U.S. Secretary of Labor Keith Sonderling visited Merced College on Monday, Oct. 19, to see firsthand how the college is preparing workers for the future of agriculture through innovative training programs, advanced technology and industry partnerships.
Sonderling toured the construction site of the AgTEC Innovation Center, a new facility designed to provide hands-on training in food processing, agricultural technology and related fields. The visit also highlighted the U.S. Department of Labor’s nearly $2 million investment in Merced College’s AgTEC Workforce Initiative.
“American agriculture is quickly evolving with innovation and new technology increasing our production and providing more food and fuel to feed American families and power our economy,” Sonderling wrote in an Instagram post following the visit. “Thanks to partners like Merced College, the U.S. Department of Labor is leading the way to fund programs that ensure Americans are skilled in utilizing this new machinery to continue agricultural dominance.”
Merced College President Chris Vitelli said the visit provided an opportunity to demonstrate how the college is translating federal investment into educational opportunities for students and the regional workforce.
“We are grateful to Secretary Sonderling and the U.S. Department of Labor for their investment in the future of agricultural workforce development,” Vitelli said. “Agriculture is the foundation of our regional economy, and we are working closely with industry partners to ensure students and workers have access to the skills and technology they need to succeed. It was an honor to show the secretary what we’re building here and share our vision for the future.”
Merced College’s AgTEC Workforce Initiative includes the Ag Systems certificate, a flexible, competency-based program designed to help current agricultural workers advance their careers while preparing new workers to enter the industry. The program emphasizes practical skills in agricultural systems, technology, safety and workplace operations, with training developed in collaboration with industry partners.
The initiative received national recognition earlier this year, when Merced College won the prestigious 2026 Bellwether Award in Workforce Development.
The AgTEC Innovation Center, scheduled for completion in 2027, will expand those efforts with specialized high-tech laboratories for nut, fruit, vegetable and meat processing, a nutrition and product development kitchen, flexible training classrooms, and a retail farm market.
The visit also provided an opportunity to highlight AgTEC Coast-to-Coast, an emerging partnership connecting Merced College and the Reservoir with agricultural education, research and innovation organizations in Florida, including the University of Florida, College of Central Florida, the City of Newberry, and the F-300 AgFoodTech innovation ecosystem. The collaboration aims to expand opportunities for student and faculty exchanges, applied research, technology demonstrations and agricultural entrepreneurship across two of the nation’s leading agricultural regions.
“The Innovation Center is going to open doors for our students that simply haven’t existed before,” said Cody Jacobsen, Merced College’s Dean of Agriculture and Industrial Technology. “We’re building something that connects education directly to the needs of the agricultural industry here in the Central Valley and across the country. Our goal is to prepare students not just to keep pace with the future of agriculture, but to help shape it.”