St. Petersburg College is working on a $7 million renovation to create a space for students to learn modern technology skills.
The tech hub will be a 10,000-square-foot facility named after former Florida House of Representatives speaker Chris Sprowls.
The Chris Sprowls Workforce Innovation Hub will launch in February 2024 at a Tarpon Springs facility called the Michael and Evelyn Bilirakis Building. The renovated space is a part of the more than 40,000-square-foot building.
For a building that large, it wasn't being used effectively, said St. Petersburg College Provost Rodrigo Davis.
"It wouldn't disrupt anything, but it would cause a synergistic effect with college and community in partnering," Davis said on repurposing the Tarpon Springs space.
The renovation will also give the building a "makeover," Davis said. It will be repainted, and LED paneling will be installed.
The plan to create a program for student innovation started just before the Covid-19 pandemic began, and it has since evolved into the development space. It will feature resources like a stage and soldering equipment for students to use, as well as a "maker space" or office space. The building will also host educational programs to teach SPC students modern technologies like drones, artificial intelligence and cybersecurity, said Belinthia Berry, the dean of workforce development.
"What we want to do is look at innovation, collaboration, continuous learning and see how we can reshape the future and talent development to sustain a growing workforce that has taken over," Davis said.
The college was recently awarded a $323,832 federal grant to develop its AI and geospatial training program.
