Robert Geer, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Chief Academic Officer for UAlbany's College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering, right, and Douglas Leavens, Director of Career and Technical Education for Washington, Saratoga, Warren, Hamilton and Essex County BOCES, left, listen during a career panel about Education in Technology, at the Tech Career Expo at the SEFCU Arena at UAlbany on Monday Sept. 10, 2012 in Albany, NY. (Philip Kamrass / Times Union)

Susan Mehalick, a Times Union city desk editor, moderated a panel on educational opportunities in the high-tech economy. What the panel uncovered is that local schools — from two-year colleges to schools like UAlbany’s College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering that offer both undergraduate and graduate degrees — have forged deep ties with companies like General Electric Co. and GlobalFoundries, providing instant credibility to graduates when they hit the job market.

Read more at Times Union.