Math, science lessons propel CVTC camp

From leadertelegram.com: “Math, science lessons propel camp” — Gina Filkins figured it would be fun to build a race car, so she signed up for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Race Camp, which took place this week at Chippewa Valley Technical College.

Filkins, of River Falls, was among 19 high school participants at the camp, but one of only four girls.

“I think more girls should do camps like this,” Filkins, 14, said. “I’ve always been into science and math, so this has been really fun.”

Throughout this week, race camp participants learned about career opportunities in the disciplines of science, technology, engineering and mathematics in a hands on environment, camp director John Wagner said.

Campers focused on powering race cars using three different petroleum-independent technologies: wind, solar and hydrogen. Participants were divided into teams to modify the cars before a race Thursday afternoon.

Along with making the vehicles run with an alternative fuel source, participants learned to adjust the cars’ alignment, gears and tires to optimize their performance, Wagner said.

Elliot Voelker, 15, who will be a sophomore at Regis High School next school year, said he enjoyed racing cars while getting to know other camp participants.

The camp is part of a nationwide effort to expose students to opportunities in STEM-related professions. The event, funded by grants, was started by CVTC staff. Grants provide scholarships to help qualifying students afford the camp.

Tucker Manderscheid, 14, who will be a freshman at Chippewa Falls High School, enjoys modifying cars. His team powered their vehicles with solar power, which he thought was the easiest of the three alternative power sources to use.

Chicagoria Yang, 15, who will be a sophomore at North High School, was part of a team using wind to power its car. Team members adjusted the car’s gears and experimented with different wheels in an effort to enable it to drive more efficiently.

Wagner said some camp participants showed up early to spend extra time working on their cars.

“The kids are so exceptional,” Wagner said.

Apprenticeship program needs business partners

From greenbaypressgazette.com: “Conversation: Apprenticeship program needs business partners” — By Rich Ryman – Press-Gazette Media talks to business leaders in its weekly conversation feature. This week, Lisa Schmelzer of the Green Bay Area Chamber of Commerce discusses the chamber’s Youth Apprenticeship Program.

The program is in its 20th year in Brown County.

Q. What is the Green Bay Area Chamber of Commerce’s Youth Apprenticeship program?

A. The Youth Apprenticeship program is a statewide school-to-work initiative offered by the state Department of Workforce Development designed specifically for high school students. It integrates academic and technical instruction with paid, mentored work experience at an area business. The program is facilitated for 10 area school districts in and around Brown County by the Green Bay Area Chamber of Commerce.

Q. How many youth are participating?

A. Of the 94 students we have participating in the program, we secured training site placements for 46, with many more students eagerly waiting to begin their on-the job training.

The breakdown of participants by school district is:

Ashwaubenon, 10; Howard-Suamico, 12; De Pere, eight; Denmark, eight; Green Bay, 26; Luxemburg-Casco, six; Pulaski, 11; Seymour, six; West De Pere, five, and Wrightstown, two.

Q. In which jobs are apprenticeships available? What determines availability?

A. The Green Bay Area Chamber of Commerce Youth Apprenticeship program offers nine high-demand career areas with more than 40 career pathways.

Program areas, identified as high demand by the state Department of Workforce Development include:

• Agriculture, Food, & Natural Resources, Animal Basics, Large Animal/Herd, Vet Assistant, Plant Basics, Crops, Greenhouse, Landscaping, Water Resources

• Arts, A/V Technology & Communications – Printing, Graphics

• Financial Services – Accounting, Banking, Insurance

• Health Science – Nursing Assistant, Medical Assistant, Pharmacy, Ambulatory/Support Services (dietary, laboratory, imaging, optometry or physical therapy), Medical

•  OfficeHospitality, Lodging, & Tourism – Dining, Kitchen, Front Desk, Housekeeping, Travel/Tours, Grounds & Maintenance, Meetings & Events, Marketing & Sales, Management

• Information Technology – IT General, Hardware, Software

• Manufacturing – Assembly & Packaging, Manufacturing Processes, Machining, Operations Management, Welding, Equipment Maintenance

• STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) – Engineering Drafting, Mechanical Design, Electrical Engineering, Civil Engineering

• Transportation, Distribution & Logistics – Auto Collision, Auto Technology, Logistics/Supply Chain Management

Q. What are the programs greatest needs?

A. The program is in immediate need of more Brown County area businesses tfor on-the-job training in many of the program areas, especially health, auto tech/collision, STEM, finance and welding areas

Q. Have you had to turn students away because of a lack of employers?

A. The program doesn’t turn students away; students start their industry-related classes at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College in anticipation of the job placement. However, students who are not placed in an on-the-job training position are missing the most important and crucial components of the program: the opportunity to start building valuable employability and industry skills.

Q. Anything you’d like to add that we did not cover?

A. With the projected workforce shrinkage due to the anticipated “Silver Tsunami,” — the large number of Baby Boomers reaching retirement — the Youth Apprenticeship program can be part of the solution. We bring goal-oriented youth into workplaces and industry paths and create highly skilled workers to fill businesses’ employment pipeline. Students in the program now may be the full-time employees businesses hire down the road.

If you’d like to learn how participating in Youth Apprenticeship may serve as a pipeline to your future work force, please contact Lisa Schmelzer, Youth Apprenticeship program manager, at (920) 593-3411 or lschmelzer@titletown.org. More information on the program is available at www.titletown.org/YA.

High school girls learn about male-dominated fields

From wausaudailyherald.com: “Local high school girls learn about male-dominated fields” — More than 50 girls from nine central Wisconsin highschools learned Friday what it would be like to be welders, mechanical designers, machinists and other professionals in the manufacturing and technical fields.

They were taking part in a program called Females in Technology & Trades at Northcentral Technical College. The idea was to expose the girls to professions that are in what have been traditionally male-dominated fields to ensure that they know of all the career opportunities available to them.

The program was organized by Laurie Schulz, a mechanical design instructor at NTC. Schulz worked as a designer for years and said she had no problems working in a male-dominated field, but not all young women know that such careers are even possible.

The F.I.T.T. program, Schulz said, was meant to change that by both exposing the girls to all of the programs NTC has to offer and giving them a chance to do some hands-on activities, such as welding.

