CHATTANOOGA, TN, April 1, 2011--The Washington, DC-based Manufacturing Institute announced a partnership with the Chattanooga Regional Manufacturers Association (CRMA) to begin deployment of the NAM-Endorsed Manufacturing Skills Certification System in Tennessee. Through the alignment of educational and career pathways, this large-scale effort will prepare students and working learners for high quality jobs in manufacturing.
The partnership is supported by a grant from Lumina Foundation for Education, an Indianapolis-based private foundation dedicated to expanding access to and success in education beyond high school. The Foundation supports projects nationwide that help increase the proportion of Americans with college degrees and the necessary credentials to enter the workforce.
With better access to community college programs that offer industry-recognized, nationally portable credentials, students and workers in Tennessee can receive the quality education and training needed to respond to the demands of local manufacturers, who depend on talent-driven innovation for survival and growth in the competitive global marketplace. The CRMA will work with Chattanooga State Community College as a partner to establish the Manufacturing Skills Certification System as the statewide standard for manufacturing education.
“We need to engage more young people and transitioning workers in learning skills that translate to high-quality jobs in our economy,” said Manufacturing Institute President Emily DeRocco. “By deploying the Manufacturing Skills Certification System as stackable credentials in Tennessee colleges, we will be offering new pathways to employment and advancement in manufacturing, which is a mainstay of the state’s economy.”
Implementations of the NAM-Endorsed Manufacturing Skills Certification System will build college programs that prepare students and transitioning workers with entry-level skills necessary to succeed in all advanced manufacturing careers, such as motor vehicles, food processing, and metal fabrication. The skills certifications included in these educational programs address personal effectiveness competencies, foundational academic competencies, general workplace skills and manufacturing industry-wide technical skills. Applied science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) skills are included in the system.
The national skills system organizes individual certification programs designed and validated by ACT, Inc., the Manufacturing Skills Standards Council, the American Welding Society, the National Institute of Metalworking Skills, and the Society of Manufacturing Engineers into educational pathways with “stackable” credentials leading to an associate’s degree.
“The Manufacturing Institute has created a national solution to drive manufacturing education reform to meet the needs of Tennessee manufacturers and the new realities of the students and working learners they seek to employ,” said Tim Spires, CEO, CRMA. “Integrating these industry skills certifications in our colleges’ programs of study will dramatically improve how we prepare individuals for manufacturing jobs,” said Spires. “We will better meet the needs and learning styles of our students and working learners to enhance and accelerate our delivery of a manufacturing workforce for Tennessee, equipped with advanced, 21st century skills. Tennessee manufacturers employ nearly 300,000 individuals with higher annual wages and benefits than other industries. Supplying these businesses with the 21st century talent to fill those jobs is integral to their sustainability and our state’s economic security.”
For more information about the NAM-Endorsed Manufacturing Skills Certification System, visit: http://institute.nam.org