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Let’s bring back shop class
By Josh Mandel
I read with interest the Feb. 8 Vindicator article, “Youngstown mayor urging Obama to visit Valley after second shout-out.” President Obama’s recent mention of Youngstown and Mayor John McNally’s invitation are illuminated by a Bureau of Labor Statistics study showing that 48 percent of college graduates are working in jobs that don’t require a four-year degree.
As you read this today, there are young people throughout America who have four-year liberal arts degrees, thousands of dollars in debt, and are serving coffee at Starbucks or working part-time at the mall.
I believe that many of these young people would have been better off with a two-year skilled trade or technical education with actual skills to secure a well-paying job and many opportunities for upward mobility.
For example, I recently visited a company in Ohio that last year paid 60 of its welders over $150,000 and two of its welders over $200,000. After communicating this to me, the owner of the company proceeded to explain that he’s still rejecting orders from customers because he can’t find enough skilled welders in his region.
Labor shortages
As baby boomers are retiring, I frequently hear about the shortage of welders, pipe-fitters, electricians, carpenters, machinists and other skilled trades in many parts of Ohio.
According to a recent Skills Gap Survey by the Manufacturing Institute, approximately 600,000 manufacturing jobs are unfilled nationally because employers can’t find qualified workers.
Unfortunately, in high schools throughout the country, shop class has been eliminated, and kids are often told that the only way to be successful in America is to have a four-year college degree.
I reject that approach and, to the contrary, believe we need to put shop class back in high schools and instill in young people a heightened sense of pride and purpose for entering careers in the skilled trades and manufacturing.
I’ve been talking with employers across the state about what type of workforce they need in order to expand in Ohio, and they tell me time and again that they’re yearning for a next generation of young people who have the tools to work in the skilled trades.
In order to fill these jobs, we need to encourage high school students who show an interest in making and building things and a willingness to sometimes get their hands dirty.
Youngstown area
The Youngstown area has illustrated some terrific examples of what needs to be happening throughout the country.
I visited Choffin Career & Technical Center, where students are learning the skills necessary to build careers in the emerging oil and gas industries, which are taking hold in the Mahoning Valley.
I’ve been to the heavy equipment lab at the Mahoning County Career and Technical Center, where I spoke with students who were using the center’s welding lab to gain knowledge and expertise, which will enable them to enter the workforce with real-world skills.
Just last week I visited Humtown Products in Columbiana, which is working closely with the Youngstown Business Incubator and Youngstown State University to develop curriculum and standards for training students in the use of new manufacturing technology.
By putting shop class back in high schools, increasing access to technical and vocational education and bringing pride and profile to the men and women who work in these jobs, we can help inspire the kids and grandkids of America to restore the great traditions of previous generations.
There is a quiet crisis upon us, and in order to combat it and prosper as a country, we must work together to encourage young Americans to pursue careers in manufacturing and the skilled trades.
Josh Mandel is treasurer of Ohio.