In an effort to help combat the skilled worker shortage, Moraine Park Technical College offers Manufacturing Skills Academy Boot Camps–a unique opportunity to gain entry-level skills. The two boot camps–Computer Numerical Control (CNC) and Welding–are tuition-free, 3-month long programs.

In addition to skill development, the boot camps include a 144-hour paid internship to get hands-on experience that ideally turns into a full-time job opportunity. Moraine Park partners with businesses all over their district area to offer paid internships to the students in the program. Wabash National has been a valued partner since the boot camp’s induction in 2012.

“The need for welders at Wabash is constant,” Nate Glancer, HR business partner at Wabash National, said. “We are working against a talent pool that has been shrinking steadily over the past decade. People that have been with us for 40-plus years are retiring, and as they are leaving, we are having a tough time filling those spots. Welders are a main component of what we do here; making up about 70 percent of our workforce, which is why this boot camp program is so vital to us.”

Since 2012, the boot camp programs have had over 400 participants. One of those participants, Elise Winkel, found life-changing success after completing the welding boot camp in 2019.

After earning a bachelor’s degree in vocal performance and taking several art classes, Winkel, a stay-at-home mom of four girls, thought the welding boot camp would be a good fit for her.

“Welding is very much an art, and you have to be able to work well with both hands a the same time,” Winkel said. “The boot camp was a little out of my comfort zone, and I was the only woman in my class, but I felt comfortable with the gradual pace of the program, and it is one of the best decisions I have ever made.”

Winkel completed her internship at Wabash and stayed on full-time after the boot camp’s completion as an inside seam welder. Because of this career change, Winkel and her husband decided to have another child and bought a home together.

“About 93% of our boot camp graduates found jobs,” Kelli Karpinski, MPTC economic workforce development business development manager, said. “The best part is that these once unskilled manufacturing participants start out making $23/hr or more, and more often than not, they advance very quickly.”

The boot camps are free for participants, thanks to financial support from community resource partners and the Workforce and Training (WAT) grants.

To learn more about Moraine Park’s Manufacturing Skills Academy Boot Camps, contact bootcamps@morainepark.edu.

In celebration of Manufacturing Month-here’s an exciting opportunity to help start your career in manufacturing.

Moraine Park is helping combat the skilled worker shortage by providing skill development through the Manufacturing Skills Academy.

This program, also known as manufacturing boot camps, offers the opportunity to explore a unique career pathway. The manufacturing boot camp is a 3-month training program in either CNC Machining or welding. During the program, you are part of a paid internship with a local employer. This means you’ll be paid while you learn! At the end of the program, you’ll have a college certificate and, in most cases, the opportunity to turn your internship into a full-time career.

Your first step toward your new career begins at our information sessions this November– offered both in-person and online. Here, you’ll learn about each career, meet the instructors and get the next step enrollment information.

One more great feature, Moraine Park’s boot camp programs are tuition-free. The tuition and materials costs are covered completely by grants and community support.

No previous manufacturing experience is necessary and there are no income limitations.

So, what are you waiting for? Space in the program is limited- sign up for your information session today to get started!

Information sessions are on Nov. 9 at the Fond du Lac campus and Nov. 17 online. Registration is required and information can be found here.

More information on Moraine Park’s boot camps can be found here.

Chairs spread out across the cafeteria.

Air fives for congratulations.

Alumni and business partner videos.

Masked pictures.

Family and friends attending on zoom.

Individually wrapped “cake”.

The Fall 2020 Welding and CNC Boot Camp completion definitely looked different from the ones MPTC’s Economic and Workforce Development has held before. But then, so did the entire boot camp.

Boot camp is always intense. The phrase, “We call it boot camp for a reason,” gets thrown around often as the normal stresses of learning to be a student again, balancing home and work life, and life hurdles get in the way. This semester the addition of quarantines and resulting virtual attendance and loss of hands on time added to the challenge.

But nine remained and we celebrated your accomplishment the only way we could. EWD wishes the best to our boot camp completers and acknowledges the extra hurdles you overcame, the extra patience you showed, and the extra flexibility it took to make it though.

We’re proud of you and your unique accomplishment.

We hope the unique ceremony showed just how much.

MPTC’s Economic and Workforce Development boot camps have been held continuously since fall of 2012 at little or no charge to students. Recruiting for spring has already begun. If you’re interested in being part of boot camps, or just want to know a little bit more about them, look us up at www.morainepark.edu/bootcamps.

Moraine Park Technical College held its fall 2020 Manufacturing Skills Academy completion ceremony on Wednesday, December 23. A total of nine students finished the program, four from Computer Numerical Control (CNC) and five from Welding.

This program was designed to combat the skilled worker shortage by offering a variety of boot camp sessions. The boot camp sessions are free to participants, teach skills that are unique to a particular pathway, and connect students with area employers. The program also combines a 144-hour paid internship with coursework, including Occupational Math, Print Reading, Team Building, Problem Solving, and program-specific courses. Participating internship sites for this session were FZE Manufacturing Solutions, LLC, Mid States Aluminum Corporation, Ultra Tool & Manufacturing, and Wabash National.

