Austin, TX
How UT and Austin Community College are helping tackle semiconductor workforce needs
When U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo came to Austin Community College on Monday, she recognized a student at the school.
“She shakes my hand and she’s like, ‘Wait, do I remember you?’” said Eriverto Adame, a student at ACC who wants to work as an engineer.
On Raimondo’s visit to the campus Monday, she was meeting with ACC and University of Texas students aspiring to work in the semiconductor industry to ask them how she could help, Adame said. This was Raimondo’s second visit to ACC in a little over a year to learn about the college’s growing semiconductor workforce programs.
More: Why Samsung semiconductor plant in Taylor is receiving $6.4 billion from federal CHIPS Act
“We have the best people in the background right now who are putting all their effort and even more to expand this group,” Adame said.
After a governmental push to bolster the industry, ACC and the University of Texas announced in late March that they are developing a joint semiconductor training center and semiconductor curriculum and credentialing to create more education pathways to help fill jobs in the growing field.
Before stopping at ACC on Monday, Raimondo was in Taylor with other officials to announce a deal between the Biden administration and semiconductor production giant Samsung that would give $6.4 billion to the corporation’s still-under-construction manufacturing facility northeast of Austin.
Semiconductors enable modern technology in everything from a calculator to gaming systems, said Laura Marmolejo, associate dean of advanced manufacturing at ACC.
By 2030, the nation’s semiconductor workforce is projected to grow by 115,000 jobs, according to a July 2023 study by economic research consulting group Oxford Economics. It estimated that 58% of new jobs won’t be filled if degree completion rates stay the same — including technicians, computer scientists and engineers.
National security and the hardware behind artificial intelligence both rely on semiconductors, making it a national priority to address rising work needs internally instead of outsourcing jobs, said S.V. Sreenivasan, a professor in UT’s Cockrell School of Engineering.
“This is not only a fast-growing industry (that) creates well-paying jobs, but it’s strategically important for our commerce and our national security,” Sreenivasan said. “We either will lead or will follow, and you know what is the obvious thing to do.”
Sreenivasan led a task force at UT created in 2021 to bolster Austin’s semiconductor manufacturing as U.S. lawmakers from Texas were working on the CHIPS and Science Act, a bill President Joe Biden signed into law in 2022 that set aside $280 billion to address the shortage of microchips, an essential part of the manufacturing process.
After Texas passed its own CHIPS Act in 2023 to support and encourage companies and universities to invest in semiconductor innovation, Sreenivasan also served on the governor’s Texas Semiconductor Innovation Consortium.
“I’ve never seen this kind of collaboration to emphasize workforce,” Sreenivasan said. “We know the numbers that are needed and I think the plans are getting in place to go execute (and) make it happen.”
Marmolejo said ACC has been supporting the industry for 10 years. But with UT’s partnership, it’ll be able to expand hands-on opportunities for students in process training that used to be cost-prohibitive for ACC to provide alone.
Alyssa Reinhart, workforce development director at the Texas Institute for Electronics at UT, said the semiconductor training center, which could launch as early as January 2025, will have a physical space. Students will also take advantage of resources like the chip facility at UT’s J.J. Pickle Research Campus and a semiconductor plant on Montopolis Drive, which is currently under renovation.
The Texas Institute for Electronics, a public-private partnership created at UT which received $522 million in funding from the state, will provide $3.75 million to develop the new semiconductor training center, according to UT’s news release about the partnership.
Reinhart said the new joint UT-ACC program will work with industry partners to address the broad spectrum of jobs in the industry.
“We’re trying to align to the hiring cycles and with what company needs are,” Reinhart said.
In addition to the joint announcement, UT is also planning to launch a master’s degree in engineering with a major in semiconductor science and engineering. Reinhart said UT is also working on developing a minor.
Both higher education institutions are working to increase awareness of the forthcoming opportunities. Sreenivasan said UTeach, a program that prepares STEM-interested undergraduates to be teachers, has added semiconductors to the program. Reinhart said she is also working on involving K-12 education partners.
“People say we don’t have enough people to train for this industry,” Marmolejo said. “There are people, we just have to find a way to engage them with the educational systems with the jobs.”
Adame, who first enrolled at ACC in 2018 to pursue an associate’s degree, is now back at the college to pursue a bachelor’s degree. He got involved in semiconductor workforce training through a Samsung program that put him on a path to the associate’s degree at ACC after he graduated high school.
