YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – The Ohio Manufacturers’ Association is leading a statewide listening tour to gauge the landscape of student engagement in manufacturing career pathways.
The tour came to the Mahoning Valley late last month and made a stop at Oh Wow! The Roger & Gloria Jones Children’s Center for Science & Technology.
The Mahoning Valley Manufacturers Coalition team joined more than 25 representatives from member manufacturers, educators, industry leaders and partners for group discussions on what’s working, what needs improving and how to come up with solutions.
The session was led by Jessica Short, director of the Dayton Regional STEM Center.
“This tour is about collecting assets from across the state – programs, strategies and partnerships – and aligning them with Ohio’s career and education standards,” Short said. “We’re facilitating cross-sector conversations to uncover gaps and barriers, then shaping a strategy OMA can help lead statewide.”
Participants shared many similar issues in reaching students and their families about manufacturing career opportunities. Some of them included educator knowledge, parent involvement, overcoming the manufacturing stigma and needing more career counselors.
“It’s refreshing to hear others echo the same challenges,” said Gina Peplow, workforce development coordinator at Vallourec. “You realize you’re not alone, and that shared understanding can drive real collaboration.”
OMA plans to use the insights from each tour stop to build a statewide catalog of assets and align them with Ohio’s education and career standards. Then, a cohesive strategy will be proposed to get more students from the classroom into manufacturing careers.
“I think all of this is critical to what we need to do to sustain what’s happening in manufacturing,” said Melinda Rombold, HR director at Schwebel’s.
CREDIT: Mahoning Valley Manufacturers Coalition.