Maddy Krueger and Katherine Russell, both juniors at Tomahawk High School, participated in the program to find out what they might do after graduation.

“I think this is really interesting,” Krueger said. “I’m in a shop class at school, and I’m interested in mechanical comprehension and design. So I thought that would interesting to learn.”

Russell wants to become a materials sciences engineer, designing materials that can do new things.

“There’s a need for more women in engineering fields, so I wanted to learn more about that. And I’ve never welded before, so I’m really nervous,” Russell said. “I really learned a lot today about what NTC had to offer. I didn’t know we had an engineering and STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) school so close as Wausau.”

The program was beneficial for female students, Schulz said, so that “they can see what types of options are out there for them that are nontraditional, compared to what they may normally do.”

 

Youth learn STEM skills through car racing

From chippewa.com: “CVTC’s NASCAR-themed camp shows youth the technical side of racing” — EAU CLAIRE — Sam Strecker’s car got off to a fast start, but started to spin a bit, tilted up on one side, then veered off and crashed in the grass.

“It’s not just going fast, it’s staying on the road,” said Sam, who will be an 8th grader at Chippewa Falls Middle School in the fall.

That fundamental of racing summed up his immediate problem, but there are more technical ways to look at it, and Sam learned about those, too, this past week.

He was one of 25 students in grades 8 through 11 taking part in the Ten80 Student Racing Challenge: NASCAR STEM Initiative, a five-day camp at Chippewa Valley Technical College in Eau Claire. The racing helped show youth the fun side of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

The camp culminated in a day of racing and awards recognitions Friday.

“There’s a national shortage of people going into STEM-related fields, and a lot of STEM jobs are in manufacturing,” said Mark Hendrickson, special projects manager in the manufacturing area at CVTC. “We want to stimulate interest in these fields among young people, who may not realize how exciting and challenging STEM careers can be.“

The participants were divided into teams, with each given a radio-controlled one-tenth size NASCAR stock car replica. Through a week of activities, students learned about concepts such as how might a car be geared differently if the race is a short, straightaway drag race, compared to a longer race on a circular or oval track. They discovered which tires are for different courses, and how different batteries affect performance.

Of course, aerodynamics will affect the car’s performance. So will the surface of the track. Cory Haas, an Eau Claire Memorial sophomore, found that out in being the “driver” in a morning drag race, not long after a rain.

“We had the best car, but not the best terrain,” he said. “We had a pretty clear lead, then spun out into the grass.“

“I had a blast this week,” said Leo Plewa, a 9th grader attending the Wildlands School in Augusta. “I hadn’t worked with radio-controlled cars before. I’m amazed at how fast they can go, and at the science behind the cars.“

Faith Bowe, a Chippewa Falls 8th grader, was the only girl on the teams on race day. She said she learned a lot during the week, and likes science class. But she was on the same page as many of the boys as the class wrapped up and participants got a little crazy with some cars they brought from home. “Watching the cars crash together is pretty funny,” she said.

CVTC instructor John Wagner, one of the camp leaders, said some of the participants had a background in radio-controlled vehicles, and they mixed them with people with no background in forming the teams. He said students not only enjoyed racing, but also the modifications to the vehicles. Some wanted to take it a step further.

“Some of the more advanced students wanted to do more in car building,” Wagner said.

A summer camp has to include fun, and the participants had plenty of that. This camp also served to stimulate interest in science and technology. Cody Funk, a freshman from Owen-Withee High School, said his favorite part was actually the tour of CVTC’s Manufacturing Education Center and seeing the high tech machines there.

Leo was totally in his element at the camp. “I love science,” he said. “It’s probably my favorite subject.“

 

MPTC partnership part of Mercury Marine success

From insightonbusiness.com: “Steering their own course – Innovation drives Mercury Marine’s growth” — Sitting back and relaxing on the water this summer, chances are you’ll see the name “Mercury Marine” zip by.

Headquartered in Fond du Lac, Mercury Marine is the world’s largest developer and manufacturer of marine propulsion systems – the technical name for the motors powering the fishing boats, speed boats and pontoons seen on bodies around the world.

While Mercury Marine is now moving in the right direction, the company – Fond du Lac County’s largest employer with more than 2,000 workers – was admittedly hit hard by the recession. “What’s more discretionary spending than a boat?” says Mercury Marine President Mark Schwabero.

But today, as Mercury Marine engines power boats everywhere from Lake Winnebago and the Great Lakes to the Amazon River and expanding markets in China, its sales are increasing and the company is in expansion mode, building a $20 million testing facility visible to people driving by its massive manufacturing facility along U.S. 41. The new facility will allow the company to test a wider variety of engines, allowing it to develop new products more quickly.

“The expansion going on now is directly related from overall market growth,” Schwabero says. “In the U.S. market, we are seeing a recovery in some segments, such as engines for fishing boats and pontoons.”

With nearly $2 billion in sales, Mercury Marine is not only Fond du Lac’s largest manufacturer with more than 1 million square feet of space, it’s also a global manufacturing powerhouse.

“Their presence in our community is almost immeasurable,” says Joe Reitemeier, president of the Fond du Lac Association of Commerce. “Not only do they have a large employment base, there are several hundred companies that provide services or supplies to Mercury. They’re also active in the community and looking for ways to make a difference.”

Innovation drives growth

Although Mercury Marine plans to celebrate its 75th anniversary next year, there was a time not so long ago that some wondered if the engine maker would maintain its significant Wisconsin footprint.

In 2009 as sales fell, the company decided to consolidate its engine making in either Fond du Lac or Stillwater, Okla., to help save money and right the company’s financial ship. Stillwater leaders brought considerable incentives to the table. It wasn’t until the company’s union agreed to concessions and the city, county and state brought their own incentives to the table that Mercury Marine decided to stay in Fond du Lac. Mercury Marine’s financial package included $70 million from the state in refundable tax credits, a $50 million loan from the county paid for by a 0.5 percent sales tax, and $3 million in financial aid from the city.

At the time, the saga dominated state headlines, especially after union workers voted initially to reject any changes. There was a lot of intensive negotiation before the second vote and the company reversed its decision to consolidate operations in Oklahoma.

