Region’s first AI courses in manufacturing

South Texas College’s Advanced Manufacturing Technology (AMT) program has gained national attention by ushering in the region’s first Artificial Intelligence (AI) course dedicated to supporting manufacturing in the area.

Nearly two years in the making, STC’s AI in Manufacturing course was made possible through a partnership with Intel, which has provided the resources for curriculum and hardware to launch the course by spring 2025.

Those efforts by the college’s AMT program earned it an invite recently to a national summit by the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) Artificial Intelligence Incubator Network (AIIN), which is focused on integrating AI into manufacturing programs.

STC was among five leading community colleges from across the nation that gathered at the AIIN Advanced Manufacturing Summit in Washington, DC to discuss unique approaches to AI programming and share practices in the emerging discipline.

“Attending AACC’s Artificial Intelligence Incubator Network summit was a truly inspiring experience. Being selected as one of only five colleges from across the nation to participate in these discussions is such an honor and brings to light the work that we are doing to contribute to shaping the future of AI,” said Sara Lozano, dean of STC’s Business, Public Safety and Technology division. “South Texas College is a leader in innovation, and recognitions like these provide an opportunity to highlight this great institution.”

Spurred by STC President Ricardo J. Solis, Ph.D., who has challenged programs at the college to seek emerging technologies with a priority on new skills and credentials, STC faculty said they moved quickly to begin the process to establish the new AI course.

AMT Program Chair Erika Guerra said she received hundreds of hours of training through Intel’s Artificial Intelligence for Workforce “Train the Trainer” program to bring AI to the college.

While in the course, students will be taught ethics in AI and manufacturing along with programming and coding as well as the evaluation of company data provided by Intel, which will give students a sense for predictive maintenance and quality control measures that could be applied in small to medium sized manufacturing companies.

Leadership with Intel agree that what is taking place with regards to AI at STC has the potential to make a lasting impact manufacturing in the region.

“We at Intel are thrilled to collaborate with South Texas College on their Advanced Manufacturing Technology program. This partnership underscores our commitment to empowering the next generation of innovators with cutting-edge AI skills and resources,” said Michael Harrison, director of Digital Readiness for Intel. “By integrating our AI for Workforce Program into STC’s curriculum, we are not only providing students with invaluable hands-on experience, but also helping to shape the future of manufacturing in South Texas.

The ultimate goal, according to Guerra, is to take it a step further, and in the near future utilize sensors installed at local companies in the region that will collect data, which students will then use for AI modeling.

“We are being looked at for leading the way in AI for manufacturing here in South Texas,” Guerra said. “Together, with our partners like Dell and Intel, we are setting the expectations on a national scale for students who will say ‘I didn’t just go to class. I was a part of something that will change education as we know it.’ It’s too new at this time to see all the impacts this will have in the future, but it’s definitely on the way.”