MANSFIELD — This summer, educators from districts in Crawford County, Morrow County and Richland County had the opportunity to participate in the third annual Teacher Boot Camps.
Mid-Ohio Educational Service Center’s Business Advisory Council and Workforce Development partners in each county organized these programs to show teachers what goes on behind the scenes in businesses and manufacturing in each county through tours of local facilities and guest speakers who provided lunch and learn sessions. Participants gained first-hand experience with the rewarding careers available in manufacturing and healthcare and the skills students need to obtain and retain these local positions.
Educators who applied for this professional development opportunity and were selected to participate in the Boot Camp received the following benefits:
- Three graduate credits from Ashland University with no out-of-pocket cost for the teacher (funded through the Lt. Governor’s Office of Workforce Transformation and Integrated Systems Technologies
). - Resources to guide classroom instruction based on information learned throughout the program.
- Instruction and guidance from top-level professionals at participating businesses, Mid-Ohio ESC and local Workforce Development and community partners.
In addition, IST in Richland County sponsored a free 3D printer for a Morrow County Boot Camp Teacher participant who designed a lesson plan that best exemplified the use of 3D printing in a manufacturing setting. IST also covered the remaining costs ($125 per teacher) of the fees for teachers in Richland, Crawford and Morrow counties who completed the program to earn graduate credits from Ashland University. Mid-Ohio would like to thank IST for its generosity.
During the week-long program, educators had the opportunity to explore the workforce development needs and opportunities in their respective communities so that those educators could use the experiences to strengthen classroom career readiness connections that are embedded in core subject area instruction. All educators were required to create a lesson plan to use with students during the 2025-26 school year and present this plan to businesses and administrators on the final day of the Boot Camp. In Richland and Morrow Counties, teachers had the unique opportunity to learn about current labor market information through a workshop series provided by Team NEO called Connections to Careers. Through this series, teachers were able to dive deeper into the careers offered by the region’s “in-demand” industries so that they can accurately advise students about future careers.
Amy Wood, Mid-Ohio ESC’s Director of Grants and Special Projects, stated, “Teachers are inherently our daily career readiness advisors. Mid-Ohio’s Teacher Boot Camps were a meaningful way for teachers to enhance their understanding of the current landscape of local in demand career opportunities and then use that knowledge to better integrate career-connected learning into their classrooms this fall.”
Due to the program’s success, Wood expects Teacher Boot Camps to be offered again in Summer 2026. She added, “Next year’s Teacher Boot Camps will continue to build on the strong foundation we’ve established in advanced manufacturing. In addition, we hope to offer teacher tours in other high-demand industries, giving educators a broader view of regional opportunities they can connect back to their classrooms.”
MOESC would like to thank the following businesses, organizations and individuals for helping make this event a success: Crawford Partnership, Morrow County Development Office, Richland Area Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development, Richland Chamber Foundation, North Central Ohio Industrial Museum, Midwest Aircraft, PR Machine/Slick Automation, Gorman Rupp, Michael Byrne Manufacturing, MK Metal Products, Inc., Carter Machine, Covert Manufacturing, IB-Tech, Timken, Diamond Wipes, Elliott Machine Works, Ohio Health, Karl Zimmer, Lubrication Specialities Inc., Lincoln Center Manufacturing, Baillie Lumber, Cardington Yutaka Technologies, Dollar Tree Distribution Center, Dar Pro Solutions, OSU-Mansfield and Dr. Eric M. Anderman, Marion Technical College, North Central State College Crawford Success Center and OSU-Marion.
To learn more about the Mid-Ohio Educational Service Center’s Business Advisory Council, please visit their webpage at: https://www.moesc.net/grants-and-special-projects/bac
Mid-Ohio Educational Service Center provides specialized academic and support services, including professional development, to 13 school districts and over 20,000 students in Crawford, Morrow and Richland Counties. Client districts receive services from curriculum, gifted and special education consultants, speech pathologists, psychologists, special education teachers, occupational therapists and physical therapists.