NVCC was one of five colleges in Connecticut to receive a CHEFA Client Grant to support STEM education and careers, receiving $75,000. NVCC plans to use the grant to enhance its advanced manufacturing program to include welding technology in its Danbury service area. These grants total over $320,000 and were awarded to Capital Community College, Central Connecticut State University, Naugatuck Valley Community College, Sacred Heart University, and the University of Saint Joseph.

“With this generous grant from CHEFA we can now begin to expand our Danbury-based advanced manufacturing technology program to now include welding, this additional area of manufacturing knowledge and skills will ensure that our students will meet the workforce demands of Connecticut now and in the future,” DeFeo said.

“I am so proud that NVCC continues to be an engine of change in Danbury,” said NVCC President Daisy Cocco De Filippis, Ph.D.  “The College’s partnerships with Western Connecticut State University, Henry Abbott Technical High School, Danbury High School and local manufacturers provide multiple opportunities for college students, high school students, and incumbent and displaced workers to learn new skills or build upon existing ones. The addition of welding technology to the existing AMTC offerings in Danbury will allow NVCC to continue to support local manufacturers’ needs for qualified employees.”

CHEFA is a quasi-public agency that provides access to tax‐exempt financing and other financial assistance, including grant programs, to educational institutions, healthcare providers, childcare providers, cultural institutions, and other eligible non-profit entities. CHEFA derives its revenues from the annual loan servicing fee it charges its clients, and operates without any State of CT funds.  CHEFA also expands higher educational opportunities for Connecticut students through its subsidiary, the Connecticut Higher Education Supplemental Loan Authority (CHESLA).