Morrisey said during his State of the State address this month that he has plans to establish a POWER (Powering Our Workforce through Energy and Revolutionary) Technology Center with a collaboration through West Virginia, Marshall and Shepherd universities and Blue Ridge Community and Technical College.
According to Morrisey, the center would “help West Virginia become the most innovative, aggressive supplier of energy to the growing technology industry.”
“This new center will not only help drive state and national thinking on data and energy needs, but it will create new opportunities for the type of advanced manufacturing jobs that provide long-term economic security for our state. This center will teach our students in these new fields and also play a crucial role in our state’s vo-tech renaissance,” Morrisey said in his speech.
According to Deputy Press Secretary Drew Galang, Morrisey expects to roll out more detailed plans for the center in the weeks ahead.
Marshall University’s President Brad D. Smith announced in a news release Thursday the institution is “excited to support Gov. Morrisey’s vision to establish West Virginia at the forefront of emerging technologies and innovations” through the creation of POWER Tech Center.
“As a national leader in cybersecurity and advanced manufacturing, Marshall University is eager to continue to scale these efforts in support of this vision and in partnership with the state,” Smith said.
West Virginia University President E. Gordon Gee also said in a statement, “West Virginia University’s existing strengths in AI, robotics, energy, cybersecurity, among many others, will be critical to make this initiative successful, and we will work with our partners to build a workforce to meet these needs.”
Shepherd and Blue Ridge released a joint statement.
Shepherd University President Mary J.C. Hendrix noted the college is honored to partner with the governor’s office on the effort.
“The Governor’s West Virginia POWER Tech Center will be an opportunity for Shepherd and Blue Ridge to share what we do to develop extensive instructional delivery systems with other parts of the state,” Hendrix said.
Blue Ridge CTC President Peter Checkovich said, “We’ve offered advanced training for noteworthy manufacturers, while Shepherd has partnered with them to give their employees access to continuing education to enhance their skills and bring new opportunities. It’s that outside-the-box partnership that will make the WV POWER Tech Center successful in unleashing our state’s potential.”
©2025 The Charleston Gazette (Charleston, W.Va.). Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
