Energy Secretary Steven Chu has announced up to $5 million in funds to support Graduate Automotive Technology Education (GATE) Centers of Excellence, focusing on the education of a workforce for future automotive technologies.
This initiative supports the current administration’s goals for increasing focus on science, technology, engineering, and math to put the United States on track to for advanced education and innovation.
This funding also supports President Obama’s goal of getting 1 million electric vehicles on the road by 2015, reducing American dependence on foreign oil.
"Given the challenge and the enormous economic opportunities in clean energy, it's time for America to do what we do best: innovate," says Secretary Chu. "With educational investments like the GATE Centers, our future scientists and engineers will gain the expertise to develop and deploy the next generation of advanced vehicle technologies, helping to ensure America has the workforce we need to win the future."
GATE Centers will focus on special advanced automotive technology such as:
- Advanced Combustion Engines
- Lightweight Materials
- Advanced Energy Storage
- Advanced Hybrid Propulsion and Control Systems.
Current technology initiatives for the advancement of engineering and automotive design could lead to increased usage of renewable energy and lead to cleaner, more efficient options across the board in a variety of industries and fields.
