Objective: Meet regional manufacturers' need for qualified entry level and technically trained workers now and in the future.

Focus: This initiative is designed to address the fundamental challenge our region faces in meeting the need for adequately skilled workers. To accomplish this, virtually all the industry clusters in the Kalamazoo-Battle Creek region recognized that they needed to develop a new relationship between their industries, educational institutions (high schools, vocational schools, community colleges), students and their families. This "bridge building" process is a long-term initiative that will encompass four distinct categories of activity. The intended result of this multi-part Flagship is to increase the output of adequately trained workers with interest in careers in the region's manufacturing industries.

Activities: Improve industry career image, build partnership with educators, create early career connections between students and industry, expand recruitment process.

Objective 1: Industry Career Image Improvement

Carry out an industry image development program that communicates the attractiveness of careers in manufacturing targeted to high school and college students. This program should:

• Document and prepare promotional materials for students and families at the K-12 level on the positive features of careers in manufacturing emphasizing technological orientation, safety and positive wage ladder.
• Develop new media communications to get this new message to students, using young people with successful careers in industry as spokespersons.
• Establish direct industry-to-student connections by ensuring that "Manufacturing Nights" are held at schools alongside College Nights and scheduling student visits to factory plants.
• Educate counselors and teachers about the positive features of industry careers by, for example, having them work a week in industry.
• Establish a partnership between high schools and industry to help create the next generation workforce, emphasizing broader issues in skills and work ethic.

Objective 2: Enhance Higher Education-Industry Communication

Create a partnership between higher education and industry to improve responsiveness of training to industry needs. This program could:

• Organize a skills research team among regional manufacturers to determine skills needed by industry, but not currently developed by high schools, community colleges and vocational schools.
• Convene a forum or advisory group providing advice and feedback to educational institutions on the development and performance of manufacturing-related curriculum in higher education.
• Provide colleges with access to industry equipment and training materials to ensure current training courses.
• "Loan" industry professionals to provide expert instruction at higher education institutions.
• Share specific corporate training materials with colleges (and among regional companies) to accelerate workforce skills development.

Objective 3: Expand Industry-Student Work-Study Information and

Opportunities:

Develop improved channels for high school and college students to have direct work experience in industry at all stages of their education. This could include both providing a thorough data base on existing programs and designing new programs and would include:

• Current job opportunities and forecasts of new skill needs.
• Internships involving mentors, job shadowing and tracking of K-12 students to provide exposure to industry careers.
• Industry apprenticeships and co-op programs.
• Tuition reimbursement programs and industry scholarships.
• A technical education center focusing on diverse industry training needs.

Objective 4: Strengthen Recruitment in Region:

Improve the capacity of the manufacturing industries of this region to screen and recruit workers by:

• Organizing a cross-industry working group to develop solutions for screening and testing potential workers, and methods of recruiting and promoting people.
• Hiring one or more industry representatives to serve as recruiters at community colleges (starting with Kalamazoo Valley Community College) to implement the manufacturing industry career opportunities marketing program.
• Having recruiters directly seek candidates from colleges and high school graduates.
• Providing on-site professional advice on industry issues and requirements to community colleges and other education and training institutions.