2017cnc10-11

CNC WEST October/November 2017 www.CNC-West.com 53 new tools. In my current role I often work with programmers that are reluctant to learn a new CAM tool. Often their hang up is purely that the new tool doesn’t work like their old tool. I appre- ciate brand Loyalty as much as anyone but our Industry needs to be full of open minded learn- ers and thinkers. My challenge to this group of educators was to think of ways to not just teach people how to use a tool or memorize data. If they can help people be creative, open minded, problem solving thinkers they will build industry leaders that will pursue, adapt to and drive the future of our Industry. T he most surprising thing of my day was hear- ing how our government appears to finally be taking CTE (Career Technical Education) seriously enough to invest in the programs. I knew Rocklin High School had a great program with promising support but I assumed it was the exception be- cause it was led by the unicorn teacher that had the right combination of passion and budget finding know how. Even with the excellent High School program that Dan Frank runs in Rocklin his limit- ed time and budget doesn’t allow for deep career readiness. While on our field trip to San Francisco I met Steve Dicus and Bill Wenzel from Sierra College. I learned they had a new program with 11 new HAAS machines, HAAS control simulators and Fusion 360. I was very excited to hear that Sierra is rebuilding the program that shut down after I attended in 1999-2000. After our field trip, I visited Sierra College and they are building the foundation to what could be a world class program. In reflecting on the past couple of weeks and learning more about my local CTE programs from the Jr. High Level through High School and Col- lege I think we could be at the beginning of some- thing great for our region and country. But, the devil is in the details and we are in the details busi- ness. So, I will challenge everyone who reads this to get involved with your local CTE programs. It doesn’t have to be a large time investment. Some- times the local teachers just need a referral, or a quick text message to help them with a problem. Onshoring is looking more attractive as the Chi- nese worker’s wages have increased over 60% since 2011 along with numerous complex global political factors. Quality and Process control is becoming more demanding. These demands nat- urally drive business closer to home. But, is Amer- ica ready to support the work? US Jobs are hurt more by the skills gap then globalization. Modern Manufacturing companies require computer and IT skills, general technology, mechanical knowl- edge and the ability to think and learn. As industry people reading this article I encourage you to learn more about your local CTE programs and help be a part of shaping our future.