Chicago Quantum Exchange Director of Education and Workforce Development Emily Easton has received a Fulbright International Education Administrators award to travel to India, where she will work with Indian higher education institutions, NGOs, and government offices to build partnerships that support the quantum workforce.
“My hope is to build pathways for people to not only study here in the Midwest, but to work here,” Easton said. “The Midwest is a globally recognized quantum hub with leading educational and research institutions and an emerging quantum economy that expects to have as many as 191,000 jobs by 2035. As we work to develop our domestic talent pool, accomplished computer scientists and engineers from India could be an important complement — and put us closer to the goals we have for how quantum science is going to reshape society, writ large.”
India has more undergraduates than any other country in engineering and computer science, which are two areas needed to build the quantum workforce. Over two weeks in March 2025, Easton will visit three cities: Mumbai, Coimbatore, and Delhi. During that time period, she will meet with Indian university officials, government officials, and representatives of NGOs and NPOs. The overall goal is to understand more about the Indian higher education system and how partnerships could be built with the US, specifically to build the quantum workforce in both countries.
“International collaboration and idea-sharing is an important part of building strong innovation communities,” said Kate Timmerman, CEO of the Chicago Quantum Exchange. “We look forward to the insights and connections Emily will bring home to our region, and we know those she meets with in India will appreciate her knowledge and expertise.”
The Fulbright Program, the United States government’s flagship program of international educational and cultural exchange, was established by Congress in 1946 to increase mutual understanding and support friendly and peaceful relations between the people of the United States and the people of other countries. The Fulbright International Education Administrators Award is one of the more than 400 awards offered by the Fulbright Program, which support U.S. citizens as they teach and engage in research and projects in more than 135 countries worldwide.
Easton said she had the fellowship in the back of her mind for years, but it wasn’t until she joined the Chicago Quantum Exchange that the pieces really seemed to “come together.”
“The breadth of the member and partner institutions in the CQE is a really unique thing that I can offer the program,” she said. “And my knowledge of and ability to speak to what it is we're looking for in the quantum workforce, I think will be really useful in figuring out how my peers in India are thinking about that and how I might be able to help them with that.”