Landsman said.

Bloemer said the improvements will benefit future students.

“I think this upgrade will really help future students. It will make everything more efficient. It’ll make learning easier,” he said.

Construction is expected to begin within the next year.

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