This article is brought to you by the Community Foundation Serving Howard, Clinton, and Carroll Counties. How does a Community Foundation actually work? We don’t simply receive gifts and spend them. In reality, many charitable funds are invested with the goal of creating lasting support for the community.
That’s part of what makes the community foundation model so powerful: generosity today can create impact well into the future. Learn more about the Community Foundation by visiting us on Facebook or at www.cfhoward.org.
Ivy Tech Community College will welcome area high school students to its Kokomo Campus Oct. 2 in celebration of MFG Day (National Manufacturing Day), offering them an opportunity to see programs offered in technical and industrial fields as well as a chance to learn about careers with employers from the area.
Area high schools and career centers from Ivy Tech Kokomo’s six-county service area are encouraged to register to bring juniors and seniors to the event, which is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Representatives of area businesses and industries are also invited to sign up to attend. Ivy Tech Kokomo serves the residents and businesses in Cass, Fulton, Howard, Miami, Pulaski and Tipton counties.
“Modern manufacturing is creating the future, and creators positively impact their community and the world,” said Tracey Aber, dean of Advanced Manufacturing, Engineering & Applied Sciences for Ivy Tech’s Kokomo Service Area. “Manufacturing Day 2026 is a great time to talk about the amazing employment opportunities opening up in America’s manufacturing industry.
“Today’s manufacturing careers encompass every interest – from science, research, design and development to production and the trades, to marketing, logistics, sales, and accounting. There is a place for everyone in manufacturing. Manufacturing Day is a chance to learn more about all the options.”
National Manufacturing Day was established in 2012 as “a celebration of modern manufacturing meant to inspire the next generation of manufacturers.” An initiative of the Manufacturing Institute (the workforce development and education affiliate of the National Association of Manufacturers), MFG Day is designed to show the reality and future of modern manufacturing careers by encouraging companies and educational institutions to open their doors to students, parents, educators and community leaders.
The Ivy Tech Kokomo open house is among hundreds of events being planned throughout North America as part of the MFG DAY observance. According to organizers, manufacturers will be seeking to fill 4 million high-skill, high-tech and high-paying jobs over the next decade.
Aber said faculty members, all of whom have a wealth of industry experience in their backgrounds, and current students will share how Ivy Tech is supporting local manufacturing with quality training, hands-on approaches to today’s high-tech manufacturing environment, and upgrading skills of current workers.
Visitors will be able to participate in hands-on lab demonstrations in electrical and mechanical, robotics, machine tool, and welding technologies as well as such areas as agriculture, automotive, building trades and heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVAC).
Representatives from local industries will be on hand to share information about career opportunities they can offer. Among the participating employers are High Performance Alloys, StarPlus Energy, Haynes International, Winamac Coil Spring, Inc., Merrell Bros., Inc., Functional Devices, Central Midwest Carpenters, Proteus Inc, Heraeus Electro Nite, Kokomo Grain Co. Inc., Steinberger Construction, Fratco, Grand Industrial and Chariot Automotive.
For more information, or to register students, schools and career centers should contact Tashawnda Brown-Weston, director of admissions and enrollment, at 765-252-5534 or tlbrown@ivytech.edu . Employers interested in learning more about participating should contact Mari Hernandez of the Ivy+ Career Link staff at 463-251-3410 or mhernandez35@ivytech.edu .
More information, as well as links to register for student or employer participation, can be found at https://www.ivytech.edu/locations/kokomo/partnerships-special-programs/manufacturing-day/.