NIMS and Gene Haas Foundation Announce Scholarships for Young Manufacturing Talent
The 2015 GHF-NIMS-SkillsUSA Scholarship Program awarded more than $200,000 in scholarship funds to students who competed in three manufacturing events at the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference (NLSC) in Louisville, Kentucky, June 22-26.
The 2015 GHF-NIMS-SkillsUSA Scholarship Program awarded more than $200,000 in scholarship funds to students who competed in three manufacturing events at the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference (NLSC) in Louisville, Kentucky,
June 22-26. Competitors included high school and college students from all 50 states who have won their statelevel competitions in the CNC Technician, CNC Specialist and CNC Turning Specialist divisions. Upon their arrival at NLSC, they received a $1,000 scholarship award recognizing their success. Medalists at each of the three competitions
at each level received awards in the following amounts: Gold: $4,000; Silver: $3,000; and Bronze: $2,000.
“With this program, we hope to support more high schools and community colleges as they build high-quality programs that use NIMS standards and credentials in order to deliver the most relevant and innovative training,” says the Gene Haas Foundation board. “This provides our country’s manufacturers an excellent workforce.” The GHF-NIMS-SkillsUSA Scholarship Program is part of a larger initiative launched by GHF and NIMS to help more students prepare for success in precision manufacturing careers by gaining industry-recognized credentials at high schools and colleges. GHF and NIMS have provided more than $450,000 to schools and students since the program launched in 2014. As a result, more education programs are providing high quality training and more
individuals are gaining the skills and credentials they need for success in the workplace.
“There are an estimated 99,500 projected job openings for machinists and 117,100 projected job openings for industrial maintenance technicians nationally through 2020,” says Jim Wall, executive director, NIMS. “We are proud to be working with the Gene
Haas Foundation to help schools prepare more young people with skills and credentials they need to succeed in these in-demand jobs.”
The National Institute for Metalworking Skills (NIMS) was formed in 1995 by the metalworking trade associations, including PMPA, to develop and maintain a globally competitive American workforce. NIMS sets skills standards for the industry, certifi es individual skills against the standards and accredits training programs that meet NIMS
quality requirements. NIMS also develops innovative training solutions, such as competency-based apprenticeships and fast-track internships, that directly connect employers to the skilled individuals they need. Today, NIMS has a stakeholder base of more than 6,000 companies and has received more than $7.5 million in private fund investments from some of the biggest trade associations in the industry. NIMS is
governed by a 24-person board of directors, which consists mostly of executives from the metalworking industry, but it also includes representatives from training institutions, state government, organized labor, and education sectors. NIMS’ board of directors consists of a number of active PMPA members, including Paul Huber of Comex, Kimberly Arrigoni of Haberman Machine Inc. and Miles Free of PMPA.
Individuals must pass both theory and performance-based assessments in functional job areas to earn NIMS credentials. These assessments are reviewed and validated by industry representatives. These credentials verify the individual’s skills and eligibility for
job advancement and potential.
The Gene Haas Foundation was formed in 1999 to fund the needs of the local community and other deserving charities, at the discretion of its founder, Mr. Gene Haas. High on the list of priorities of the Gene Haas Foundation is supporting manufacturing
education, which encompasses many types of programs that inspire and educate young people about careers in manufacturing. In addition, GHF provides scholarship funding for students to attend colleges that teach machining-based skills.
