By Joe Cardillo, Reporter for Albuquerque Business First:

New Mexico is slated to see a $4 million grant from the TechHire programannounced by President Barack Obama a little over a year ago, according to a fact sheet released today on the White House website.

Close to 40 percent of tech jobs don't require a four-year degree, according to the release, which also called out the metro area specifically, saying that "employers in cities like Albuquerque have been adopting new 'skills-based' hiring approaches that enable job seekers to demonstrate their skills to get hired even if they lack traditional qualifications like computer science degrees."

The grant will help expand a program from the Workforce Connection of Central New Mexico that focuses on building a pipeline into IT careers for around 338 young adults and other workers with barriers to training and employment. The consortium, called New Mexico Tech Connections, includes the Central New Mexico Community College along with six area employers.

The state's tech industry continues to see more job openings than supply to fill them, and the potential long-term woes of for-profit colleges that often produce IT professionals via fast track programs may be contributing to a continued " worker crunch" for the industry. Click here to read more.