Miami Dade College Gets $15 Million Boost For Tech Programs

MIAMI (CBSMiami) – Miami is a burgeoning tech hub. And in order for it to meet the demands of tomorrow, it has to grow its workforce today. A $15 million donation to Miami Dade College is planned to help.

"This investment in technology education at MDC will impact many current and future students," Kenoshka DiSilva, a cyber security student, said.

DiSilva credits her education with helping her to find a career with many open doors.

"They have been constantly to work new opportunities for students like myself and my background and prepare them for success," she explained.

Yet, the worry is there will not be enough students to enter the tech workforce.

"It's a $15 million investment," Miami Dade College President Madeline Pumariega said.

The joint donation comes from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Miami-Dade County, City of Miami and the Miami Downtown Development Authority.

"The companies that we're attracting are looking for talent, so the jobs are available they're here, and so we saw, for example, we did a job fair recently we had 2,400 available and only 350 participants," Mayor Miami Mayor Francis Suarez said.

Suarez wants people to understand that the tech boom is something that can benefit everyone, and new and affordable programs through MDC will play a role in equity.

"You know we see inflation driving prices up, rent prices are up, we need to continue to empower people to get better-paying jobs so they can afford to live in our city," he added.

The college plans to hire 15 new faculty members and launch new programs in artificial intelligence, data analytics and cloud computing.