New CTE program creates pathway to semiconductor industry

To answer the call for a more qualified workforce, Princeton ISD launched an additional CTE program this year for its senior high school students.

Electrical engineering technology will prepare students for a career in a booming industry, with jobs immediately available in North Texas upon graduation from high school.

The course opened to seniors this year and will expand to a two-year program for juniors and seniors next year.

At the completion of two years of coursework in the PSHS dual credit class through its partnership with Collin College, PSHS grads will be certified and eligible for employment with Texas Instruments in Sherman, where it’s primary semiconductor plant is located.

TI is the largest foundational semiconductor manufacturer in the U.S., producing analog and processing chips critical for smartphones, vehicles, data centers, satellites and nearly every other electronic device, including technology needed by Apple, Ford, Medtronic and SpaceX.

“The electronics industry needs them initially to be familiar with the equipment and ready for on-the-job training,” said Fawad Rauf, Collin’s dual credit professor working with Princeton students. “This course is bringing them up to the mark with an understanding of basic terminology, which makes them that much easier to train once they are hired.”

This year’s offering includes four total classes that will lead to the initial certificate. These include electronics and applied math geared toward electronic purposes in the fall and analog and digital in the spring.

The PSHS students are already hands-on with the electronic technology.

“Today, they are learning how switches work,” said Dr. Rauf, who earned his doctorate from Boston University. “Switches act like the transistors in semi-conductors, but for training purposes, the switches are easier to see. And, this links with real-life examples so they can relate.”

According to the professor, after these students finish with their 18 credit hours, they will be ready to be hired by TI.

“Through programs like this, the industry is hoping to achieve a better workforce,” Dr. Rauf said. “It’s not an alternate to college, but an empowerment for these students. It’s designed to create better engineers.”