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Date: 12/21/2020
WEST SPRINGFIELD – Through the Massachusetts Skills Capital Grant Program, the West Springfield High School will purchase an industrial 3D printer to complement their advanced manufacturing program.
The advanced manufacturing program is intertwined with the Innovation Pathways (IP) Program, which is a statewide initiative that provides participating students in the state with “rigorous academic experiences and career development education relevant to their next steps after high school.” The program began in the summer of 2017.
According to Wesley Carter, the program director for Innovation Pathways and work-based learning at the high school, in order for a district to be designated an IP program, there has to be a reasonable demand for an occupation in that specific area.
For example, West Springfield is a hub for advanced manufacturing, according to Carter. With an aging population and a huge demand for the next generation of manufacturers, West Springfield is a great place to conduct an IP program within that career.
“In the country alone, advanced manufacturing is just so densely populated,” said Carter. “There’s really not many places like us … If we don’t have the workforce, then that’s when the jobs are going to slide.”
For high school students in West Springfield, there are five class requirements that must be completed within the advanced manufacturing IP program, According to Carter, the first requirements include two technical courses, which can involve robotics, programming, drawing, and designing. The second level of the course allows students to design on an actual computer software, according to Carter.
“Basically, as of their junior year, they’re eligible for college-level courses,” said Carter. “We have agreements with STCC (Springfield Technical Community College), which was our initial partner.”
Through collaboration with STCC, students are able to take college-level classes like Intro to Engineering or Programming Robots and PCs. They can also take basic foundation courses like Statistics or Technical Math, according to Carter. Those courses fulfill the next set of requirements for the IP program.
From there, seniors are able to take a capstone course, which is basically a design and build type of course, according to Carter. The students last year began designing a solar-powered umbrella, but COVID-19 cut the project short.
“They worked out a lot of the technical aspects of it,” said Carter. “It was so sad though, because it really was an awesome group, and they really had a great grasp on it.”
The plan was to allow this year’s seniors to finish the project, but considering the predicament we are all still in, the students will mainly focus on the research and design aspects of the project.
Carter said that the 3D printer will be an integral piece of the technical drawing courses at the high school level. Students who are a part of a college-level afterschool course that West Springfield offers will also be able to utilize the printer once they are allowed back in school full time. That program is called SolidWorks.
The school also purchased a Computer Numeric Control machine through grant funding, which will help students get foundational learning in creating specific parts based on what they get from 3D printed prototypes.
“Our intention was to apply through Mass. Skills Grant,” said Carter. “We have received $63,000, so that’s one industrial 3D printer, and one CNC machine.”
With more funding, Carter believes that West Springfield could create a hub for students to learn as much as they can about advanced manufacturing. Carter hopes that West Springfield can get training programs from the outside to assist students with understanding the nuances of the actual business.
“The big picture is, we have a lot of people retiring, and there’s not that many people coming into these occupations,” said Carter. “So programs like this are key to the success of our area.”
Carter said that a lot of students have achieved over 30 college credits from STCC courses in their last two years of high school, and some are even working for advanced manufacturers. The plan, according to Carter, is to make students more marketable for when they officially graduate.