Career camp teaches skills

Manufacturing industry, state, agencies support tech learning

By Amy Lavalley
Post - Tribune correspondent

VALPARAISO, Ind. — This is a camp for manufacturers in the making. Twelve middle school students, mostly from Portage, have spent this week learning the ins and outs of manufacturing, from building circuit boards to computer aided machining.

"Not as many individuals are going into manufacturing as a career. There are still a lot of good opportunities available," said Tammy Stump, a senior associate with the Center of Workforce Innovations. "Technological advances have changed manufacturing jobs over time," she added.

With the history of layoffs in the steel mills, people are shying away from manufacturing, but those jobs aren't going to go away in Northwest Indiana," Stump said.

The goal of the camp is to open young peoples' eyes to the opportunities available in manufacturing, with the hope that their interest will continue through high school and beyond. Students attending the camp Thursday morning at the Porter County Career Center liked the chance to learn more about the many aspects of manufacturing.

"I like working with machines, and mechanics. It's really fun," said Shelby Bryniarski, who will enter seventh grade at Willowcreek Middle School in the fall.

"You get to learn different things and what people do in manufacturing and how metal is made in cars," she said, while learning computer-aided machining to make an arrow-shaped cutout for a circuit board cover.

The camp, a collaboration between the Center of Workforce Innovations, the Portage YMCA, Ivy Tech Community College and the Porter County Career Center, is made possible by a grant of about $4,800 from the Fabricators & Manufacturers Association Foundation.

The weeklong camp is a pilot program of sorts. Financial support from employers, and state funding from the Strategic Skills Initiative, mean the center will offer the program again next year, possibly expanding it beyond Porter County, Stump said.

For Brandon Collins, who will start sixth grade at Fegley Middle School, making the arrow-shaped circuit board and cover was the best part.

"I think it's fun to make stuff and design stuff. It's really neat," he said adding he likes working with electronics, metals, and math. "I like manufacturing because you actually get to make something and create something and take it home. I like it because it's hands-on stuff."