The Four Cities Compact in North Central Ohio share in providing career and technical education to students from Barberton High School, Copley High School, Norton High School and Wadsworth High School. Students have access to 18 different pathways, including Programming, Design and Robotics; Machine Technology; and Engineering Design and Technology. The Four Cities Compact schools join more than 40 high schools across the nation to form the SME PRIME (Partnership Response In Manufacturing Education) schools network.
The Compact, in its partnership with SME PRIME, is committed to inspiring students and creating awareness of opportunities in industry – and preparing them to pursue those opportunities. Students have access to relevant curricula, modern equipment and qualified, engaged instructors.
Kip Shipley heads the Engineering Design and Technology program. Shipley, a graduate of Ohio University, worked in industry before becoming an instructor 17 years ago. He wanted to make a difference; to encourage young people: “I wanted to be remembered as that instructor who really helped.”
Among those students who Shipley is helping: Alexandra Zudor, a recent graduate of the Engineering Design and Technology program. Bound in the fall for The Ohio State University, Zudor is grateful for the opportunities she’s had through SME PRIME and the Four Cities Compact. The Engineering Design and Technology pathway was a natural fit for Alexandra: “Ever since I was little, I’ve been interested in how things are made; I’d take things apart to see how they worked. Engineering has always fascinated me.”
Shipley notes that opportunities in manufacturing are abundant for any student, including young women. “Young women are among my best students. They enter the program sometimes thinking that they ‘can’t do it,’ but they certainly can and do.”
Roger Wright, director of the Four Cities Compact, agrees. “We’ve got great young women in our programs doing outstanding things. It’s important to us that we show these achievers to younger students; to show them what can be done. Our students are important role models.”
Improve the future of the manufacturing workforce — and of manufacturing itself — by investing in SME PRIME schools or encouraging your employees to serve as mentors.
Read Part 2 - The Four Cities Compact: Schools Collaborate to Provide Opportunity
