Texas A&M University: Cognizant Announces a Three-Year, $150,000 Commitment to Support STEM Education at Texas A&M; Moves Principal U.S. Operating Headquarters to College Station; Expects to Hire Over 10,000 Professionals in the U.S. Over Three Years

Cognizant President Gordon Coburn presenting a three-year, $150,000 STEM grant to Texas A&M University; (from left) Congressman Bill Flores, Dr. Michael Pishko of Texas A&M, Gordon Coburn, Texas Governor Rick Perry, and Texas A&M Chancellor John Sharp

On December 2, 2013, Cognizant announced a three-year, $150,000 commitment to support university-sponsored STEM education programs at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas. The grant will support the promotion of STEM education programs through the National Center for Therapeutics Manufacturing (NCTM) at Texas A&M University. Cognizant also announced moving its principal U.S. operating headquarters to College Station, while the company’s global headquarters will continue to be in Teaneck, New Jersey.

“We are proud to partner with Texas A&M University to inspire the next generation of technology leaders through robust STEM education programs,” said Gordon Coburn, President, Cognizant. “At Cognizant, we understand the critical role STEM education plays in preparing students to emerge as leaders in America’s innovation economy, and we are committed to supporting STEM education to help the U.S. remain competitive in an increasingly global economy.”

Texas Governor Rick Perry, who traveled to College Station to make the grant presentation, said, “By emphasizing the core subjects of science, technology, engineering and math, we can accelerate the pace of our high-tech education, expand opportunity for the young people of our state and strengthen our state’s workforce of the future.”

Texas A&M Chancellor John Sharp said Cognizant’s support will strengthen the University’s STEM initiatives. He said the University has a long and proud history of educating students in the STEM fields, and funding such as this helps them drive students’ passion for technical learning.

Representative Bill Flores told The Battalion, “STEM education is important for the future of the U.S. but it is suffering in today’s environment. Basic research is the seed corn that we sow to maintain a future that is physically and economically healthy for our country. Today our country’s ability to sow that seed with a healthy research function, like we do at A&M, is impaired. One of the challenges is the severe shortages of STEM graduates.”

“Cognizant is one the largest STEM recruiters in the United States,” said Coburn. “We expect to hire over 10,000 professionals in the United States over the next three years, and during this same period we expect to increase our workforce here in Texas by at least 750. A majority of those jobs, we hope, will come from College Station.” He added, “Texas A&M does a good job of showing how exciting math and science can be in college and afterward. Cognizant can show the corporate side of the industry.”

Michael Pishko, Director of the National Center for Therapeutics Manufacturing, accepted the award on behalf of the facility. Pishko said the grant would benefit programs that support and encourage the next generation to pursue degrees in science and math fields. “We are extremely grateful for Cognizant’s sponsorship of our STEM programs that we have over the summer for high school students across the state of Texas,” Pishko said. “Through Cognizant’s support, we’ll be able to provide scholarships to better serve the economically disadvantaged students here in the state, particularly those who haven’t traditionally pursued careers in science and engineering. Through this investment, we’ll also be able to support our teacher workshops where we bring high school students from across the state and they bring what they learned here to our classrooms.”

Speaking to Forbes, Coburn said, “There are not enough people in this country right now with the skills I need at Cognizant. We are at full employment for the IT sector. People graduating from IT schools have multiple offers. And I have 1,000 jobs open right now in the U.S. alone and I cannot fill them. Our long term goal is to get younger kids—at the elementary and middle school level—to be more excited about taking science and engineering courses, but that takes decades.”

Coburn later told KBTX, “We need to hire, just locally in the US, 10,000 STEM professionals in the next three years. There aren’t enough of them. We need more. We need elementary school children and high school children excited about going to STEM professions. What Texas A&M is doing to get high school children excited about it is just the kind of program we support.”

“Why College Station? Great university. Why Texas? Great business environment,” Coburn told KAGS TV. “We want a place where we can attract top talent. We are doing our part to make sure America is competitive and innovative. And to do that, we need the best and brightest going to STEM education.”

Coburn told NJBIZ that the company was planning to increase jobs in Jersey too and that plans to relocate its U.S. headquarters to College Station, Texas, would not impact employees in Teaneck, where global headquarters will remain.

Speaking with Associated Press, Coburn said, “Cognizant expects to hire over 10,000 employees locally in the U.S. in the next three years and at least 750 of those will likely be in Texas. These are good jobs for America. According to the U.S. Department of Education, more than 70 percent of the nation’s high school seniors in 2009 were considered poorer than proficient in math and science, and a recent IT survey found that 93 percent of employers believe there’s a gap between existing and desired skill levels among their staff.”

“A business-friendly environment was a key component in our decision to move our headquarters to College Station,” Coburn told CNBC. “We feel Texas is a terrific location.”