Moraine Park has had over 400 participants in the Welding and CNC boot camp programs since its induction in 2012.

The students who completed the CNC boot camp are Loni Gromacki of Germantown, April Novak of Fond du Lac, Ethan Strebe of Fond du Lac, and Brian Wilson of Fond du Lac.

The students who completed the Welding boot camp are Nathaniel Horner of Beaver Dam, Timothy Lowe of Fond du Lac, Robin Robertson of Colgate, Steven Stathas of Jackson, and Xavier Thomas of Fond du Lac.

This year’s graduation speakers were Timothy Lowe and Ethan Strebe. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the ceremony was open to boot camp students and Moraine Park staff only. The event was live-streamed to allow for family, friends, and employer partners to participate.

Moraine Park’s Skills Academy boot camps are free to participating students, thanks to financial support from community resource partners and the Workforce and Training (WAT) grants.

Registrations for the spring 2021 boot camp program are now being accepted. For more information, visit morainepark.edu/bootcamps.

Last winter, just a few weeks before the Covid-19 pandemic, Brenda was beginning the CNC Boot Camp training through the department of Economic & Workforce Development.  She already had years of manufacturing experience but wanted to upgrade her career in the field of computer operated machining. 

When this training was forced to go virtual, Brenda struggled. But MPTC staff encouraged her to persist and even allowed her to seek an internship outside the region when she was forced to move closer to family. Ultimately, Brenda flourished in this field and earned her Entry-Level CNC Certificate and a job offer by June. Her new employer was impressed with her CNC training and complemented her instructors. 

Brenda says, “I’m glad I stuck with it! And when I was offered a better position last month, they were glad I knew how to run multiple machines; I’m earning more money today than I ever have!” 

Are you interested in getting into a new career in just 3 months like Brenda? What about earning a college level certificate with hands on training and a PAID internship as part of the program? Even better – there is NO TUITION for students! Tuition and materials are covered 100% by a combination of grants and community agency support. No experience necessary and no income limits applied!

Spring Boot Camps are starting soon, so check out the upcoming opportunities to learn more about this amazing program.  Visit morainepark.edu/bootcamps to sign up for an upcoming information session.  

Success isn’t given, it’s earned, and Christian Bailey-Steenport of Fond du Lac is using his drive and motivation to pave his path. He had a difficult upbringing with a traumatic home-life. As a result, he left home before finishing high school. The choices he made from there weren’t always the best, but it ultimately led him to where he is today.

“I had a horrible home life,” Christian said. “When I left, I ended up with the wrong crowd and eventually became a product of my environment.”

He needed a change in his life, but at the time didn’t have access to opportunities that could help turn his life around. It wasn’t long before Christian was in trouble with the law. 

“I wasn’t making good choices,” he said. “However, my time behind bars is ultimately what gave me the clarity and fresh start I needed.”

While Christian was in jail, he made solid goals and a plan to obtain them. When he was released on January 8, 2019, his first stop was Moraine Park Technical College’s Economic and Workforce Development Boot Camp program test drive.

The College’s test drive offers the opportunity to explore the welding and computerized numerical control (CNC) machining careers, meet potential employers, and receive valuable real-world opportunities. Christian immediately signed up for the welding boot camp. 

“Both my Grandpa and Dad were welders,” he said. “I had some background knowledge of the field and decided to learn more.”

Christian began his college career in February of 2019 and hasn’t stopped since.

“When I first came to Moraine Park, I was only interested in completing the welding boot camp,” he said. “I wasn’t interested in making friends. I wanted to focus only on my goals. It didn’t take long for my mindset to change, and I’m glad it did. I’m learning a lot, enjoying college, and I have made some great friends along the way.”

Christian completed the welding boot camp in May of 2019 and immediately enrolled in the welding technical diploma program. He is scheduled to graduate in December of 2020. He also has plans to earn his metal fabrication and automotive technician technical diplomas and has an interest in serving an industrial maintenance apprenticeship. His overall goal is to own a custom metal fabrication shop with his brother, who begins his boot camp journey in January 2020. 

“I am motivated to succeed,” Christian said. “I’ve overcome a lot in my life, and my college journey hasn’t always been easy, but I keep showing up. I’ve never missed a day of class-ever.”

Currently, Christian works full time at MEC, where he served his boot camp internship and was hired before graduation. He also attends school full time. He is busy but motivated, and that is the driving force that makes it all work for him. 

“I’ve had a lot of support from Moraine Park,” he said. “They helped me to succeed and ultimately have guided me through this new path. I’m proud of myself and look forward to accomplishing more.”

For more information about a career in CNC or Welding, visit morainepark.edu/bootcamp and sign up for one of the information and testing sessions in January 2020. These sessions are a required step to participating in the free boot camp program. 

