Earlier this week, we got the chance to hear from students at Irondale High School who are participating in a uniquely-designed manufacturing career program in Minnesota.

"Before I got to Irondale it was like I didn't want to go to school anymore, but once I got here the doors opened up to me about the trades and it made me want to come to school every day." – Oscar, Irondale Senior

"Working in trades is a lot of fun...it's a different world working in the trades than it is a desk job or working in food, you meet a lot more interesting people and definitely pick up on a lot of life skills...a lot of jobs, depending on what you go for, pay a lot of money." – Ryan, Mounds View Public Schools Alternative Learning Center Senior

"I just tell people there are a lot of opportunities that don't involve 4-year-college. You don't need a 4-year-college to get a good paying job. – Walter, Irondale Senior

Those are the messages we heard loud and clear from Irondale Career and Technical Education (CTE) students at Irondale High School in New Brighton, in the Mounds View Public Schools district. We had a great discussion with Mounds View Public Schools leaders, staff, students and others about helping students prepare for what's next after high school graduation through CTE classes, specifically in manufacturing and skilled trades fields.

Preparing students for what's next

Preparing students for employment in the manufacturing industry and the skilled trades makes great sense because these occupations are in high demand and pay well – and often people can land jobs in these fields with a high school diploma and employer- or union-provided training. Average annual wages for workers in manufacturing are $74,630, 10% higher than across all industries in Minnesota. Average annual wages for workers in skilled construction trades are $77,324, 15% higher than across all industries in Minnesota.

Irondale has roughly 800 students participating in CTE classes, many of them in manufacturing and the trades. Angie Zappa, a Work-Based Learning teacher at Irondale, told us she has seen a big shift over the past several years as more students become aware of the career exploration and preparation opportunities available while they are in high school.

"The biggest difference I see is really the relevance and how that resonates with kids. I don't have to spend a lot of time explaining the 'why', 'why are we doing this' because they can see they're going to need to know how to answer an interview question; they're going to need to know what career field they're interested in," said Angie. "Beyond that it's much more hands on, much more tangible, and I really feel like we can engage all types of learners in what we do."

"We're currently learning about OSHA courses and how they can benefit us in the outside world, we're learning workers' rights, emergency action plans... and another thing we do is watch videos that show a day in the life of a person working in manufacturing or the trades and that gives me an idea of what I want to do in the outside world." – Oscar, who wants to be electrician

"I really like CTE classes...they help us get OSHA 10 certification very soon in life so if you are going into the trades you have this extra paper saying 'hey I have a little bit more knowledge than other kids coming in here' so it really opens up doors for better job opportunities." – Ryan, who is currently working at a local manufacturing company, Johnson Screens

"First class when I come in, I go to welding and learn how to weld, then I go to CTE class... presenters come in and tell us what they do and how they got there." – Walter, who is currently working at a local manufacturing company, FedTech

Making real-world connections

CTE classes are immensely popular because students can learn skills in a way they can see has application to real life. Interest in the program has increased considerably over the last year, causing Irondale and Mounds View high schools to work on adding additional welding classrooms and sections. More than 145 district students have completed the introductory welding course in the last year, with additional students on a wait list. Irondale High School Principal Vichai Saefong says if they had another welding classroom, they could have accommodated the additional waitlisted students. The challenge: welding and similar classrooms cost far more than average classrooms to equip, plus it's a challenge to find teachers for such classes because people with top welding certifications can make a lot more money outside of a classroom. Another example is CNC classes – there is a big demand for CNC machining skills, but the equipment and the instruction costs make them hard for high schools to afford. That's where community and business partnerships come in to help meet student and industry needs.

Dewey Josephson, Operations Manager at Johnson Screens, says there are four Irondale students currently welding at the company's plant in New Brighton. Dewey says there is the long-term benefit from bringing students like Ryan on board who want to grow and learn at Johnson Screens and not jump to the next manufacturer paying 50 cents more an hour down the street in six months. But there are also immediate benefits to the company.

"It's the instant value that the students bring within the program. Within a couple of weeks to a month they've passed all the training and certifications for welding and are able to do production welding," said Dewey. "I see the investment in the students as a long-term benefit but also an instant benefit."

October is Manufacturing Month in Minnesota, a time to acknowledge the huge importance of this industry to our state's economy – and the thousands of good-paying employment opportunities now and into the future.

Manufacturing accounted for $56 billion, or 14%, of the state's gross domestic product and provided more than 310,000 jobs, or 11.3% of statewide employment, in 2021. There are many employment opportunities in manufacturing: Minnesota added almost 15,000 manufacturing jobs over the year from August 2021 to August 2022 and the latest job vacancy survey showed 16,421 vacancies in manufacturing across Minnesota. Minnesota is expected to see more than 75,000 job openings for manufacturing production positions alone through 2030.

Focusing on building successful career pathways

DEED is focused on helping connect people who need work with the employers who need them. This is critically important because Minnesota has the lowest unemployment rate in the nation. With an unemployment rate below 2% and a near record high number of job vacancies across nearly all industries in Minnesota, it's a real challenge to find employees. There are currently four open positions for every unemployed person looking for work in Minnesota.

DLI supports safe work-based learning opportunities for 16- and 17-year-old student learners through the Youth Skills Training program, which also provides grants to create quality on-the-job learning experiences. So far, DLI has approved more than 100 manufacturing companies throughout the state as work-based learning sites through the Youth Skills Training program. The next round of Youth Skills Training program grant applications opens Oct. 17, 2022.

MDE is focused on ensuring CTE classes and work-based learning opportunities provide high-quality training and education that prepare students for a successful future. CTE courses integrate core academic knowledge with technical and occupational knowledge and skills to provide students a pathway to postsecondary education and careers. CTE teaches transferable workplace skills in hands-on learning environments so students can explore high-skill, high-demand career options involving science, technology, engineering and math. MDE recognizes that CTE classes are very valuable and help ensure that there are good educational experiences for all students.

The takeaways

State leaders at Tuesday's roundtable took away some concrete messages about what is needed to help more students explore and prepare for careers in high school. Those include more funding for CTE classrooms with up-to-date equipment as well as new ways of bringing high-demand CTE teachers into the classroom. Options mentioned to solve teacher shortages included additional changes to licensing requirements, adopting an adjunct professor-type model for such high-demand educators, and increasing teacher pay.

All the participants in Tuesday's discussion voiced some common themes: that college isn't for everyone, that society needs to eliminate the stigma of not going on to college after high school, and that there are many in-demand, high-paying career options for students with a high school diploma and employer or union-provided training.

"Every one of these three young men here today day are highly educated, highly motivated – they are excellent students," said Mounds View Public Schools Superintendent Chris Lennox. "Graduating seniors are often asked 'what college are you going to go to' and we've been working to shift that narrative to 'what is it you want to be when you grow up and how can we help you on the pathway to whatever that is."

• Find out more about Manufacturing Month events, tours of manufacturing facilities, fact sheets and more.
• Access an overview of the benefits of DLI's Youth Skills Training program for students and employers.
• Learn more about CTE from MDE and find out how employers can become more involved in work-based learning opportunities in local school districts.
• View a video recording of Tuesday's discussion at Irondale High School.