Welcome back students!

It was a week of excitement and vibrancy as students returned for spring semester classes. Hopefully everyone had a restful winter break and feel ready to get back into the swing of things with their new classes.

I had the opportunity to be a “semester greeter” where I helped answer questions and direct students to their respective classrooms.  As I assisted with this task I was impressed with how students helped the president learn things that I still have not had the opportunity to learn or inquire about.  The enthusiasm from students returning to the Fond du Lac, Beaver Dam and West Bend campuses is great to see as we begin another academic term.

One way students and staff were welcomed back was with lunch events on the three campuses. There were comedians, an interactive inspirational speaker, Lunch n’ Learn event, and opportunities for students to stuff and bring home their very own gray wolf mascot. What a fun way to kick off the new semester!

Students, how did the first week of classes go for you? Do you have anything that you are especially looking forward to this semester?

Connecting Students and Employers - Part III

Happy New Year to everyone who has been following my blogs and to those of you who are first time readers! For those of you who have been here before, you know I have been sharing feedback regarding visits I have had with employers throughout the Moraine Park District.  Meetings and plant tours continued into December at Kohler Co. (Kohler, WI), Kondex Corporation (Lomira, WI), and Metko Inc. (New Holstein, WI).

The conversations I’m having with these employers continue to reinforce the job opportunities for MPTC graduates.  Whether you are attending MPTC to complete an Associate of Applied Science Degree, Technical Diploma, or Certificate, employers are seeking employees who come ready with the technical skills required of the job, and who have the ability and willingness to take the next step to grow within the company.  Amy Adams, Vice President – Engineering at Kohler, indicated showing an interest in the company is key. “We look for employees who are capable of learning and have a willingness to learn.” 

I also heard from employers the importance of providing students with internship opportunities within program areas.  These companies reinforced the idea that it is the students who have participated in internships that they look to hire after graduation.  Internships provide students with on-the-job work experience and reinforce the importance of coming to work on time and team work -- skills often not found in today’s new hires.

As we begin the spring term, I continue to reflect on the importance of connecting with MPTC students and employers, and working together with a focus on technical education and training. 

Collaborations key for partnership success

It was a busy week of collaborating with colleagues in higher education, business and industry partners and even a state government leader. The week started off with a Northeast Wisconsin Educational Resource Alliance (NEW ERA) meeting. NEW ERA fosters partnerships among public colleges and universities in the NEW North.

Collaborations continued at the NEW North regional summit. This event allowed private and public sector leaders throughout Northeast Wisconsin to network, supporting the NEW North’s mission of sustaining and growing our regional economy.

Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch, center, visited Moraine Park Technical College’s Fond du Lac campus on Wednesday, Dec. 7. Kleefisch met with Moraine Park President Sheila Ruhland and toured the College’s Integrated Manufacturing Center (IMC) to learn about job training options. Here, Process Engineering Instructor Tom Roehl  explains some of the instructional processes used in the IMC.

After the summit, I received a visit from Rebecca Kleefisch, Wisconsin’s Lieutenant Governor. She is a strong believer in job creation and retention so I shared with her information on our programs and business and industry partnerships. To further display our job training efforts, I took Rebecca to the Integrated Manufacturing Center, where process engineering instructor Tom Roehl and mechanical design instructor Jeff Quackenboss gave us a tour and highlighted the hands-on projects students are working on this semester.

Wednesday night ended with Demystifying the Financial Aid process, an event hosted by Fond du Lac area educational institutions: Moraine Park, Marian University, UW-Fond du Lac and Fond du Lac High School. Students and their families were invited to learn about the financial aid process and hear from Presidents of the three colleges. Another wonderful collaboration between Fond du Lac School District and the three institutes of higher education in this area!  

As the week wrapped up, I reflected on the importance of these collaborations – All integral for Moraine Park to continue providing innovative education for our evolving workforce and community.

Connecting Students and Employers - Part II

Last month I was enthusiastic about sharing feedback with you related to visits I had with employers throughout the Moraine Park District. The insight and perspective I gained was invaluable; so much so, that I continued with more business meetings this month.   