Schwabero admits it was a difficult time, “but just as when you have emotional decisions in your personal life, they bring you closer to those around you. The experience left us with closer relationships with the city, county and state. I can’t forget about our employees either. Their hard work has allowed us to get where we are today. They are really great and have a passion for what we’re all about.”

Today, that difficult time is past and the company is adding jobs.

In the past three years, Mercury Marine officials estimate the company has brought an additional 950 jobs to the community – many of them by bringing work from Stillwater to the Fond du Lac plants. Other hiring has come from company growth. Most of the positions created and filled are related to engineering and product development.

“Innovation is an essential component to our company’s growth,” says Schwabero, who has been Mercury’s president since 2008. “We have a lot of technical capabilities that set us apart. Innovation is a fundamental strength.”

In the past few years, Mercury Marine’s greatest success was with its 150-horsepower engine. “It’s been a home run for us. There’s been a lot of acceptance for it in the market,” Schwabero says. “The downturn allowed us to put some focus on it so it hit the market just at the right time as things were starting to come back.”

The new $20 million testing facility will be finished by the end of the year, but engineers and technicians will start some testing this summer, says David Foulkes, vice president of engineering. The facility complements existing on site testing facilities as well as outdoor sites in Oshkosh along the Fox River and in Florida.

“There are several testing stages you go through when developing a new product and this new facility will allow us to do a wider variety of testing, which will help us increase our product development,” he says.

Foulkes says the company needs to keep innovating and developing new products to stay ahead of its competition, namely Yamaha in Asia and Volvo in Europe. “We offer such a broad range of products, including diesel and gasoline engines as well as outboards and stern drives. We need to keep up in all of those areas,” he says. “Engines are also getting more powerful.”

Construction on the 16,000-square-foot facility began last year and includes two 18,000-gallon tanks where engines can be tested, says Dave Kahlow, who is heading up the engineering construction project. “They’re very imposing,” he says.
The building also includes special air exchange systems since the engines emit exhaust during the testing process.

Mercury Marine’s engineering and product development center has about 450 engineers on staff. With so many high-tech employees, Mercury Marine is active with other Fond du Lac County businesses seeking to attract and retain talent in the area. The company has robust co-op programs in place with engineering programs and is a strong supporter of programs at Moraine Park Technical College.

Dropping its focus a bit younger, Mercury Marine is also a sponsor of the Fond du Lac STEM Academy, which currently serves students in grades 3 to 5 this year, but will expand next fall to grades 3 to 8. The students study a full range of subjects, but there’s an extra focus on science and technology. In addition, students do a lot of hands-on, project-based assignments.

Mercury Marine provides the school with technical expertise and technological resources as well as having employees serve as role models, who can talk about real-world science applications of what they’re learning in school.

“We employ a lot of engineers and people with technical expertise, so it’s great we can share some of that knowledge with the community,” Schwabero says.

Students also have access to some of the company’s technical equipment. For example, they were able to use an expensive electron microscope that few schools can afford.

“We really helped the local school district bring that program to reality,” Schwabero says. “We have such a significant product development presence here and anything we can do to help students realize the career opportunities related to the sciences, the better.”

Before the recession hit and Mercury Marine was posting big sales numbers, Schwabero says it was common to “just write a check, but now it’s not as easy to do that. Instead, we’ve become more personally involved with various community organizations and programs through our employees’ time and talent. Today, we have a much more personal relationship with the community.”

That’s something that Reitemeier from the Association of Commerce echoes. “They have senior leader executives involved and active in multiple organizations. They are in there and getting involved with an organization, whether it’s the United Way or the local Red Cross, he says.

Schwabero says that one of the company’s pillars of success outlined in its sustainability report is its relationship with the community. Twenty-five percent of the company’s employees in Fond du Lac volunteer 20 hours or more each year with a local organization, whether it’s a business organization, a non-profit like the United Way or local schools.

Global scale, local impact

Mercury Marine, a division of Illinois-based Brunswick Corp., is truly a global company. With 43 percent of its sales coming from outside of the United States, Schwabero jokes he puts on too many miles to count each year visiting the company’s facilities around the world as well as meeting with salespeople and distributors.

The company is the world’s largest developer and manufacturer of marine propulsion systems for both commercial and residential activities. While Mercury’s main business in the United States is related to engines built for recreational boats, in other places the engines are more focused on the commercial sector, such as engines for water taxis.

While Mercury Marine’s overall market share in Asia is small compared to other regions, that segment is growing, Schwabero says. With people and plants around the world, the company can react more quickly to what’s happening in local markets, he adds. “Those locations help us better meet the needs of our customers.”

In addition to the manufacturing facilities in Fond du Lac, there are facilities in St. Cloud, Fla.; Juarez, Mexico; Belgium; and China. The company has a joint venture in Komagane, Japan.

At all of its locations around the world, sustainability remains a core value – not only being a responsible consumer of energy and caring for the environment, but also quality of life and product stewardship initiatives.

“Much of our marine-engine business is reliant on clean water and a healthy environment,” Schwabero says. “Mercury Marine has been and will remain a leader in the development of marine technologies that minimize the effects on the environment. Sustainable growth is our mission.”

And with Mercury engines powering boats around the globe, it’s something the company is committed to.

“We are cautiously optimistic about Mercury Marine’s future growth,” Schwabero says. “For so many people, being on the water – whether it’s fishing or other recreational activities – is a part of their life and you want to get out there and enjoy it, no matter what.”

DIFFERENCES ON THE WATER

A boat engine is a boat engine, right? Wrong. Just as there are multiple engine types for vehicles, the same goes for marine vessels. The two main categories are outboards and stern drives – both of which are made by Mercury Marine.

Outboard engines are the most common way to power small watercraft vessels such as pontoon boats and fishing boats. Outboard engines consist of a self-contained unit that includes the engine, gear box and propeller and is affixed to the outside of the vessel.

Stern drives consist of an engine and drive connected to one another through the transom, or the flat area at the back of a boat. Stern drives are designed so that the engine is inside and enclosed by the boat, while the propulsion system (out drive) is outside of the boat and in the water.

Mercury designs and manufactures engines that run on gas and diesel. The engines also vary in speed from 2 horsepower to 300 horsepower.

