APPLETON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — Appleton Technical Academy likes to say “hands on, mind on.”
Last week, the school welcomed a learning lab that’s a first-of-its-kind in the state of Wisconsin. The lab — made possible by a grant from Amcor — will provide students with hands-on robotics training they need for high-skilled technical careers.
ATECH lead teacher Paul Endter says his goal as a teacher is relevance.
“Sometimes when you have a textbook, or even just hear me talk — they hear me talk every day — so sometimes it is a ‘here we go again’ kind of situation. But now, the ‘here we go again’ is when they take a look around the room and see all of the wonderful equipment Amcor has sponsored in our space,” Endter says.
The facility includes robots and advanced equipment that align with the students curriculum. The lab allows students to prepare for high-skilled technical careers. The goal is for seamless entry into automation and industrial maintenance careers.
Endter says there’s no better time, because manufacturing is back in Wisconsin.
Careers in manufacturing are definitely in need. We have an aging population of the workforce. Everyone that I talk to, every single business, they are looking for students. They are looking for the next new hire so developing that partnership with Amcor is going to be key for future talent.
The ATECH-Amcor partnership also includes youth apprenticeships. This gives students the opportunity to transition directly to youth apprenticeships program for their junior or senior year.
“They work right on to senior year and they can transition seamlessly into the workforce, starting out full-time if they want to. They don’t have to worry about going to college, don’t have to worry racking up debt, and in fact — the best part is a lot of these employers are paying for kids to go back to school on their dime to retain these students,” Endter says.
They will also have the opportunity to earn micro-certifications through the Smart Automation Certification Alliance.
Thanks to a grant from the leading packaging company Amcor, ATECH students will get advanced hands-on experience.
“One of the nice things about ATECH is it helps students provide an identity. They can produce a self-identity about who they are and what they want to be. Oftentimes in society today we hear students don’t have a real goal,” Amcor Foundation Board President Ethan Haas says. “This provides them a real goal, a real pathway. Amcor really benefits from this, and so does the community.”
Amcor and ATECH are hoping to create a pathway for students in their future career.
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