Don’t know what that means?  Read on… These are the only high school students in the nation manufacturing precision optics, and they are doing it during a summer immersion program this July in the East High School Optics Manufacturing Lab. The scorecard: “Yesterday, July 20, Alejandra’s optics measured 1/7th wave.” “Today, Demier Hill’s part measured to...Continue Reading

You don’t have to simply hope that there will be a skilled workforce available when your workforce begins to retire.  You can actually do something about it now. Sign the 5% Pledge and pay it forward.  For every 20 employees in your organization hire one temporary intern, co-op, high school student or long-term unemployed individual...Continue Reading

Has the decades-long march to college-for-everyone-at-18 actually closed off options for teenagers and 20-somethings, rather than opened up opportunities? We all know teen-aged kids with potential that seem to “underperform” when pursuing a four-year degree.  We also know college grads saddled with debt, who can’t find jobs in their chosen fields. Maybe a technical certificate that...Continue Reading

In August, Vice President Joe Biden, U.S. Rep. Louise Slaughter and Gov. Andrew Cuomo designated Rochester as headquarters for a $650 million integrated photonics startup, AIM Photonics. The intent of the institute is to design and build computer chips that use light (photons), rather than electronics (electrons), wherever possible. The technology has broad transformational potential...Continue Reading

FLX Forward and Governor Cuomo announce the move of two new photonics companies to EASTMAN Business Park. Avogy and Photonica. 1400 new jobs.  Over $1billion investment. Over one dozen New York Photonics CEO’s in the room, including Sydor, Optimax, Optipro, CEIS, RPO, JML.   [wpvideo elPDFs2E] The press release: GOVERNOR CUOMO ANNOUNCES LEADING PHOTONICS COMPANIES...Continue Reading

Paul Conrow has been teaching science at East High School for 15 years. On Wednesday, March 9th, he won the Rochester Museum & Science Center’s STEM Award for Secondary Level educators. But the icing on the cake happened as Conrow and his family were leaving the Strathallan Hotel, walking out the door to go home....Continue Reading

The Center for Emerging and Innovative Sciences at the University of Rochester has been renewed by New York State as one of its Centers for Advanced Technology (CATS). It will receive $9.2 million in funding over the next 10 years, officials said. CEIS has provided more than $4 million in funding to increase the impact...Continue Reading

A group calling itself Rochester Business Leaders Photonics Working Group has proposed a location for AIM Photonics administrative offices, a different location than earlier suggested by University of Rochester president and designated AIM Photonics CEO, Joel Seligman. These parties are working separately from the internationally recognized cluster of OPI companies and research institutes that have...Continue Reading

In a hotly contested competition that had a team led by New York State vying with a team led by Florida and another led by Southern California, the DoD has chosen the New York team as the winner for the Integrated Photonics Institute In Manufacturing Innovation:  AIM Photonics. Congresswoman Louise Slaughter and Senator Chuck Schumer...Continue Reading

Webster resident Joseph Serio worked as a gas station attendant in the 1990s, and had no ties to NASA or Mars Rovers. Now he’s a Monroe Community College optics technology student with 20 years of experience manufacturing optics parts for NASA Mars Rovers with Ontario company Optimax. He’s headed to Texas next week to compete...Continue Reading