 

 

 

Scholarship winner on millwright career path

From twoharborsmn.com: “Scholarship for motor-minded Two Harbors High School senior” — Russell Nelson missed his lunch hour on Thursday. Instead, the Two Harbors High School senior spent those 40 minutes checking out AMSOIL’s latest snocross racing technology, on display behind the mechanics shop at the high school.

There was pizza available, but he was too busy hobnobbing with the AMSOIL snocross team’s owner Steve Scheuring, mechanic Tony Clement and Air Force Staff Sergeant Dave Overstreet to grab a bite. He finally slipped away to have a snack but returned quickly for the grand finale of the afternoon–receiving a $200 scholarship from the AMSOIL team.

“I chose him based on the fact that he’s a good student and a good worker,” said Mike Fitzpatrick, who made the call as to which of his students would receive the scholarship.

Nelson plans to attend Wisconsin Indianhead Technical College for mechanics and says he hopes to be a millwright after graduation.

“He has a plan and we want to support him. We’re all about success,” said Staff Sgt. Overstreet. The Air Force is a sponsor of the AMSOIL team and part of their outreach work is getting kids excited about science, technology, engineering and mathematics—STEM subjects. They’ve found that showing off the snocross machines at high schools is an effective way of doing so.

Nelson has already proved his dedication to technology and engineering. He spent most of his high school career in the shop classrooms at the high school, evidenced by the impressive number of advanced mechanics classes he has under his belt. In fact, he’s taken many of the classes twice; not because he failed them, but because he enjoys spending his days in the shop, he said.

“I just always knew I wanted to work with my hands,” he said.

Overstreet said Nelson is exactly the type of student they’re looking to support. Although Overstreet is a recruiter and Nelson isn’t joining the Air Force, he’s still impressed with Nelson’s drive and focus on the future.

“Our country needs guys that are thinking ahead,” he said, whether they are in the armed forces or not. Nelson fit the bill.

Group creates plan to invigorate technology education and Wisconsin’s economy

From wisconsintechnologycouncil.com: “Group hammers out plan to invigorate technology education – and Wisconsin’s economy” — A group of business and education leaders from across Wisconsin has hammered out a plan to spur educational growth in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), which include concepts such as removing barriers to related career exploration and forging more public-private partnerships in this tech-driven area.

The group, Wisconsin STEM, recently released its report, “Navigators to the future,” a sweeping look at the current condition of STEM education in the state today and as well as efforts needed to overcome a drop in the number of youth choosing STEM education and careers in related areas.

Five success markers were established in the report. They are:

• Eliminate barriers that prevent learners from exploring STEM careers
• Increase emphasis on acquiring STEM knowledge and skills for all learners
• Increase public/private partnerships with a focus on STEM skills
• Establish a statewide awareness campaign for STEM careers
• Invest in pre- and post-professional developmental for educators to fully understand and integrate STEM throughout the curriculum.

The report was spurred by the critical need for highly educated and skilled workforce to invigorate Wisconsin’s economy.  Skills in science, technology, engineering and mathematics drive innovation and opportunity for Wisconsin workers and employers.

“The number and diversity of organizations represented in the development of this report clearly shows that Wisconsin is ready for a statewide strategy to improve STEM education and training,” said Bryan Albrecht, president of Gateway Technical College. “STEM careers provide some of our state’s best and highest paying jobs and we need to embrace the opportunity to build a STEM talent pipeline from kindergarten through college.”

More than 700 Wisconsin business and education leaders from the public and private sector worked the past six months to forge an agenda outlining the changes and practices needed to build stronger support systems for STEM education and prepare students for in STEM-related career fields.

“Employers increasingly say they are searching for soft skills as much as technical knowledge, meaning they want workers who can pull together as a team, communicate internally and externally adjust to changing conditions and function as lifelong learners,” said Tom Still, president of the Wisconsin Technology Council.

As outlined by the Wisconsin Technology Council, STEM talent underscores the necessity of competing in the global economy. It implies high-technology, problem-solving teaching and learning, and creates an opportunity to bring the classrooms of our state to life through business and industry partnerships.

“STEM education is an imperative to secure our state’s viability in global economy,” said Mark Tyler, president, OEM Fabricators Inc., located in the Wisconsin communities of Neillsville and Woodville.

For further media inquiries, please contact Bryan Albrecht at (262) 564-3610.

What is STEM?

STEM is an acronym for science, technology, engineering and math. STEM teaching and learning is an innovative approach to unlock creativity and problem solving in learners of all ages. Through discovery, modeling and contextual learning students realize their potential and excel in active learning environments. STEM partnerships throughout the state have demonstrated the potential to unlock growth in education and workforce training by integrating the knowledge and skills of science, technology, engineering and mathematics in ways that expand college and career choices for students.

Where can I find this report?

The complete STEM Navigators to the Future report can be found at STEMForward.org.

Girls attend tech camp at NWTC

From greenbaypressgazette.com: “Tech camp for girls targets stereotype” — Sarah Lelinski, who will be a fifth-grader at Holy Family School in the fall, said she could study math all day long.

“I love it. Something about adding and subtracting — it’s fun,” said Lelinski, who participated Wednesday in the Get Into Energy Summer Tech Camp at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College.

Lelinski is one of about 50 area middle-school aged girls participating in the two-day camp, which continues today. It’s aimed at helping develop interest in the so-called STEM subjects of science, technology, engineering and math. Organizers say these fields tend to be dominated by men.

Lelinski isn’t sure what she wants to do for a career, but said her aspiration is to “break stereotypes.”

“I want to break the idea that boys can only do certain things and girls can only do certain things,” she said. “Boys think they’re strong and more intelligent, but girls are intelligent, too.”

According to the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, 70.5 percent of third-grade girls in the Green Bay School District tested through the Wisconsin Knowledge and Concepts exams in November 2011 were proficient or advanced, compared with 69.8 percent of boys in the third grade. About 77 percent of both boys and girls in the sixth grade were proficient or advanced in math, but 43 percent of girls were advanced, compared with 36 percent of boys.

About 66 percent of all 10th-graders scored proficient or advanced in math, including 22.3 percent of girls and 26.5 percent of boys.

About 70 percent of fourth-grade girls who took the WKCE in November were advanced or proficient in science, compared with 67.7 percent of fourth-grade boys.

