As president of Tri-County Technical College, which places interns at manufacturing companies like BMW and Michelin, Ronnie L. Booth has heard all of the arguments against tracking students into vocational paths early on.
While such practices are common in some European countries, particularly Germany, they go against the widespread American belief that everyone deserves a shot at a four-year education, and that a bachelor’s degree is inherently better than an associate.
But as Mr. Booth sees it, “our education system tracks a lot of people to a life of poverty. Our K-12 system pushes students to the holy grail of a bachelor’s degree, and a lot of students say, ‘That’s not me,’ and check out.”
Students who enroll instead at Tri-County, whose main campus is in Pendleton, S.C., might get hands-on experience at local manufacturers—the college is one of three participating in the BMW Scholars Program—and possibly graduate with a job.
And while these students’ education may be focused on industry-specific skills, it often provides a confidence boost that leads to more education down the road, Mr. Booth says. “Students may discover they have an ability in mathematics. After a while, they might go on and get a four-year degree and become an engineer.”
Tyler B. Watkins landed a full-time job with Schneider Electric, a French company with a site in Seneca, S.C., in September shortly after completing a five-month internship there through Tri-County. The 20-year-old, who is completing his degree in industrial electronics technology, is a quality analyst making sure electrical circuits work. He’s earning $17.70 per hour.
“I’d thought about transferring to a four-year college, but I like working with my hands and didn’t want to end up in an office job,” he says.
At Tri-County, with campuses in a heavily industrialized corridor between Atlanta, Ga., and Charlotte, N.C., “our relationship with manufacturing is the heart and soul of what we do,” says Mr. Booth.
Ted Stokes, engineering manager at Schneider, has taught evening classes at Tri-County for 17 years. He shows students how to troubleshoot and control electric motors used in industry and how to fix problems, like when an operator flips a switch and the pump doesn’t come on. In addition to helping students get a foot in the door of the manufacturing industry, “it’s also a way for me to look for talent,” he says. “Several of our employees are my former students.”
Four-year colleges and research universities, too, should be doing more to bridge the gap between theory and practice and to help produce more engineers to enhance the competitiveness of American manufacturing firms, says Sridhar Kota, a professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. He recently wrapped up a stint as assistant director for advanced manufacturing at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.
Mr. Kota helped spur the development of “manufacturing innovation institutes” around the country, based on the German model of the Fraunhofer Institutes, which focus on applied research.
The first of the new institutes was established in Youngstown, Ohio, in August, combining the expertise of universities, community colleges, manufacturers, and nonprofits. The institute, which will focus on additive manufacturing—also known as 3D printing—will help create work-force-training programs, including internships, at community colleges and will help develop technologies to help American manufacturers remain competitive.
