In the first phase of a new partnership between the Saginaw Intermediate School District (ISD) and the SME PRIME (Partnership Response In Manufacturing Education) initiative, the ISD will receive new manufacturing equipment while instructors at seven high schools receive virtual and on-site professional development.
Valerie Freeman, a manufacturing and robotics pathway teacher at Park High School, will join the SME Education Foundation Board of Directors in 2021. Park High School in Racine Unified School District joined the SME PRIME school network in 2017. Freeman was instrumental in utilizing SME PRIME to install new curriculum, training to teach students important skills like how to program a robotic arm and remodeling the classroom for a more effective learning environment.
The number of SME PRIME high schools is set to double after the SME Education Foundation received a $6 million donation from the State of Michigan’s approved Education Budget. The legislation was crafted with bipartisan support from the Michigan Legislature, including Foundation board member and state representative Joe Tate (D-Detroit).
This is the first in a series of articles related to the Saginaw (Michigan) ISD’s summer 2021 manufacturing camp.
Whitehall High School students explore manufacturing while learning about the engineering process as they train on Dremel 3D40 3D printers and tour local manufacturing companies during class field trips.
Wheeling High School prepares its students to be innovative and productive leaders in STEM. The students involved in the SME PRIME initiative relate classwork to real-life by experiencing manufacturing up-close during their experience at the FABTECH student summit.
By providing an extensive package of manufacturing- and engineering-related educational resources, the SME PRIME (Partnership Response in Manufacturing Education) program has enabled Troy High School to bring a near-decade-long conversation about expanding the school’s career and technical education (CTE) offerings to fruition this year.
The SME PRIME schools (Barberton High School, Copley High School, Norton High School and Wadsworth High School) provide high school students with access to relevant curricula, modern equipment and qualified, engaged instructors to inspire and prepare them for pursuit of career opportunities within manufacturing.
Pontiac High School (PHS) was accepted into the SME PRIME (Partnership Response in Manufacturing Education) program in 2020-21. PHS received a grant from PRIME that allowed it to create new manufacturing career pathways for students and purchase state-of-the-art equipment: a three-piece Festo MecLab, a Festo Didactic AC/DC Training System, a Verisurf part tester, a Starrett PMI kit, and a variety of hand tools from Starrett and Snap-on.
Roush Industries is making a difference by investing in the SME PRIME schools initiative to prepare Starkweather Academy students for opportunities as machinists, welders and fabricators. The company helps to inform and provide modern equipment, tailored curriculum and hands-on training for the school in Plymouth, Michigan.