Meanwhile, 65 percent of female 10th-graders were proficient or advanced in science, compared with 68.7 percent of their male classmates. However, 29.2 percent of the girls were advanced, compared with nearly 41 percent of the boys.

Organizers said they hoped hands-on experience would encourage girls at the tech camp to continue with STEM studies.

The girls learned about the “life of a Wisconsin Public Service lineman” on Wednesday and studied the solar sunflowers at the Green Bay Botanical Garden, which are solar panels that move with the sun to gather more energy.

Activities scheduled for today include work with solar racecars and a solar oven and construction of a circuit from a lemon.

“We want to expose the girls to STEM occupations,” said Betsy Baier, nontraditional occupation coordinator for NWTC. “We realize that when they are in middle school is when they become interested in future careers, based on exposure. We want to expose them to occupations females may not see.”

Mary Frank-Arlt, community relations specialist with WPS, agreed.

“Utilities are seeing an aging work force,” she said. “And kids need exposure. You see firefighters and teachers, but how many of them see the engineer who’s keeping your lights on?”

Baier said women who become welders or engineers often were exposed to family members in those professions.

“So we hope this camp offers them another chance to see what those professionals do,” she said.

The program was funded through a $20,000 grant that is shared with Fox Valley, Moraine Park and Lakeshore technical colleges. The local camp is co-sponsored by NWTC, WPS and the Green Bay-De Pere YWCA, which hosts an after-school program called TechGYRLS aimed at keeping at-risk sixth-grade girls interested in STEM subjects.

TechGYRLS teacher Jenna Tullberg said the lessons are important.

“With advancements in technology and globalization, if our youth don’t have the skills, their jobs are going to be limited,” she said. “We want to show girls fields that provide good-paying jobs that they may not be thinking of. If you get them early, there’s a better chance they’ll believe this is something they would like to do and can do.”

Natalie Ehren, who will be an eighth-grader at Green Bay’s Lombardi Middle School in fall, plans to be a chemist or work in the environmental sciences.

“I’ve always wanted to get into the science field,” she said. “I think sometimes there’s an idea that girls go into makeup and boys go into construction. I want to break that mold.”

CVTC hosts regional conference focusing on STEM education

From cvtc.edu: “CVTC hosts regional conference focusing on future of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math education” — The future of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) education in Wisconsin was the focus of a regional conference held recently at Chippewa Valley Technical College (CVTC).

“The STEM conference was a wonderful opportunity to bring together representatives from business and industry, higher education, K12 education, and a number of community agencies to assist us as we work with others from across the state to create Wisconsin’s road map for STEM education,” said Dr. Ellen Kirking, CVTC’s vice president for education.  “Through these conversations we were able to generate ideas that will help us as we build this framework.”

The gathering at CVTC was one of six regional conferences held throughout the state.  In her welcoming address to the nearly 90 participants gathered at the Manufacturing Education Center, Ellen said, “Our economy and the quality of life in Wisconsin will grow and thrive through the development and promotion of STEM education and careers.”

Ellen cited statistics from the State Office of Economic Advisors indicating that 10 percent of all jobs in Wisconsin are STEM-related, and that percentage is expected to rise to 20 percent for all new jobs created in the state between now and 2016.

The purpose of the STEM conference at CVTC was four-fold:

• To build awareness of the value of STEM education as a pathway to economic success.
• To provide resources and experiences for Wisconsin educators, from pre-kindergarten through college, to develop STEM knowledge and skills.
• To position STEM education as a valued outcome for all Wisconsin students.
• To promote STEM skills as an economic advantage for those entering the Wisconsin workforce.

Aliesha Crowe, dean of Energy, Agriculture, and Technology at CVTC, led the K-12 educators during their discussion of STEM issues at the conference.  Her group included administrators, teachers, counselors, and high school career prep staff from school districts throughout the CVTC and Wisconsin Indianhead Technical College districts.

Aliesha explained that the Wisconsin Technology Council will compile the ideas and suggestions coming out of the conference at CVTC and the five other regional STEM conferences into a “white paper” that can serve as a guide for a statewide approach to STEM education during the next decade.  This “white paper,” also referred to as a “road map” for the future of STEM education in Wisconsin, is scheduled to be released this fall.

“The people at our conference were excited to contribute to the STEM road map report, and they are very interested in receiving the report when it is completed,” Aliesha said.

“Success in advancing STEM education relies heavily on cooperation amongst those with a vested interest in STEM and a shared knowledge and language of what STEM really means for Wisconsin,” she added.   “I see the road map as a critical step in establishing the partnerships and sharing the knowledge.  In addition, I think the STEM road map report will be very helpful in fostering further development of STEM initiatives at CVTC.”

Aliesha explained that CVTC established a STEM Planning Team in 2010. That team, which includes Student Services and Academic leadership as well as faculty, has been working to increase enrollment in STEM-related programs at the college and to create awareness of STEM education at CVTC and throughout its 11-county district.

“The advancement of STEM education in the state of Wisconsin is not a K-12 issue or a higher education issue, but rather a statewide issue,” Aliesha said.  “The great turnout of K-12, higher education, business and industry, and community representatives at our STEM regional conference clearly indicates the importance of STEM education to west-central and northern Wisconsin.”

Ellen also praised the outcome of the regional conference at CVTC.

“Using our vision for Wisconsin, we can work to overcome myths and misinformation about STEM, give students the foundation they need for their careers, and give employers the talented and qualified workforce their businesses need,” she said.

Project based learning prepares students for engineering careers

From gazettextra.com: “Engineering goes back to school” — Seventh-grader Deadrick Vance raised his hands above his head, signaling triumph.

“Success!” he said, turning to give his teacher a high-five.

Vance was among the first to construct a Morse code device for his science class at Janesville’s Edison Middle School recently. He had cut the wire, wrapping it around a nail, connected the paper clips and powered the system with a D-cell battery.

As he pressed down on the paperclip that acted as the key, another paper clip was drawn down onto the nail, which had become an electromagnet.

Later, teacher Andy LaChance would string wire between classrooms and let students take turns sending messages.

Vance had completed one small task in a curriculum that has been infused with a new kind of thinking: That kids can learn science and math with real-world technical skills while in middle and high school.

