New hands-on, badge-based program at Quantum Commons pairs industry-grade equipment with academic partnerships at Front Range Community College and CU Denver to build a pipeline of job-ready cryogenic technicians.

Elevate Quantum, today in partnership with Front Range Community College (FRCC) and University of Colorado Denver, today announced the launch of its Vacuum and Cryogenic Technician Training Program, a first-of-its-kind, specialization-focused workforce initiative housed within its commercialization lab at Quantum Commons. Elevating Quantum Upskilling through Industry Proficiencies (EQUIP) is a program designed to produce technician-ready talent capable of operating, troubleshooting, and maintaining complex cryogenic and quantum systems from day one on the job.

By receiving training at Quantum Commons, participants receive authentic, employer-relevant exposure in facilities equipped with industry-grade cryogenic hardware. The program serves both as a hiring pipeline for new technicians and an upskilling resource for existing employees seeking to advance or refresh their competencies.

“The workforce gap in cryogenics is one of the most concrete, near-term barriers to the growth of the quantum industry,” said Jessi Olsen, Elevate Quantum CEO. “We built this program because we’ve seen the need firsthand here in the Mountain West, where even highly educated candidates often can’t get the hands-on time they need to be ready for open roles. Thanks to Front Range Community College and CU Denver, we’re fixing that.”

Colorado Senator John Hickenlooper helped honor the milestone during a tour of Quantum Commons, where FRCC and University of Colorado Denver signed an agreement to launch the program.

"The quantum revolution is here," Hickenlooper said “This partnership is how we make sure Coloradans don't just witness the next great scientific era. They define it."

At the core of the program is a series of stackable credential badges, ranging from 10 to 40 hours, that emphasize hands-on lab experience over coursework and theory. The badges require no prerequisites and can be earned independently or sequentially, allowing participants to build targeted expertise at their own pace. The program explicitly does not aim to replicate a three-credit academic course; it exists to fill the practical gap that academic programs leave behind.

Badge programs include:

• Vacuum Systems: Assemble, evacuate, measure, and maintain vacuum systems across low-, high-, and ultra-high-pressure ranges; work with pumps, gauges, and seals.
• Feedthroughs: Specify and install vacuum, gas, and electrical feedthroughs into system assemblies.
• 4K Dry Cryostat Operations: Execute cool-down and warm-up procedures, monitor system behavior, interpret temperature readings, and identify performance anomalies.
• Dilution Refrigerator Operations: Master basic operations on dilution refrigerators, including cool-down/warm-up cycles and anomaly identification.
• Helium Leak Detection: Operate helium mass spectrometer detectors, apply sniffer probe techniques, and perform leak identification and mitigation.
• Systems Integration: Set up experiments, perform RF line measurements with a VNA, apply shielding techniques, and operate components such as TWPAs and HEMTs.

By partnering with Front Range Community College (Optics, Quantum and Laser Technology) and the University of Colorado Denver (Quantum Information Technology Program), Elevate Quantum is working to create a seamless bridge between academic foundations and specialized cryogenic careers, enabling community college students, career transitioners, and four-year or graduate-level learners to move efficiently into technician roles.

By aligning the badge curriculum with existing academic programs, Elevate Quantum ensures that students who complete relevant coursework become eligible for cryogenic technician roles, strengthening the entire talent pipeline while reducing the cost and time burden on employers.

"This program is proof that quantum workforce development works when it is built alongside employers," said FRCC President Colleen Simpson, Ed.D. "The Vacuum and Cryogenic Technician Training Program gives industry a direct hand in setting training standards, and gives funders and policymakers a model worth scaling—one grounded in demonstrated need, industry-grade infrastructure, and a partnership that is intentionally blurring the line between a four-year institution and a community college to deliver the workforce-aligned training solutions this sector requires.”

“CU Denver is excited by the opportunity to support experiential training in this critically needed workforce,” Dr. Martin Huber, Professor of Physics and Director of the Master of Integrated Sciences, University of Colorado Denver. “Our joint curriculum is developed based on years of professional experience, research on workforce needs in quantum, and direct communications with many leading companies in the quantum ecosystem.”

The first cohort will launch this August. More details to come.

To learn more, visit www.elevatequantum.org.

Elevate Quantum

Elevate Quantum is the federally designated quantum Tech Hub under the U.S. Department of Commerce, representing the nation’s largest quantum industry cluster across Colorado, New Mexico, and Wyoming. EQ’s mission is to dramatically accelerate the commercialization of quantum technologies. Through its work, Elevate Quantum is helping accelerate the diffusion and commercialization of quantum tech, advancing U.S. economic and strategic security, and building a robust quantum workforce for the future.

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"The quantum revolution is here. This partnership is how we make sure Coloradans don't just witness the next great scientific era. They define it." - Colorado Senator John Hickenlooper