Students in Butler Tech’s three-year Engineering, Information Technology, Precision Machining, and Welding programs recently took their learning beyond the classroom and into the heart of advanced manufacturing through cross-over tours with local businesses as part of Manufacturing Month. These tours aim to provide students with an immersive, hands-on understanding of real-world manufacturing environments, directly connecting their studies to industry applications.
The goal of these cross-over tours is straightforward yet transformative: to introduce students to the world of advanced manufacturing and demonstrate how their specialized disciplines impact the broader manufacturing process. Butler Tech Precision Machining instructor Jason Powers shared, “By facilitating these tours, we can help create interest and a tangible reason for students’ learning.”
The tours encourage students to move from “ritual compliance”—a routine approach to schooling—to active, engaged learning. This shift in mindset allows students to experience a greater purpose behind their education, fostering excitement and curiosity about potential career paths in manufacturing.
For Butler Tech students, seeing classroom concepts applied in the real world is a powerful educational tool. In addition to observing manufacturing processes firsthand, students interact with industry professionals, gaining insights into the work ethic and skills necessary to succeed in these roles. Powers highlighted how students benefit from “hearing echoes of what we discuss in the classroom” and envisioning themselves in similar environments, careers, and workplace cultures.
This collaboration is not a one-sided experience. Local businesses also benefit greatly from the interaction with our students, gaining access to a motivated and skilled emerging workforce. These businesses are thrilled to meet the next generation of industry professionals and gain a firsthand look at Butler Tech’s innovative programming. Powers observed that “the businesses were excited to hear what the students are learning” and enthusiastic about the energy surrounding advanced manufacturing within the local community.
Powers emphasized that the most valuable aspect of the tours is allowing students to “understand how all advanced manufacturing programs here at Butler Tech are tied together in real-world industries.” Exposure to diverse work environments helps students envision their future in the field and understand how each specialty contributes to the larger picture of advanced manufacturing.
These cross-over tours are essential to Butler Tech’s new three-year programs. According to Justin Back, Butler Tech’s 3-year Welding instructor, the tours “set the stage for students to see the application of their education in motion.” They allow students to envision themselves working in these spaces, reinforcing that the training and relationships they develop at Butler Tech bring them closer to achieving their goals in the manufacturing field.
Powers added that while “advanced manufacturing” might mean something different to each student, these experiences allow them to explore various pathways, potentially refining their goals and influencing their career choices. For students, these cross-over tours aren’t just about observing manufacturing; they’re about discovering their “why” and making their impact in the world of advanced manufacturing.
Thank you to our local business partners:
- Cincinnati Radiator
- Festo
- Pioneer Glazing
- Rhinestahl
- Takumi Stamping
- United Performance Metals
- Metalworking Group