He said ACC’s and UT’s investment in semiconductor training is helping him “tremendously.” Pursuing this career path, he said, has opened his curiosity and potential.
“It’s changed my life drastically, not only a career change, but also a mental change,” Adame said. “Being in the semiconductor field … there’s just endless possibilities of learning.”
ASU softball to compete in NCAA Austin Super Regional
The Arizona State Sun Devils softball program will face the Texas Longhorns in the NCAA Austin Super Regional beginning Friday, May 22, 2026.
Momentum is not tangible. It is not something that can be picked up and felt. It cannot literally be seen, but while hard to grasp and seize, momentum is certainly building in Tempe.
No. 19 Arizona State softball (44-16) is preparing to head to the Austin Super Regional in the 2026 NCAA Softball Tournament to take on No. 3 Texas (42-10), with a spot in the Women’s College World Series on the line. It’s a homecoming for coach Megan Bartlett, who coached at Texas before moving to ASU.
Ahead of last week’s Bryan-College Station Regional, after shocking everybody by winning the Big 12 tournament, Bartlett said to The Arizona Republic, “When you have momentum at your back in the postseason, you become real dangerous, real quick.”
Those words proved to be prescient.
ASU opened up the Bryan-College Station Regional with a run-rule win over McNeese. In the next game, ASU beat No. 15 Texas A&M, coached by former ASU coach Trisha Ford, 4-3, setting up a potentially decisive game in a rematch.
ASU softball shocked the field and won the Big 12 tournament
After an 11-13 regular season, Arizona State softball shocked the field and won the Big 12 tournament. Next up is the Bryan-College Station Regional.
Then came redshirt senior Brooklyn Ulrich.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Ulrich uncorked a titanic grand slam – ending the game right there, 9-1, and sending ASU to the next round.
Just like that, the Sun Devils have become real dangerous, real quick.
Sun Devils underdogs again — and that’s OK
“They just keep doing their thing,” Bartlett said May 20. “People keep asking, ‘What’d you do with these kids?’
“Nothing. It was the same message over and over again. We got healthy, they put the pieces together. At that point, it’s been a lot of confidence and belief. They’re certainly playing with some incredible momentum at their back right now.”
Since losing three straight to Texas Tech in the second-to-last series of the regular season late last month, ASU has won nine games in a row, including the takedown of Texas Tech to win the Big 12 tournament.
The temperature is quickly rising in Arizona, with the end of spring and the start of summer looming. But that’s not the only thing getting hot.
Arizona State softball thrives with Red Mountain alum Brooklyn Ulrich
Arizona native Brooklyn Ulrich talks about her time growing up at Red Mountain and her journey to playing at Arizona State.
“We feel really confident going into the weekend,” said junior infielder Katie Chester, who hit a two-run home run in the first game against Texas A&M. “We’ve been saying, ‘The Devils are getting hot.’ And we got hot at the right time in the season.”
Despite the confidence built over the past few weeks, ASU is still an underdog. Texas is the defending NCAA champion, coming off ending Oklahoma’s dynastic run of four consecutive NCAA titles.
ASU is trying to use the outsider tag to its advantage.
Brooklyn Ulrich exemplifies ASU’s personality
“We know we’re the underdog going in,” Chester said. “We have nothing to lose. We just go in and play how we play. That’s why we’ve been winning all the games we have.”
For Ulrich, a Mesa native who attended Mesa Westwood and then Red Mountain, this is a moment that she was told wasn’t possible.
As a kid, she hoped to attend ASU. There’s even a photo of a young Ulrich, sporting a Mesa Mountain View shirt, along the fence at an ASU game. But Ulrich was told by Ford’s Sun Devils coaching staff at the time that she wasn’t good enough to play at ASU.
Ulrich shifted her plans and decided to attend Marshall, where she played for the next four years. When she went into the transfer portal for her final season of eligibility, she was the first player Bartlett targeted.
A homegrown talent shining for the hometown team could have a far-reaching impact for Bartlett to retain in-state athletes.
“We would love all those Brooklyns to just stay home from the get-go,” Bartlett said. “BK is such a proud Sun Devil. This was the dream from when she was little. We were so thrilled to get her. She’s a super resilient kid. She’s been a tremendous asset. We want those superstar, Arizonian kids to stay home. Be the next BK.”
Ulrich, typically soft-spoken, is trying to soak it all in. She’s been thinking of this for years — helping lead ASU.
