Ayden Hawkins, (left) a senior at North Union High School, holds up a fireplace circuit he worked on as part of the district’s engineering program. North Union will receive nearly $400,000 from the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce’s Career Technical Education (CTE) Equipment Grant Program. The grant will allow the district to purchase FANUC robot arms that assist in building circuits like the one pictured. Also pictured are engineering students Montana Donohue, center, and Jacob Weigand, right.
(Photo submitted)
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North Union staff and administrators have been hard at work over the years building the district’s engineering and robotics programs but after recently receiving a grant award from the state, they’ll be able to take it even further.
Officials submitted a grant application in December and found out in late February that North Union will be among a small list of schools receiving money from the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce’s Career Technical Education (CTE) Equipment Grant Program. The district received nearly $400,000 of the almost $70 million grant that is going to 55 other schools around the state.
That will allow the district to purchase 4-5 FANUC robot arms as well as 2-3 computer numeric control (CNC) machines that assist students in building circuit boards, robots and other compound machines.
Jesse Miller, a Project Lead The Way teacher in the engineering program at NUHS, said the district was loaned one FANUC arm for this school year through a partnership with Tri-Rivers Career Center. He was sent to get training on the arm so that he could work with students, giving them hands-on experience with equipment that is currently being used in the manufacturing industry, such as at companies like Honda. Once that equipment was in the classroom, he said he knew North Union should have its own.
“So our issue going into the year, knowing that thing was going back at the end of the year – we were like, ‘we don’t want to take a step back…so how do we find a way to keep that here?’” Miller said. “So we found out about the CTE Equipment Grant that the state was offering. It’s unbelievable that we were able to apply for that grant and we’re going to be able to get a bunch of these arms now to be able to continue this, where we’re at with the program, and take it even further.”
North Union has seen success with the engineering program, having between 70 and 80 students in classes of 10-20 in the high school. It is a full, four-year pathway with courses in engineering design, principles of engineering, computer integrated manufacturing and digital electronics. The district has also been very successful with its robotics program, seeing several of the district-wide teams going to state and national competitions.
Students in the program said having access to the equipment and curriculum available at NUHS both helped them find their passion for engineering and offered a direction after high school.
“In middle school, we have a program called GTT (Gateway To Technology), so that’s what I did,” said Montana Donohue, a junior at NUHS. “My sophomore year I got back into it and I fell in love and without (the program) I definitely wouldn’t have known that’s what I wanted to do.”
Senior Ayden Hawkins said he had a similar experience in that he started with an interest in law enforcement but changed his mind after being exposed to the engineering program.
“I didn’t do it my freshmann year, I came in my sophomore year and I liked it, so I stuck with it and now it’s what I want to do,” he said.
For students who have an interest early on like sophomore Jacob Weigand, North Union has programs connected to engineering and robotics starting in elementary school.
“I’ve been in the VEX Robotics program since fourth grade, even coming up through middle school…I’ve taken two years of GTT,” Weigand said. “My freshman year, I took the first engineering program, this year, I’m in the second one and just getting more experience.”
Miller said the program and new equipment will further allow those students to gain professional skills and certifications before they graduate NUHS. Those certifications, he said, could give them a leg up in college and in a job.
“We were hoping that this would be a success. It has been awesome. The kids love it, it’s hands on, you’re developing skills, obviously, that relate directly to one of the biggest, hiring manufacturing companies right next door: Honda,” he said. “It’s what they’re using out there right now in the industry.”
Miller said getting the grant “is like hitting the education lottery” for the school and the benefits to the students would elevate their academic and professional resumes going forward.
“What we had was good and was going to continue to be good if we stayed at that level,” he said. “This takes it to a completely different level with the equipment we’re going to be able to bring in.”