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America Makes Announces the Ohio Secondary Education Additive Manufacturing Training Network to Address State’s Skilled Worker Shortage
June 29, 2021 | Categories: America Makes News
YOUNGSTOWN, OHIO. America Makes continues to fulfill its mission of building an additive manufacturing (AM) talent pipeline across the state of Ohio with the announcement of the Ohio Secondary Education Additive Manufacturing Training Network.
Created in collaboration with and support from the Ohio Development Services Agency (OSDA), this network will provide formal education and training of AM technologies to high school students and their educators to ensure the next generation of Ohio workers are equipped with the skills to fill advanced manufacturing jobs. Initially, 10 high schools statewide, including those in both urban and rural settings and representing public, charter, and career and technical schools are participating in the network. This America Makes Education and Workforce Development (EWD) program is funded through the Fiscal Year 2020-21 State of Ohio operations budget.
According to the 2020 Ohio Manufacturing Report by the Ohio Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) & MAGNET, 57% of Ohio’s manufacturers indicated that the skilled worker shortage is the number one challenge impeding business growth. The Ohio Manufacturing Report aligns with national findings released by a 2021 study from Deloitte and The Manufacturing Institute, which projects that by 2030 more than 2.1M U.S. manufacturing jobs are likely to go unfilled. The reason? The manufacturing skills gap. Eighty-two percent of those national respondents also reported that revenue growth is stagnating because of the inability to find skilled talent.
However, programs like the America Makes’ Ohio Secondary Education Additive Manufacturing Training Network are exactly the types of initiatives that can help to reverse this trend according to the Deloitte and The Manufacturing Institute study. The network significantly expands training opportunities for both Ohio students and educators.
“There’s no question that our state and our nation are facing a significant skilled labor shortage and misalignment of skills and competencies,” said Josh Cramer, America Makes Education & Workforce Development Director. “We need to take action now with K-12 students, with immediate emphasis on focusing on secondary education students and empowering their educators—from teachers to principals and guidance counselors—to help them increase students’ awareness of AM technologies and advanced manufacturing careers. The awareness vacuum around manufacturing career opportunities is an even larger issue than the skills gap. With the creation of the Ohio Secondary Education Additive Manufacturing Training Network, we are building that critically needed additive talent pipeline across the state of Ohio.”
The Ohio Secondary Education Additive Manufacturing Training Network leverages best practices and industry-vetted content/curriculum from America Makes and its membership community; offers industry recognized credentialing and badges; and provides tailored training and coaching to teachers, principals, and counselors. It also includes a middle school toolkit, complete with teacher training, to encourage interest in AM in these students. Each school in the network is also receiving AM technology packages of six Dremel DigiLab 3D45 Advanced Idea Builder 3D Printer bundles with materials and supplies. Additionally, each school will receive support for community engagement activities, open houses, and participation in national AM events like RAPID + TCT 2021.
The 10 Ohio secondary schools participating in the network are:
- Grant Career Center
- Horizon Science Academy Columbus High School
- Apollo Career Center
- Ashtabula County Technical and Career Center (A-Tech)
- Butler Tech
- MCCTC and Valley Stem
- The Dayton Regional STEM School
- Windham Exempted Village Schools
- Theodore Roosevelt High School
- Marietta High School
For more information about America Makes, its education and workforce development initiatives, or how to become a member, visit americamakes.us.
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About America Makes
America Makes is the nation’s leading public-private partnership for additive manufacturing (AM) technology and education. America Makes members from industry, academia, government, workforce and economic development organizations, work together to accelerate the adoption of AM and the nation’s global manufacturing competitiveness. Founded in 2012 as the Department of Defense’s national manufacturing innovation institute for AM and first of the Manufacturing USA network, America Makes is based in Youngstown, Ohio and managed by the not-for-profit National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining (NCDMM). Visit americamakes.us to learn more.
About the Ohio Development Services Agency (ODSA)
The Ohio Development Services Agency (ODSA) is a State of Ohio cabinet-level agency established in September 2012 that provide oversight and coordination of economic development in Ohio. The mission of the ODSA is to help create jobs and build strong communities in Ohio, while ensuring accountability and transparency of taxpayer money exceptional customer service. The OSDA provides support to entrepreneurs, small businesses, and minority-owned business in Ohio; supports communities in growing their economies, with special attention to the needs of Ohio’s Appalachian region; and supports tourism industries through TourismOhio, by promoting Ohio as a destination for visitors or people looking for quality of life and a place to establish a business. For more information, visit https://development.ohio.gov/.