A Pitt community partnership is transforming the Jupiter Building into a training hub

The University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown, with partners from Vision Together 2025, area businesses and K-12 institutions, is creating a downtown center to boost workforce development, strengthen the local economy and enhance quality of life. 

Located at 430 Main St. in the historic 40,000-square-foot Jupiter Building, Future Works will provide academic programming to upskill community members in advanced manufacturing 4.0, including automation, cybersecurity and other industries.  

“We believe the programs envisioned will help train more people for good paying jobs and make our region more competitive, nationally and globally,” said Pitt-Johnstown President Jem Spectar.

“Collaborative partnerships such as this underscore the value of regional universities and result in mutual benefits for both the University and the community we serve,” said Pitt-Johnstown’s Engineering and Computer Sciences Division Chair Tanya Kunberger, who is part of Future Works.

The emerging program is the outcome of a yearslong effort made possible through a grant from the Richard King Mellon Foundation. The project’s goal to promote a downtown Johnstown renaissance has been championed by Community Foundation for the Alleghenies and further catalyzed by numerous conversations with Pitt-Johnstown faculty and staff, the Pittsburgh Gateways Corporation, Johnstown Area Regional Industries, local business leaders and many others. In addition to crucial startup seed funding from the Mellon Foundation, the project received a major boost from William C. Polacek, president and CEO of JWF Industries, who pledged $1 million to the effort through Community Foundation for the Alleghenies.

The project will also seek support from the U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration’s Recompete Pilot Program to advance implementation initiatives in a regional education partnership with Allegheny College, Washington and Jefferson College and Pitt-Johnstown.

Ramesh Singh, assistant professor of engineering, said, "An advanced manufacturing and automation center in Johnstown is a great initiative for technical workforce development and economic growth in the region. The programs will empower the next generation high-tech workforce that will be capable of handling high-speed, technically advanced manufacturing sector."