ASHLAND — Citing the growing number of unfilled manufacturing jobs in the U.S., Montez King, keynote speaker for the 3rd annual Workforce Summit sponsored by the North Central Workforce Alliance of Ohio, gently took the U.S education system to task at the Sept 26 event in Ashland.
King is Executive Director for the National Institute for Metalworking Skills.
Speaking to a gathering of business and industry leaders along with around 80 career-technical education students and a few teachers from Ashland County-West Holmes Career Center, King pointed out that industry and its related technology is growing faster than education is adapting.
Narrowing the divide requires flexibility and change in education, King said.
“We have to change how we train. We have to change how we educate,” King told the gathering at Ashland University’s Convocation Center. King pointed out that the “old way” of being forced to choose either higher education or a job track is outdated and today the two tracks can successfully intermingle with workers gaining skills at work and also pursuing higher education in their related field.
King rose from an apprenticeship as a teen to study and receive a BS in Information Technology and a Masters in Adult Education and in 2017 was appointed to the President’s Task Force on Apprenticeship Expansion.
Career Center students heard King speak in a separate session where he focused on choices, good and bad. Growing up in inner city Baltimore, King talked about the choices he faced with drugs and gangs in his neighborhood but he credited his trade school mentor with keeping him focused on the right path to receive industry credentials and enjoy a successful career.
An interactive dialogue with the students continued even as the session ended and they gathered around to see pictures of King in the White House Oval Office.
Opening remarks for the morning event were made by NCWA President Troy Snyder of Ashland’s Brethren Care, followed by Treasurer Matt Miller, Mayor of Ashland, who hailed NCWA’s several successful events since the last summit: Teacher Boot Camp which exposed teachers to the variety of career paths available in local business and industry; Girls with Goggles introducing 6th grade girls to local businesses and related careers; Women in Hard Hats which brought together high school age girls and women who work in successful non-traditional occupations; a Career Fair held at Ashland County-West Holmes Career Center bringing together high school students and local businesses and industries.
Miller stressed the organization’s outreach aimed at educating younger and younger students about non-traditional careers and the variety of careers available to them in the industrial and business arenas.
The event featured two breakout sessions with four person panels. Session one centered on Succession Plans, Retirement, and Replacement. Topics for session two covered Best Practices, Apprenticeships, and Drug Programs. Attendees were able to ask questions and share their experiences with the group.
The event culminated with the presentation of two Community Service Awards. Recipients were Dr. Lucille Ford, founder of the Ashland County Community Foundation, and Jim Cutright, current executive director of the Foundation. Miller praised both Ford and Cutright for their dedication to the community and their support of NCWA and its mission. The Rev. Dr. Stephan Rowan, Chairman of the Board of the Cleveland Foundation and graduate of Ashland Theological Seminary, presented the awards.
