Center helps prepare students for jobs in manufacturing and technology
Green said her love for them is so strong that after graduating in June, she wants to pursue a computer engineering degree at a local university. "I want to be the first person to create the virtual, touch-screen remote (control)," Green said.
Green's six-week internship at Milhouse Engineering & Construction was made possible by the Center for Labor & Community Research, which runs the West Side school's career program. The center is one of the Chicago-area organizations supported by Chicago Tribune Holiday Giving, a campaign of Chicago Tribune Charities, a McCormick Foundation Fund.
Green, who said she will be the first person in her family to go to college, hopes the internship now under her belt would help her get a part-time job in college. "I am now overqualified for some positions," she said.
Erica Swinney, director of career and community programs, said the center works with Chicago Public Schools and local manufacturing companies to prepare students for college and careers in all aspects of the manufacturing industry, from marketing to engineering.
Among its various tasks, the center plans field trips; coordinates after-school programs, such as a new patent-law class where students participate in mock trials; and pushes to integrate the center's career program into the classroom. Last school year, the center helped fund a Manufacturing and Technology Center to teach students how to operate manual and digital milling machines.
After high school, certified students could get jobs as machine operators and make between $13 and $15 an hour, teacher Pablo Varela said. Those who go on to college and get more experience could make between $18 and $20 an hour, he added.
"Our partners are looking for talent," Swinney said.
During a recent tour of the center, Torres Hughes, a junior at the academy, looked intensely as Varela programmed the digital milling machine to type his name on a palm-size acrylic block. Hughes stood by quietly, as the machine quickly typed the letters with precision.
It's an unorthodox use of the machine, which can cut blocks of steel to make auto parts, Varela said, but it's a good example of what the machine can do. This semester, Hughes, who is in Varela's fifth-period class, is learning about the programs used to run the machine.
"It's a lot of math," Hughes said.
But Hughes is not afraid of the challenge, he said. A teacher recently told him that because of his broad imagination, he could be the CEO of a company. That meant a lot to him, he said, explaining that family life is difficult, at best.
After Hughes heard the comment from his teacher, he decided he wants to be the owner of a technology center. To start building his resume, Hughes hopes to land an internship this summer at a local manufacturing company where he can shadow the owner.
"I can see myself doing that," he said.
mcancino@tribune.com
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