COLUMBIA GORGE — Sixteen local middle school and high school educators gained a greater understanding of career paths in advanced manufacturing, a prominent field in the Gorge region. This year’s event marked the second Educator Externship hosted by the Columbia Gorge STEM Hub at Columbia Gorge Education Service District (CGESD).
Educators from four local school districts — Hood River, North Wasco, South Wasco, and Condon — engaged in a three-day, hands-on learning experience that included an overview of the advanced manufacturing program at Columbia Gorge Community College (CGCC).
The CGCC program overview included an introduction to state-of-the-art lab equipment and software and a focus on how math integrates into the manufacturing sector. Educators also visited six manufacturing sites in The Dalles and Hood River including Cardinal Glass, Cascadia Motion, pFriem, Powderpure, Elementum Adventure Vehicles, and Orchard View Cherries.
At each industry site, educators received a general overview and history of the company, participated in an interactive tour of the facility, gained a better understanding of the technologies used and a greater awareness of career opportunities, wages, and level of education associated with different positions within each company (and the broader manufacturing landscape).
Justin Gradek, senior manufacturing consultant from Oregon Manufacturing Extension Partnership (OMEP), and Robert Clark and Chris Dodson, both CGCC faculty in the advanced manufacturing program, were part of the planning committee and helped facilitate discussion and conversation throughout the three-day experience.
“The Gorge STEM Hub Externship was a best-in-class opportunity to expose educators to the variety of manufacturers in our region,” said Gradek. “OMEP is excited to see this kind of exposure for both the educators and manufacturers as we collectively work to prepare the workforce of the future.”
Educators represented a variety of roles in middle and high schools; attendees included high school counselors, career technical education (CTE) teachers in the agriculture, engineering, and manufacturing fields, as well as science, math, special education, a Juntos coordinator, and career education instructors.
“The externship provided a unique and valuable experience for educators across manufacturing in the region to collectively talk about methodology and equipment for instruction as well as receive some basic training and guidance on curriculum and its application in the classroom,” said Clark. “It also facilitated immediate real-world application feedback through the following site visits.”
A participating educator said that “the externship connected industry to the classroom, created connections and brought insight to staff.”
The Educator Externship is a component of the STEM Hub’s Career Connected Learning work which focuses on expanding career awareness, exploration, and preparation for Gorge youth through engaging educators and industry professionals across multiple sectors.
To learn more about the Columbia Gorge STEM Hub’s career connected learning work, visit gorgestem.org/career-connect.
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