Education Outlook
Education represents the best way to prepare the next generation to compete. We will consider four areas where we as finishers, businesspeople, and citizens can be involved in that preparation.
Chicago Public Schools
As urban school districts go, Chicago is not too bad. It has around a 30% dropout rate at the high-school level. It could be better though. As businesspeople with an eye on the future, we need to be calling the local government and the school administrations to account for the performance of our local schools. To be able to leverage any of the global trends, or to take advantage of specialization—to compete at the global level—a certain degree of technical competence is required. A high school diploma is a minimum requirement. Rockford, at least, is not preparing a workforce to compete globally, and that needs to change.
Creative Initiatives
As an example of “creative initiatives,” consider Dean Kamen. He and his New Hampshire-based company are responsible for many significant inventions, including the Segway and the flexible stent. But most relevant to us is the organization that Kamen started and now promotes, FIRST. It’s a nationwide robotics contest for kids that inspires them to pursue careers in technology and industry. It’s been quite successful—growing every year since its inception. Considering FIRST as a model, what kind of creative initiatives can we come up with to generate interest in our industry? We have the NASF/AESF scholarship program, but it is relatively narrow in scope. The Chicago branch works with the CPS to offer prizes for outstanding science projects, but what can we create that is exciting and appeals to a broader range of students? How can we enhance our public image? How can we get kids interested in electro-chemistry the way Kamen had gotten them interested in robotics?
Continuing Education
We need to sponsor programs for employees to further their education. The NASF/AESF has always been a valuable resource in this regard through the CEF certification courses, and these have been made more widely available via the internet. Furthermore, employers seem to be willing to fund this kind of continuing education, no doubt realizing that it enhances their ability to compete. But finishers need to more actively seek and fund university-level training. Hesitancy here is understandable—it's difficult to justify funding someone's departure if their goal is to "get a better job." A different point of view changes this, however. We can promote further training as a means "make the job better." In other words, university level training is sought in order to bring skills and technology back to the shop that enhance overall competitiveness.
There are many possibilities for finishers to spark interest and create excitement about their industry in young people, especially at the local level. But there are also competitive gains to be realized by promoting continued training in the current work force.