“When I entered the portal, I said I’m not playing anywhere but Arizona State. I’m going to go play there,” Ulrich said. “It has met every expectation, every dream. I used to come here as a little girl, watch softball. We had season tickets right in front of the press box. I just loved it. It’s everything that I could have ever dreamed of.”
This season isn’t over yet — there’s still a national championship in the balance.
But Bartlett was blunt when asked how people should remember this season.
“Arizona State’s back,” Bartlett said. “We’re going to continue to do nothing but get better.”
Logan Stanley is a sports reporter with The Arizona Republic who primarily focuses on high school, college and Olympic sports. To suggest ideas for human-interest stories and other news, reach out to Stanley at logan.stanley@usatodayco.com or 707-293-7650. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter: @LSscribe.
AUSTIN, Texas – We are in the middle of early voting for the runoff elections, and the battle for the Republican nomination for attorney general is heating up.
What they’re saying:
Congressman Chip Roy spent Wednesday morning with members of the Austin Police Association. He came to show support for those wearing the badge and to voice his support for legislative proposals that are focused on liberal district attorneys.
“This is not the same as federalism. Like some people talk about it and say, well, you know, you don’t like the federal government reaching into Texas. Yeah, true. Do I want Austin micromanaging the rest of the state? I do not. But do I think the state has the legal ability? And frankly, I think it’s a moral duty. To make sure that the entire state of Texas is safe for its people? Yes, I do,” said Roy.
Congressman Roy is in a runoff for the GOP Attorney General nomination with state senator Mayes Middleton. The Galveston Republican has also been busy making campaign stops and rallying his supporters.
“You got to go earn this. You got go fight for it. And I am never retreating from Washington DC because I’m never going to Washington DC. I have always known the fight is here. And the most important thing in this race and as attorney general, the number one thing is defeating the left,” said Middleton.
Both candidates are considered staunch conservatives, but neither was included in President Trump’s Tuesday endorsement of current AG Ken Paxton.
President Trump Wednesday morning defended his endorsement of Ken Paxton for the Texas GOP Senate nomination. He made the pick despite recent polls that show Paxton is trailing Democratic nominee James Talarico.
The Paxton endorsement is an example of how the GOP Senate runoff between Paxton and incumbent John Cornyn continues to suck the political air out of all the other runoff races.
FOX 7 asked Roy and Middleton if they were disappointed.
“Well, like I would be honored to have the president’s endorsement, his endorsement in this race here. And look, I’m the pro-Trump candidate,” said Middleton.
Roy also took the presidential pass in stride when asked if he was disappointed no official endorsement had been made in his race.
“We’ve had a lot of great conversations about this race. The president is an engaged guy across the country, but he’s been focusing predominantly on federal races,” said Roy.
Texas runoff elections are almost a month away
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: We are almost a month away from the start of early voting for the May runoff elections. That vote will finalize several big primary races and will kick off the push to the November general election.
Middleton’s campaign has accused Roy of not being a true Trump supporter, citing what the Congressman did and didn’t after Trump’s first-term House Impeachment vote. Roy responded by saying the President knows he is a great ally.
“I’ve delivered on the Big, Beautiful Bill. I’m leading his favorite piece of legislation in his words, the Save America Act. I’m the author of that,” said Roy.
“And we’re delivering a message that’s resonating that you ought to have a real lawyer as your attorney general. Somebody who’s been in court, prosecuted bad guys. Been, the first assistant attorney general run complex litigation not effectively manage your family royalties, never having been in court,” said Roy.
Middleton’s message is also how he is a different kind of conservative than Roy.
“And look, every vote’s going to count. We know turnout is lower in a runoff than it is in the March 3 primary. But the same things that I’m doing. They got me in first place on March 3. I’m going now. And I will make sure that I protect and defend our great state. And I say this as well, a lazy campaigner turns into a lazy elected official.”
The other side:
Texas Democrats are also having a contentious runoff for their AG nomination.
Joe Jaworski, the former mayor of Galveston, and state Senator Nathan Johnson, who is from the DFW Metroplex, have taken a few political and personal shots at each other.
The Source: Information from interviews conducted by FOX 7 Austin’s Rudy Koski
As three teens face charges in a string of weekend shootings and robberies, mental health is becoming part of the broader conversation in Austin. One suspect’s mother told KXAN her 15-year-old son had struggled with substance abuse and suicidal thoughts — not as an excuse, she said, but as context for how mental health can affect a young person’s decisions. READ MORE: https://www.kxan.com/news/simplehealth/travis-county-launches-childrens-mental-health-plan-as-teen-crime-case-raises-concerns/
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