SME launched the Manufacturing Imperative – Workforce Pipeline Challenge (MI-WPC) in collaboration with a select 25 community colleges across 15 states to build a viable talent pipeline across several target populations. SME sprouted its roots in the building of talent and technology, and the MI-WPC is a growing effort to attract and retain a greater number in the workforce - including those underserved and historically unrepresented in manufacturing careers. This effort was announced in the fall of 2023 and kick-offs at each of the community colleges quickly followed.
By mid-June, all 25 of the colleges will be officially launched. As a part of the kick-off sessions, SME is gathering the challenges and opportunities the college, local industry, and community partners see. To collect the challenges, opportunities, and ideas representative of the college's area, attendees are asked to share as many thoughts and ideas as possible in a timed brainstorming session called a "Sticky Storm." The collection of ideas and current strategies allows for the development of a unique strategic plan to build on the college’s strengths and develop bold solutions for challenges. As a result of the 11 college kick-offs, several themes have emerged across the colleges.
Awareness of Career Paths
It was quickly identified that students, underserved populations, parents, and other key members of the community were not aware of manufacturing career pathways and the benefits available. In many cases manufacturing career pathways face difficult perception challenges, which hinders community college enrollments and employer’s ability to hire qualified talent. Community colleges can enhance the visibility of these programs and career opportunities through various strategies and community partnerships.
Student Summits
Manufacturing Day activities are in October—K12 and colleges can leverage events like these to ignite students’ interest in manufacturing while also shining light on possible career pathways that lead to exciting, high-tech careers and doing so by connecting the next generation of manufacturers with the existing workforce who hold positions with some of the world’s leading companies.
Dual Enrollment and Credit in High School and College CTE Programs
Another way community colleges can increase awareness of, and interest in, manufacturing is to offer dual enrollment and dual credits with local high schools. Some of the MI-WPC colleges are pursuing Career and Technical Education (CTE) and dual enrollment to increase the talent pipeline. For example, at Greenville Tech, a student in "dual enrollment" may earn college credits along with their high school diploma with specific classes in manufacturing. In some cases, the college credits students earned through a dual-enrollment experience can be used to satisfy high school graduation requirements as well, which is referred to as "dual credit.” Greenville Tech offers dual-enrollment courses in various high schools and career centers in partnership with Greenville County School District. In some cases, high school students take dual-enrollment courses online or on a GTC campus, alongside regular college students.
Finding Qualified Faculty
Like our nation’s manufacturing employers, our community colleges are struggling to find qualified faculty to train the next generation of talent. The limited number of available faculty is straining current faculty’s workloads and limiting the college’s ability to expand classes to meet employer’s workforce demands. This challenge was quickly identified by key stakeholders as a strain on the community college.
Industry Experts on Loan
Patti Weaver, Vice President of External Affairs at Pellissippi State Community College, in Tennessee, says, “Our institution grapples with the ongoing challenge of finding qualified faculty. To tackle this issue, we've proactively established partnerships with industry leaders. One approach involves seeking assistance from our industry partners to 'loan' subject matter experts. In this collaborative initiative, these experts are permitted to teach a course during their regular workday, and we compensate them based on our adjunct pay structure. This strategy not only addresses our faculty recruitment challenges but also enriches our students' learning experience by integrating real-world knowledge alongside theoretical concepts.”
Stealing from the Silver Tsunami
One idea because of our collaboration with the colleges was to take advantage of the manufacturing retirees. There are an estimated 8,500 manufacturing workforce members turning 65 daily and that number is expected to increase. This is an opportunity to connect with skilled manufacturers seasoned talent to give back to their community by teaching the next generation.
Perception: Understanding Advanced Manufacturing Technologies
As manufacturers across our nation's adoption of modern platforms and automative applications continue to increase, it comes with its own set of challenges. The main challenge is ensuring education partners have access to these technologies and have developed the training required for the acquisition for these new skills and processes. With continuous technological advancements in modern manufacturing, having access to the latest technology can greatly enrich the college experience for students while also preparing students to enter the workforce. Many community colleges have embraced new technology to meet the evolving needs of students and the job market. While it is crucial for community colleges to have access to state-of-the-art technology that aligns with industry standards, not every college is afforded that opportunity for a myriad of reasons. However, various strategies involving communities, colleges, and local industry partners are being implemented to address access to and the perception of technology in manufacturing.
Impact of Tours
Industry tours play a crucial role in career exploration, offering students a firsthand look at work environments and providing valuable insights as they assess their own interests and make career decisions. Often, students require this direct exposure to envision themselves pursuing certain careers. Moreover, these tours serve to open doors for the entire community, offering insights into the potential pathways to prosperity offered by careers in manufacturing. This tactic was identified as one of the top strategies among colleges.
Next for MI-WPC
SME is continuing with the remaining participating college kick-offs, collecting valuable ideas to develop unique strategic plans with sector strategies. Conversations will continue at the kicked-off colleges within their community to build talent pipelines and solve barriers with SME supporting this work. Working alongside the colleges are two advisory councils to inform and guide this work—President’s Advisory Council and Manufacturing Association Advisory Council. These themes and ideas will be shared with the councils to begin the development of testing innovative solutions. Highlighted challenges and opportunities represented from all 25 community colleges will be shared this June.
