LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) — With electric vehicles growing in popularity, state officials are calling on people who want to help build them.

The effort includes a partnership between the Michigan Economic Development Corporation’s Talent Action Team, 15 major Michigan employers, as well as public universities and community colleges. The program will offer scholarships of up to $10,000 for students moving into the industry.

Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist said the market for EVs is rapidly expanding and that means there are plenty of jobs.

“Michigan also has at least 3,000 job openings today in the electrification and mobility sector. These are for emerging workers, skilled workers, and we have thousands more that are going to come online in the decades ahead,” Gilchrist said Wednesday.

He added that companies need help to keep up with demand.

“Filling these jobs will not only be critical to our state’s success, but the future of mobility and how we develop, design, manufacture and deploy that technology domestically,” he said.

The MEDC is asking people who are looking for jobs to let it help so it can help companies meet demand.

“Our objective is to fill these related jobs and also train thousands of workers in the first year by delivering professional development programs where people improve their skills and competencies that align with in-demand roles,” MEDC Executive Vice President and Chief Talent Solutions and Engagement Officer Kerry Ebersole Singh said.

The announcement also includes the debut of the Michigander EV Scholars Program for three participating universities: Michigan State University, the University of Michigan and Michigan Technological University.

“This is going to be a push of $10,000 scholarships for 350 top-tech students at the participating universities. They need to sign a letter of employment with one of the approved companies and commit to staying on the job with that company for at least 12 months in our Great Lakes State,” Singh explained. “These new hires will help fill the participating Michigan employers’ annual demand for up to 600 electrical engineers and software developers.”

The campaign is part of an effort to support a national goal for EVs to account for half of new vehicle sales by 2030.