The curriculum is called Project Lead the Way. It has swept across the country in recent years.

Project Lead the Way seeks to address the concerns of industries that complain they can’t find enough workers with the right skills, as well as the dearth of American college graduates in science, engineering and math, said Ken Maguire, director of the nonprofit organization’s upper Midwest region.

Maguire said Project Lead the Way is growing fast, with a 20 percent increase in the region just in the past year.

But Project Lead the Way doesn’t want schools to jump in without committing themselves to quality.

“If they’re wanting it because a neighboring school has it, if they’re wanting it because voters say they want it, that is the biggest impediment,” Maguire said.

Startup costs might be $25,000 for a high school that has the computers to run the software, Maguire said.

Schools start with one course and add courses until they make a path that leads to classes in engineering in high school, giving them a base for college studies or even college credit.

Project Lead the Way is a part of middle and/or high school curriculums in many school districts in Rock and Walworth counties.

Clinton High School is the most developed program in Rock County, said Janesville’s Steve Huth, director of a countywide consortium that promotes Project Lead the Way.

During a recent visit to Clinton High School, students in one class were using a computer-assisted design program to create a simple, three-dimensional model of a railroad engine. Next door, students in a digital electronics class were using Boolean algebra to design circuits that would spell out a message, similar to the electronics used on a sports scoreboard.

Students who complete the Clinton program get advanced standing at Blackhawk Technical College, while others get credit in four-year programs, such as the Milwaukee School of Engineering, said teacher Tim Thieding.

Thieding said he started the year with 10 digital electronics students. He now has six.

“It’s a tough course,” he said.

Thieding also teaches a computer-integrated manufacturing course that takes students from invention to computer modeling to building a manufacturing process, with milling and robotics thrown in.

“Right now, manufacturing is something we need to build back up in the United States, so we need to get our students not only familiar with it but proficient,” Thieding said.

Clinton also offers certifications in architecture and civil engineering. It plans to introduce bio-medical engineering next year, and there’s talk of extending the program into the elementary grades.

“We’re kind of excited, as small as we are, to offer all those,” Thieding said.

Most Project Lead the Way teachers are certified in science or tech ed. They must go through a reportedly tough summer training program for each course they teach.

Thieding’s tech-ed colleague, Derek Tietz, also teaches Project Lead the Way courses. The pair also offer more traditional tech courses in woodworking, metals and construction.

“Project Lead the Way gives them a chance to see it before they have to really pay for it in college, so they see if they want to do this as a career,” Tietz said.

Two Clinton students have internships at Scot Forge in Clinton, and Scot Forge engineers volunteer with the program. Others are planning to pursue engineering at MSOE or UW-Platteville. Clinton also gets help from Gilbank Construction and Paperchine.

In some states, local industries donate to establish a particular kind of engineering course in local schools, but Maguire wasn’t aware of any relationships like that in Rock County.

Even one Project Lead the Way course might make a difference. It did for 2011 Janesville Parker High School grad Markus Murdy.

Murdy said the principles of engineering course was all he could work into his schedule. He said it helped him combine his interest in aviation with his desire to figure out how things worked.

“It was like, ‘Whoa, there’s a whole field dedicated to this kind of thing,'” Murdy said. “Coming out of that. I had a much better idea of what I wanted to do.”

Murdy is majoring in aerospace engineering at the University of Alabama in Huntsville.

At Edison Middle School, LaChance surveyed his students with a smile.

“Look at these guys right now,” he said, referring to a group hovering over one of their devices as the lunch bell sounded. “They’re still working on it. Usually these guys are the first ones in line for lunch.

“I like it. We need more hands-on stuff.”

SCHOOLS INVOLVED

Project Lead the Way has been introduced in several area schools, according to the Project Lead the Way online locator.

Rock County

— Beloit Memorial High School and middle schools

— Beloit Turner High School and middle school

— Evansville J.C. McKenna Middle School

— Janesville Parker and Craig high schools and all three middle schools.

— Orfordville Parkview, middle school level

Walworth County

— Delavan-Darien High School and Phoenix Middle School

— Elkhorn Area High School

— Lake Geneva Badger High School

— Whitewater High School and middle school

Green County

— Brodhead High School and middle school

Girl Scouts experiment with STEM careers at MATC

From jsonline.com: “Milwaukee-area Girl Scouts experiment with careers” — When Claire Fieber asks her Daisy and Brownie Girl Scouts to describe a scientist, many of them dream up the same kind of person – an old white man with wispy white hair in a white lab coat.

Rarely do any of the Girl Scouts visualize a female scientist first.

“A lot of times girls don’t see women in those roles, so it doesn’t even cross their minds that they can do it themselves,” Fieber said.

As an urban and Latina outreach specialist with the Girl Scouts of Wisconsin Southeast, Fieber is helping reshape girls’ perception of science, technology, engineering and mathematics – the so-called STEM fields – and the ways they envision themselves fitting into those careers.

During the past three years, the Girl Scouts organization has amplified STEM education efforts in its mission.

While Scouts still sell the organization’s trademark cookies and volunteer in their communities, STEM represents a primary focus of the Girl Scout group.

With the demand to fill 155,000 STEM jobs in the state over the next six years, according to the Alliance for Science and Technology Research in America, the Girl Scouts program hopes to ignite girls’ interest in STEM careers.

Tracy Wayson, chief development and brand officer for the Girl Scouts of Wisconsin Southeast, also hopes to boost girls’ confidence in their ability to pursue those fields.

“We know that girls are lagging in general in terms of selecting STEM careers, and we’re missing out on having girls of color in that pipeline,” Wayson said.

Thanks to support from community organizations such as Time Warner Cable and Rockwell Automation and two grants from the Opus Foundation, Wayson and her team have provided engaging, hands-on STEM programming.

While the first Opus grant in 2010 covered start-up costs, including staffing and partnerships with outside initiatives, the second grant in 2011 is activating STEM programming through three main outlets: outreach, robotics and special programming.

About 60% of the Opus Impact Fund that the group received helps implement STEM activities into outreach programming, a special set of troops from low-income communities and schools led by professional staff members such as Fieber.

Many of these activities explain how concepts that girls study in school relate to real-world applications.

