Sanjay Mehrotra, CEO of Micron Technology, discussed the future benefits of cutting edge memory manufacturing in Boise and the USA during his fireside chat with Dr. Marlene Tromp, President of Boise State University, at the Boise Metro Chamber's second 2023 CEO Speaker Series. The event took place at the Stueckle Sky Center.

Today is the eve of Micron's 45th birthday. It humbly began in 1978 with four founding members in the basement of a dental office on Cole Road. Today it is a 30 billion dollar global company with 40,000 employees in 17 countries that represent 67 nationalities, and over 54,000 patents.

During the CEO Speaker Series event, Mehrotra talked about the $15 billion expansion of Micron's Boise campus which will be the size of 10 football fields. "Micron is a great source of pride for Boise and the United States," stated Mehrotra. "We are working hard to help develop and advance the workforce for the future starting with a dedication to bringing back production to Boise and the United States." He said the facility is estimated to bring 2,000 direct jobs and 15,000 community jobs over the next ten years. "This expansion project will improve wages in the community and aide child poverty." 

The leading edge memory fabrication plant is expected to be completed by the end of 2025 with production starting in 2026. With it, Micron will invest further in K-12 STEM programs, and work with colleges and universities to provide education training. Mehrotra said, "Micron is striving to put in place a workforce that’s under represented in society - women, people of color, veterans, and rural populations. Chip camp, targets middle school students, and aims to spark their interest in STEM fields. It began with 50 students and now has over 1,000." Without this type of intervention, studies suggest there will a be a shortage of 67,000+ semiconductor workers in the nation by the end of 2030.

"Currently only 2% of memory is made in the U.S., and it is all produced by Micron," shared Mehrotra.  Micron has its sites set on increasing domestic production over the next two decades through the manufacturing plant in Boise, and a megafab, which will be the largest semiconductor fabrication facility in the United state, in Syracuse, New York. These plants will, "Strengthen U.S. technology leadership as well as economic and national security, driving American innovation and competitiveness for decades to come," according to Sanjay Mehrotra.

He predicts Micron will have a very important role in the development of AI since Micron is creating the industry's fasted high bandwidth memory (HBM) which is also low powered. As AI continues to develop it will rely more heavily on memory and Micron is poised to grow alongside it. 

"This is going to be an exciting decade plus for Boise," said Mehrotra as the event drew to a close. He thanked Dr. Marlene Tromp and Boise State University for being one of their biggest sources of recruiting, BVEP for it's partnership, and Mayor Lauren McLean and Governor Brad Little for their support.

The Presenting Sponsor for all our CEO speaker events is Bank of America. Other sponsors included the Idaho Business Review, ESI Construction, the Boise Airport, Exyte, and Perkins-Coie.  

There will be one more CEO Speaker Series in 2023. It will feature the Boise Metro Chamber's new president & CEO, Bobbi-Jo Meuleman. Watch our event calendar for details.​

Did you know the Boise Metro Chamber was the first Chamber to support the Idaho LAUNCH Grant Program?!
 
This spring our Policy Committee was hard at work to ensure the advancement of business and community. They were excited about House Bill 24, expanding the Idaho Launch Grant Program, after learning that the legislation would allocate approximately $8,000 to public school graduates to attend schooling for in-demand careers. Today that program went live and could offer between 9,000-10,000 awards per year through the available 75 million dollars. Since there is only enough funding for about half of Idaho's graduating high school seniors, students and their parents are urged to sign up quickly.

Important Dates

• Idaho LAUNCH application opens: October 3
• Initial applications due: November 30
• Contingent Award letters sent by: December 31, March 31, and May 31
• Idaho LAUNCH application closes: April 15

This grant opportunity helps to ensure our workforce stays strong, our families stay united, and the next generation feels empowered and supported to stay in our great state.

We are grateful to the Governor, all the lawmakers, and our Chamber's Policy Committee for making this happen! ​

The following opinion press release came from Governor Brad Little's office today, Oct 3, 2023.

LAUNCH is live!
Grants to support education and training after high school now open for applications
High school seniors looking ahead to life after graduation are thinking, “What’s next?” So are their parents!
We know they want fulfilling careers and higher incomes.
We know their loving parents want the same for them, too.
And we know the strength of our state and our nation depends on these kids. Our national security and sovereignty require a skilled workforce so we can compete with China and other aggressors who want to do America harm. We cannot stay a global leader in the economy if we fall behind in educating and training the next generation to meet the demands of an ever-evolving, dynamic economy.
Our young Idahoans hold so much promise and potential, and we want to do all we can to get them to stay in Idaho and thrive in Idaho.
Yet, the jobs of today demand specialized skill sets that require education and training after high school.
Simply put, for the vast majority of Idahoans, high school isn’t enough.
But the cost and accessibility of those programs after high school stand in the way for too many young Idahoans.
LAUNCH will help.
Our new LAUNCH grants will cover 80 percent of the cost of an in-state program that leads to an in-demand career, up to $8,000.
There are hundreds of career paths and programs to choose from, and if they are still weighing their options, they can update their choices later.
LAUNCH is live and open for applications now at https://nextsteps.idaho.gov/launch.
If you’re a high school senior or the parent of a high school senior, do not delay in applying for a LAUNCH grant. There is only enough money to offer grants to half of Idaho’s high school seniors, and some of the most popular programs will fill up quickly.
Idaho has always supported scholarships for high school graduates to pursue traditional four-year university programs, even those out of state.
That’s important, but we recognized the need to support all paths – from nursing to welding to computer science to plumbing to teaching to animal science to trucking and everything in between. LAUNCH can be used for apprenticeships, job training, and community college as well as university programs.
The hundreds of LAUNCH career paths available are market-driven – these are “real world” jobs our employers desperately need to fill.
So, what is the answer to high school seniors and their parents asking the question, “What’s next?”
LAUNCH!
OPINION BY GOVERNOR BRAD LITTLE