MakerTEC - Manufacturing Alliance Keeping Education Relevant to Technical Employee Competence

Wichita State University Campus Of Applied Sciences & Technology, Wichita KS

Investigators

Abstract

The MakerTEC Coordination Network addresses technician preparation activities for a variety of technology careers by seeking cross-cutting threads which improve workplace readiness and employee retention that are recognized and accepted in today's high performance manufacturing industries. By coordinating work ethics standards, level of preparation assessments and curriculum development support that aligns technician education with skills credentialing programs, employee suitability will be addressed early in the employee recruitment cycle, ultimately resulting in lower employer costs through reduced applicant screening and better-prepared employees resulting in less employee turnover. MakerTEC is applicable to a host of STEM organizations and industries by providing collaborative technician preparation strategies as options for public and private entities struggling to meet industry's employer skill needs. The MakerTEC project enhances recruitment actions underway by workforce and placement agencies with candidate action plans assessing/highlighting existing skills gaps, assisting educators with hybrid/virtual education and distance learning strategies reaching beyond traditional classrooms and identifying credentialing options for employability skills needed at entry level and beyond. These activities focus on joint efforts to catalog and cross-reference related programs and activities for participating organizations to maximize available resources. Through databases created by region, industry-defined performance standards and credentialing options, employers will have access to tools for evidence-based hiring decisions. In this way, MakerTEC will establish a network to foster broad acceptance by participants and reward those seeking living-wage jobs with opportunities for employment in key industries.