Reading and hearing about new career opportunities is helpful. But what if you actually could try them out as well? Moraine Park Technical College is offering a unique opportunity to do just that with its “Test Drive” workshops for welding and computerized numerical control (CNC).

Our CNC machining and welding Test Drive event is being offered at Moraine Park Fond du Lac campuses on December 17, 2019. 

This Test Drive event includes hands-on, two-hour workshops for both welding and CNC.  Both the welding and CNC Test Drive workshop will give attendees insight into these respective careers and provide valuable, hands-on opportunities to try out these career areas.

Participants who attend Test Drive will also be able to learn about Moraine Park’s short-term training boot camp opportunities. These boot camps offer a unique training opportunity to potential candidates by providing entry-level skills as well as job experience from these 13- to 15-week sessions. CNC Machining and Welding Boot Camps begin in March 2020.

“Test drive is a great opportunity to get a hands-on experience in these high-demand careers and learn about free training opportunities,” said JoAnn Hall, Dean of Economic and Workforce Development. “Past participants have really appreciated these short, intensive opportunities to get a real-world glimpse into these careers”

Space is limited for the Test Drive workshops, and pre-registration is required.

For more details or to register, visit http://mptcbootcamps.eventbrite.com/, email bootcamps@morainepark.edu or call Nikki at 920-924-3334.

Computer Numerical Control. CNC machining.

Are you asking yourself, what does that mean?

Computer Numerical Control (CNC) is a portion of manufacturing in which you control precision automated machine tools using a programmable computer. Due to this level of automation, machines can be operated with supervision of an accredited operator, increasing productivity and minimizing the possibility for human errors on a project.

Intrigued yet?  Did we mention that Moraine Park as an opportunity for you to attend our CNC boot camp for free?  Yes, free. This unique 15-week training opportunity provides individuals with entry-level skills and job experience.

If you’re looking for a new career, CNC might be for you and here’s why.

Manufacturing in Wisconsin is currently on the upswing. Combine this with how badly companies need CNC workers, and you should be able to confidently enter a college or trade school, knowing a job will be waiting for you when you get out. In fact, manufacturing currently offers more potential in this regard than just about any other field.

Are you saying, okay that’s great but what types of jobs can I get? According to our CNC instructor, Josh Geschke, there are numerous opportunities available.

“This is what I love most about the trade.  There is a lot of overlap of skills between jobs so you can take your career in a number of different directions. With CNC skills and knowledge you may become any of the following:

CNC operator, set-up technician, conventional machinist, CNC machinist, programmer, die maker, mold maker, toolmaker, and supervisory positions

With additional schooling and experience you can enter the following careers that are related and support CNC.

Mechanical designer, engineering positions (mechanical engineer, manufacturing engineer, engineering technician), machine tool service technician; quality control technician/inspector; industrial salesperson.”

Do you want to learn more? Visit morainepark.edu/bootcamp  or call Nikki at (920) 924-3334, she’ll tell you everything you need to know about this free, 15-week training opportunity.

Don’t wait! Registrations are currently being accepted for our next boot camp Test Drive on December 17, 2019.

Moraine Park Technical College is offering a unique opportunity to “Test Drive” and learn about the welding and computerized numerical control (CNC) machining careers.

The Test Drive event will offer the opportunity to explore these respective careers, meet potential employers, and receive valuable real-world opportunities. A two-day event will be at the Fond du Lac campus on Tuesday, July 16 and Thursday, July 18, and there will be a one-day event at the Beaver Dam campus on Tuesday, July 23. Both events will include a free, hands-on workshop.

Participants who attend the Test Drive event will also learn about Moraine Park’s Manufacturing Skills Academy boot camp program. These expedited 13- to 15-week sessions are offered for free, and they allow individuals the opportunity to learn a skilled trade. The boot camp program was created to help address the manufacturing industry need for skilled workers.

CNC machining and welding boot camps are scheduled to begin in September 2019, with applications currently being accepted.

“Past participants have really appreciated these events,” JoAnn Hall, dean of economic and workforce development at Moraine Park said. “They offer a glimpse directly into the career path and allow individuals the opportunity to see if it will be a good fit.”

Individuals interested in participating in one of the boot camp programs are required to attend either a Test Drive event or an Information and Testing session as a first step in the application process.

Information and Testing sessions will be in Fond du Lac on Tuesday, July 2 and Thursday, July 25; Beaver Dam on Thursday, July 11; West Bend on Monday, July 22.

The boot camp programs are free to participating students thanks to employment opportunities and financial support provided by area businesses including Amerequip, Apache Stainless, Integrity Saw & Tool, Inc., Miba, Midstates Aluminum Corporation, Signicast, and Wabash National. Individuals interested in applying for the program are required to pay the $30 program registration fee.

Space is limited for the Test Drive events, and pre-registration is required. For more details or to register, visit morainepark.edu/bootcamp, or call Nikki Dahlke at (920) 924-3334.