GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Dozens of area high school students got a hands-on learning experience in the machine industry.
Northeast Wisconsin Technical College invited high school students to get a taste of the college’s CNC and Machining program Monday.
Students competed for prizes in programming and machine set-up timed events.
They also got to learn from employers in the area about future job opportunities.
Kalleigh Schroeder, a student from Bonduel High School, says she’s the only girl in some of her technical education classes and that she would encourage other girls to try it out.
She tells FOX 11 that the NWTC experience was helpful.
“I learned that there are many different machines you can run using CNC, it’s not just writing a code and putting it into the machine, it’s making sure the part is the right size before you put it in there and just making sure it fits perfectly into the thing, it’s not the same every day.”
Associate Dean of Manufacturing at NWTC, Joe Draves, says there’s a high-demand for machinists in the area.
He tells FOX 11 there’s about 100 open positions in Northeast Wisconsin and NWTC will graduate less than 50 students in the program this year, leaving a lot of open jobs.
“I mean right now, industries are growing. If you take a look at Oshkosh Truck, Marinette Marine, there’s a lot of industry in this area, the medical fields are growing fast, they’re needing machine parts, so there’s a huge demand for the machinists and you have a lot of people retiring from the industry, so they need to have the new talent coming up and these students are starting out, they’re using programmable equipment, CNC-controlled equipment, so they’re coming in with the skills right off the bat.”
NWTC says starting salary for machinists in the area is about $50,000.
