PHOENIX - A class at West-MEC is meeting the needs of Arizona's manufacturing future. Thousands of jobs will be opening soon that require important skills.
Preparing for the Workforce:
Arizona students are preparing for the future.
"It was just a whole new world that I stepped into," said Lilo Taputu, a West-MEC student.
"I really thought, this is something I could do in my future," said Maxim Casillas, a West-MEC student.
What Students are Learning:
At West-MEC, they are learning advanced manufacturing.
"What we do here with the students is make sure they have a solid foundation before they go into the business so that they would be better trainees and have a better sense of using tools," said Matthew Cotton, an instructor at West-MEC.
"It's not just like a small machine that you know automatically. There are procedures, safety cautions. West-MEC teaches you everything you need to transfer into the real world the next day," Taputu said.
Real-World Skills:
Those real-world jobs need to be filled by people who know what they are doing, from aerospace to advanced manufacturing to semiconductor chip production.
"Anything that has machines running these guys would be able to go to," Cotton said.
Looking Ahead:
They designed and created a challenge coin celebrating their class. The class of 2026 is ready to build the future with machines.
"By the end of the year they're making stuff by themselves. Sometimes I let them do their own things on the machines after they get projects done, school work, make their own stuff. They become confident, they go in and they run," Cotton said.
Like Maxim, spending free time on a holster for a lightsaber.
"It was a team of four on each lathe and it was super cool because we all worked together to make it super cool," Casillas said.
Big picture view:
They have fun, but the underlying skill sets them up for anything.
"I want to be able to provide for a family. Automotive manufacturing doesn't need another two years of a degree. You can go straight into the workforce, which is what I'm planning on doing," Casillas said.
The Source: Information in this report was gathered from Lilo Taputu, a West-MEC student; Maxim Casillas, a West-MEC student; and Matthew Cotton, an instructor at West-MEC.