2014 Manufacturing Day

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WVU Industrial Extension Service to Organize Local Manufacturing Day Events MORGANTOWN, W.Va.—The industrial extension service in West Virginia University’s Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources, with the help of STEMPLOY, is organizing Manufacturing Day for eighth graders on Friday, October 3. Manufacturing Day is a nationwide event designed to introduce students to jobs in manufacturing and other science, technology, engineering and math-related fields.

mfgday-spriteThe goal of Manufacturing Day is to give students a real-life view of what manufacturing is and how they can enter the industry. Eighth grade students from Suncrest Middle School in Morgantown, West Fairmont Middle School and Bridgeport Middle School will participate in several events throughout the day. First, the students will travel to Bridgeport to tour the facilities of aerospace manufacturers Pratt & Whitney and Bombardier. Next, the students will take a tour of Pierpont Community & Technical College’s applied science in aviation maintenance technology program. The day will end with in-school manufacturing presentations made by industry experts at Suncrest Middle School. Jerry Biser, director of the West Virginia Manufacturing Extension Partnership, believes the event is important for the future of manufacturing in the United States. “For the U.S. to remain strong both economically and politically, we need to have a strong manufacturing base,” he said. Biser points to several reports that show the dwindling percentage of scientists and engineers in the United States and uses this as fuel to spark passion for manufacturing in young students. “We need to show younger people the new high-tech face of manufacturing so they understand there are desirable, good-paying jobs waiting for them when they finish high school and college,” Biser said. “These jobs in high-tech manufacturing require a higher level of knowledge and skills. The earlier students understand that, the better they can prepare and then the U.S. will have a solid base of trained workers ready to tackle future challenges.”

P1260389Collaborating with Biser on Manufacturing Day is Lynn Dombrowski from STEMPLOY LLC, which works with employers, professional groups and educators to connect women to STEM fields. For STEMPLOY, this day is a way to expose the students to careers that may not be something they learn in the classroom at this age. “I believe that middle school is a very critical age to capture students’ interest, especially girls’ interest, in STEM fields of study,” Dombrowski said. “This will enable them to select high school courses that target their interests in future careers in college.” Dombrowski, who holds a doctorate of education, believes it’s important that students are exposed to more career opportunities in out-of-class experiences “to engage and excite students to explore STEM fields of study, especially in the area of manufacturing.” Cate Schlobohm, outreach coordinator in the Statler College, concurs, adding, “We believe that it is important for students to be engaged in events like this because any experience they can have that demonstrates the abundance and diversity of opportunities in STEM fields is a good thing.” Biser and Dombrowski say their favorite part of Manufacturing Day is watching the students’ eyes light up when they see the manufacturing facilities and how their minds begin to process the experience. “My favorite part is just watching the expressions on the students’ faces when they walk out into the plants,” said Biser. “Once they get comfortable with the environment, the questions start flying.” -WVU- wbk/09/17/14 – See more at: http://www.statler.wvu.edu/news/news-details.php?item=2000#sthash.eGZm8QGc.dpuf

Visit this page to learn more about activities previously planned from Manufacturing Events in 2013.