Hands-on experience

In addition to learning about the characteristics of a scientist, Fieber’s outreach troop conducts several experiments.

One aims to help girls understand the importance of hypotheses. Without knowing exactly what they’re making, they mix glue, water and borax, learning how to measure materials and follow directions in the process.

But before mixing, they hypothesize what the materials will create and compare their educated guess to the end result – a slimy, Silly Putty-like substance.

Other STEM education opportunities revolve around robotics, which include teams; events and workshops; and summer camps.

The events are progressive so girls continuously build on their robotics skills with age.

Using complex equipment called Lego Mindstorms and knowledge of robotics from previous years, Junior Girl Scouts in grades four and five assemble a simple robotic machine that runs off solar power to learn about renewable energy.

Robotics competitions at regional, state and national levels each year challenge Girl Scouts to accelerate in their teamwork and leadership skills.

The Opus Fund also allows the Girl Scouts of Wisconsin Southeast to partner with community organizations and expose girls to STEM environments through special programming.

On Saturday, special programming took the Scouts to Milwaukee Area Technical College in Oak Creek, where a workshop engaged more than 100 girls in welding and other fields.

“The welding was really cool because I like kind of creative ideas,” said Melissa Ziegler, 12.

Other instruction areas included architecture, civil engineering and carpentry – all taught by female professionals who serve as STEM role models for the next generation.

“When you ask kids today what they want to be, not very many people say, ‘I want to be a biomedical engineer or I want to figure out how to build skyscrapers,’ ” Wayson said. “So we are really giving girls a whole new view of what they can be and helping them see themselves there.”

Manufacturers need a smart workforce

From biztimes.com: “Manufacturers need a smart workforce” —  With 20 percent of our state’s employees working in manufacturing, Wisconsin boasts the highest concentration of manufacturing jobs in the country. We also have the most to win or lose if we don’t collectively address the ongoing need for a robust, skilled workforce.

That’s why I was pleased to participate in a recent meeting of Wisconsin manufacturing and educational leaders hosted by the Deputy Secretary of the United States Department of Commerce, Dr. Rebecca Blank. The Deputy Secretary was here to discuss ways public policy can support and promote the type of education that’s needed to close a growing “skills gap.”

But the meeting was a reminder to me that perhaps the biggest gap we have to close isn’t just in our skills, but also in our collective thinking.

Represented at the meeting were some of Wisconsin’s leading biotechnology and biosciences businesses – industry sectors for which the importance of a well-educated, innovative workforce is widely understood. However, what many people may not realize is that, even for the more traditional manufacturers that are the backbone of our state’s economy, highly skilled workers are crucial.

In virtually all sectors of manufacturing, our country’s ability to compete effectively with low-labor-cost countries like China and India requires advanced technologies and materials, sophisticated software systems and controls, and some of the world’s most knowledgeable and experienced engineers. These are among the reasons manufacturing is leading our economic recovery today.

That’s where we’re winning…for now. But when you look ahead, the news isn’t all good.

The United States is grossly behind the rest of the world in driving students into STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) higher education programs. Only 12 percent of our students graduate in STEM-related fields, compared to 25 percent in China and 27 percent in Korea. Perhaps even more alarming, 37 percent of our STEM graduates leave the U.S. to return to their native countries, armed with knowledge from our world-renowned educational systems. And these are the same increasingly scarce skills all U.S. manufacturers need to remain competitive in the global marketplace.

Wisconsin has long been looked to as an industry leader. So how are we taking action to confront this pressing problem? Here’s just one example. As chairman of the Waukesha County Business Alliance’s Manufacturing Steering Committee, I’m excited to report that we’re partnering with the Wisconsin Technical College System to bring the National Association of Manufacturers’ “Dream It. Do It.” program to our state.

The goal of “Dream It. Do It.” is twofold: to increase awareness among our young people that they can fulfill their dreams of engaging and rewarding careers by entering the manufacturing industry; and to align manufacturers, educational institutions, young people and their parents in making these dreams a reality.

It could be the beginning of an important shift in our collective thinking – one that bridges the gaps in both our workers’ skills and our collective mindset related to manufacturing. In Wisconsin and across the country, when we recognize that all manufacturing produces rewarding, family-sustaining careers, and that all sectors today require a highly skilled and innovative workforce, we will place the right emphasis on education required to ensure a vibrant economic future.

Creating Community…One Seed at a Time

From wicampuscompact.org: “Creating Community…One Seed at a Time” — A collaborative between the University of Wisconsin Parkside, Gateway Technical College, and multiple community agencies in the Kenosha/Racine area has had a significant community impact. Students worked with projects supporting community gardens as well as with programs in the community to educate low income and other individuals about healthy nutrition options with a focus on fresh food and its preservation.

“Usually a STEM discipline [course] feels very lecture oriented or class oriented. Community Service projects actually allow the students to go out, have hands-on experience, and actually apply the knowledge they are taking in through lecture.” -Stefanie Straus-Thomkins, UW-Parkside

“You can tell somebody, ‘This is how a pepper grows,’ but until they see that pepper growing on a plant and watch it develop and watch it grow – you don’t get the full experience. I get hands-on experience of learning and doing it and then I go and teach somebody else that too.” – Charis, Student, Gateway Technical College.

View video from wicampuscompact.org

Remarks on workforce training at Madison Area Technical College

From commerce.gov: “Remarks on workforce training at Madison Area Technical College” — Acting Deputy Secretary of Commerce Rebecca Blank – Thank you. It’s great to be here.

Before I begin, I especially want to say a few words about our host today, Madison Area Technical College. I was just given a tour, and I’m really impressed by what’s happening here.

I just had the pleasure of seeing a training class focused on the technologies of hybrid vehicles. This class helps auto technicians update and improve their skills, so that they and their employers can serve new clients.

What you’re doing at Madison College is important to Madison. . . to Wisconsin. . . and to America. The diverse and rigorous education offered here has made a difference in the lives of tens of thousands of people throughout the region.

And it’s more than just technical training improving the employment opportunities for individual workers. You’re helping to create a workforce that will attract innovative and growing companies to your community, building the foundation for a 21st Century economy.