KLH in Germantown and GenMet in Mequon, are two examples of area employers I had the pleasure to engage in recent dialogue with. Both of these businesses have representation on MPTC advisory committees and both seek to hire MPTC graduates. It is critical to understand that their input on program and curriculum changes is imperative in ensuring our graduates leave with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to be employed by companies such as these.  From these meetings, it was increasingly clear to me that employers are seeking employees who are willing to: 1) learn, 2) problem-solve, 3) work in a team environment, and 4) achieve success/advancement through providing top-level performance.

If you are an MPTC student, these are good employee traits to be aware of. On December 1, MPTC, along with the Fond du Lac Area Association of Commerce, will be sharing the results of their 2011 Retirement and Retention Study. Results from this study will reveal trends for the future of workforce development in Fond du Lac. As employers review and analyze the study results, the importance of hiring and retaining qualified and skilled manufacturing workers will likely take on an even greater emphasis. For students, it is important to know that employers have the ability (and right) to be selective when hiring. They will review a candidate thoroughly and only decide to hire if they feel the candidate will be an asset to their company.

If you are a future graduate or alumni who has been applying for jobs or who has been recently hired, and has words of advice to share with others about the job search/hiring process, I encourage you to share them in the comment section of my blog.

Connecting Students and Employers

For several weeks now, I have been traveling throughout the Moraine Park District meeting with employers. Kraft Foods, Mayville Engineering, Alliance Laundry Systems, Ripon Printers, Signicast and Broan-NuTone all allowed me to tour their facilities and learn about the products they produce.  This was a wonderful learning experience. Even more exciting, however, was hearing these employers speak about the quality of Moraine Park’s programs and, most importantly, expressing their willingness and interest to hire our graduates!

Moraine Park has nearly 800 individuals serving on our Program Advisory Committees. These individuals are owners and employees of the hundreds of companies located within our district. They are willing to hire our graduates because they know Moraine Park teaches the technical skills needed for today’s jobs but also the soft skills such as critical thinking, problem solving, team building and communication skills needed for a well-rounded employee. If you are a Moraine Park student or graduate, I encourage you to visit these companies and learn more about their job openings as well as the types of positions they will be hiring for in the future.  In addition, check out TechConnect an option for employers to list job openings for graduates of the Wisconsin Technical College System.

If you’re a Moraine Park grad serving on an Advisory Committee or who has used our TechConnect service, please feel free to share your experience with me.

WTCS Needs Your Help

If you’re a Moraine Park student, staff or community member you have a great opportunity to provide input to the Wisconsin Technical College System. The WTCS Board is asking System stakeholders to take a few minutes to complete a very brief survey, in which the survey participant can share their perspective on System priorities.  The survey will be available through the end of October and can be accessed by visiting http://surveys.questionpro.com/a/TakeSurvey?id=2579178.  I hope you will take advantage of this opportunity and share your thoughts on the direction of the State’s technical colleges, as the Board will consider results of the survey as they identify priorities for the next four years. For more information on the survey, visit http://channels.morainepark.edu/press-releases/post/2011/10/05/Wisconsin-Technical-College-System-looking-for-survey-participants.aspx

Advisory Committees let Moraine Park Alumni get involved

I hope the fall academic term has been good and the classes you are enrolled in are going well.  As the fall term has gotten underway for me, I have been fortunate to attend Advisory Committee meetings for several programs areas including Electricity, Engine Research and Development Technician, and Automotive. 

If you are not familiar with Moraine Park’s Advisory Committees, they are a vital part of all of our educational program areas. Advisory committees ensure the education and training provided by Moraine Park meets the current and future needs of our businesses and employers.  Representation to these committees includes graduates of our programs!

If you are a Moraine Park graduate, you may have received a letter inviting you to join the advisory committee for your program area. I encourage you to accept the invite. If you have not received a letter and are interested in this opportunity, please let your program instructors know that you would like to serve on the advisory committee.  This is one way you will be able to give back to the college and help future students.

I’m interested in knowing how your fall term is going, please leave a comment and let me know.