About HVCC North

HVCC North consists of two state-of-the-art buildings: the Training and Education Center for Semiconductor Manufacturing and Alternative and Renewable Technologies, known as TEC-SMART, and the newly-constructed STEM Education Center.

State-of-the-Art Buildings

The facilities at HVCC North allow Hudson Valley to produce a skilled workforce to serve major employers including GlobalFoundries, General Electric, SunPower Inc. and Solar City, to name a few.

TEC-SMART

TEC-SMART (Training and Education Center for Semiconductor Manufacturing and Alternative and Renewable Technologies) features more than a dozen specialized classrooms and laboratories designed to train students to enter the workforce. A clean room lab allows students to get hands-on training similar to what they would experience in the work environment. The facility is a critical component in preparing our students for a new economy that promotes job growth, environmental sustainability, and technological innovation.

TEC-SMART is a showcase for energy efficient building principles and has received Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) "Platinum" certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. The 43,000-square-foot building uses passive solar design, is highly energy efficient and generates one-third of its energy needs by harnessing the power of wind and the sun. The building is not air conditioned; rather it uses the geothermal energy of the earth for heating and cooling and serves as a teaching tool for students in the college's construction, electrical, HVAC, engineering and architecture programs.

STEM Education Center

The STEM Education Center opened in Spring 2024 and is a two-story, 14,500-square-foot building that includes several state-of the-art labs for anatomy, biology, chemistry, microbiology, and physiology, as well as classrooms, student support spaces, and offices. Like TEC-SMART, the STEM Education Center aims to increase access to education and workforce training opportunities in the highly specialized fields of healthcare, STEM and skilled trades.

History of HVCC North

In 2010, Hudson Valley Community College opened the $13.5 million Training and Education Center for Semiconductor Manufacturing and Alternative and Renewable Technologies, or TEC-SMART, in Malta, NY. Located in NYSERDA’s Saratoga Technology and Energy Park® (STEP®), TEC-SMART is adjacent to the GlobalFoundries FAB 8 facility. It was created with more than a dozen classrooms and laboratories used to train the workforce in semiconductor manufacturing and green technologies, including home energy efficiency, alternative fuels, solar, geothermal and wind energy. In addition, courses were offered at the facility in business and liberal arts and sciences.

For more than a decade, TEC-SMART has served the training and education needs of the area’s growing semiconductor technology sector. Companies like GlobalFoundries and GE have hired graduates from the college’s Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology programs. In addition, TEC-SMART and STEP served as a central location at which the community could learn about energy issues and green technologies, helping to increase awareness of the need for and availability of clean energy sources. School groups, community organizations and businesses visit TEC-SMART and utilize the facility to host meetings and seminars.

In 2021, Hudson Valley Community College outlined a plan to expand facilities at TEC-SMART to expand capacity in coursework leading to careers in high-demand fields like health care, STEM and the skilled trades.

In 2024, with construction of a new STEM Education Center completed, as well as renovations to the existing facilities at TEC-SMART, the college’s Malta facilities have become HVCC North, a more comprehensive extension center that is allowing the college to create new opportunities for students looking to enter in-demand career fields and meet local employers’ needs for a skilled, trained workforce.