I often get the chance to talk with CEOs and business leaders across the country. And everywhere I go, they tell me that one of their chief concerns is having the highly skilled workers they need to power their companies.

It’s a concern shared by the president, because it’s absolutely crucial for long-term job-creation and economic growth.

And make no mistake, jobs are what this administration is focused on.

In his State of the Union address a few weeks ago, President Obama laid out a blueprint for an economy that’s built to last–an economy built on American ingenuity, the skills of our workers and a renewal of American values.

It was a vision for an economy where everyone gets a fair shot, everyone does their fair share and everyone plays by the same rules.

There is a basic American promise that if you work hard enough, you will earn enough to raise your family, pay your bills and save a little for retirement. In the past decade, our economy has not consistently delivered on that promise.  Even before the recession, incomes for middle-income families were stagnant, despite overall economic growth.

There are a number of policy issues we could talk about today that would change that and help create jobs and create long-term growth.  We could talk about making sure our small businesses can innovate and create new products; we could talk about the need to invest in our nation’s infrastructure – its roads, and ports, and electric utility grid, and high-speed internet connections. But because we’re at Madison College, what I’m going to talk about is the power of a highly skilled workforce.

The president in his State of the Union address said: “Growing industries in science and technology have twice as many openings as we have workers who can do the job. Think about that–openings at a time when millions of Americans are looking for work.”

President Obama called for more programs just like the ones offered here on the Truax campus. He requested that Congress help him support more colleges that teach people the skills that businesses need–or as he put it, “give community colleges the resources they need to become community career centers.”

This push is so important because a globally competitive economy requires a globally competitive workforce. Among other things, we need to ensure we have workers trained in science, technology, engineering and mathematics–the so-called “STEM” fields. Over the last decade, growth in STEM job openings climbed three times as fast as other jobs. And STEM jobs are not just open to people with masters in Engineering or Ph.D.s in nanotechnology. Up to a third of STEM jobs are filled by workers without a college degree. . . people who are engineering technicians, computer support specialists, network system analysts, or network and computer system administrators.

This is no surprise to Madison College graduates. I understand Madison is one of the only technical colleges in the U.S. with a dedicated workforce training program in the STEM fields. We need more places like this all over America.

Consider this: In recent years, only about 13 percent of U.S. college graduates got degrees in science, technology, engineering or math. That is much lower than other countries like Korea and Germany at 25 percent.

We can do better. And we must, because the jobs of tomorrow will be powered by STEM.

You see that recognition in the event the president is hosting today in Washington–the second White House Science Fair, which celebrates the student winners of a broad range of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) competitions from across the country. The event is part of President Obama’s Educate to Innovate campaign to inspire students to excel in math and science.

Of course, how we should go about boosting training programs and skills-based education is a source of much debate in Washington.

On one side, there are people who believe in cutting funding and relying on federal fiscal austerity to shape our economic future.

But any approach where we blindly cut the budget could be harmful to America’s competitiveness in the long term. These approaches ignore the very strategies that helped make America the preeminent economic power of the 20th century.

Instead we need to make smart investments that will pay off.

Already this administration in fiscal year 2010 invested $3.4 billion in STEM education, supporting teachers, internships and workforce training.

One area where the government is a vital partner with the private sector is, in fact, technical training.

For instance, the Commerce Department, through our Economic Development Administration, was proud to team up with Madison College recently to provide mobile technical training opportunities both on-campus and throughout the region. The training focused on advanced manufacturing and automotive technology.

In addition, the Commerce Department has been working hand-in-hand with hundreds of local small- and medium-sized manufacturers through our Wisconsin Manufacturing Extension Partnership.

Another exciting collaboration between our WMEP program and folks here is the Second-Chance Partners for Education, where high-school students at risk for not graduating are offered an alternative after their sophomore year.

In this program, they learn manufacturing skills for six hours a day and spend two hours a day working on getting their high school diploma. These students are able to graduate with their high school class and also have practical job skills.

I’ve heard of one young man who will graduate on time in June. The following Monday, he will start at a $50,000-a-year manufacturing job.

Making connections among manufacturers, educators and workers is central to filling the skills gap that the president highlighted in the State of the Union address.

Now, let me be clear. This administration does not believe government has all the answers. But we do believe that by working together, we can identify what works, build on that, and spread the best ideas that help businesses grow, innovate, and create jobs.

And we just saw some good news on that front. Last week, we learned that the economy is continuing to heal from the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. The unemployment rate fell to 8.3 percent, the lowest it’s been since President Obama took office. In January, we added 50,000 jobs alone in manufacturing. Over the past two years, we’ve added 3.7 million new jobs in total.

But even though the economy has added private sector jobs every month for almost two straight years, there is still work to be done. The president and this administration will not be satisfied until everyone who wants a job has one.

This is why we must ensure that all Americans receive a quality education and that businesses have the infrastructure and workforce they need to operate and excel.

The Obama administration is dedicated to helping lay that foundation for growth at schools like Madison College–which will, in turn, allow businesses in Madison and all over the country to build something special on top of that foundation.

That’s how we put more people to work.

That’s how we help businesses grow.

That’s how we ensure that American workers and American communities compete and thrive in the global economy.
Good luck and keep up the great work!

MATC receives federal grant to boost science and technology careers

From jsonline.com: “MATC receives federal grant to boost science and technology careers” — Milwaukee Area Technical College has received a National Science Foundation grant to develop curriculum and recruit students who will pursue careers in science and technology.

The first phase of the grant is $10,245 for curriculum planning and student recruitment. MATC anticipates an additional $589,734 for student scholarships, pending the availability of funds and progress of the project.

“This prestigious National Science Foundation grant will help continue our commitment to preparing students for careers in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics ) fields that are in high demand,” said MATC President Michael Burke.

The grant will support approximately 36 students enrolled in the college’s Chemical Technology, Civil Engineering Technology, Electronics Technology, Mechanical Design Technology, Information Technology (IT) Network Specialist and IT Programming/ Analyst Associate in Science Degree programs. Students in the Electronics Technology program can pursue an associate degree in Computer Electronics Technology, Biomedical Electronics Technology or Electronic Engineering Technology. Students in these programs are targeted because of consistent demand for graduates, growth in local industries and the needs identified by local economic development initiatives.

Read more from jsonline.com