Proclamations from state and local elected officials kicked off Manufacturing Month activities at JCC’s Cattaraugus County Campus in Olean on October 15.
Manufacturing Month, coordinated locally by JCC and Dream It Do It Western New York, is celebrated throughout the nation during October.
Proclamations were read by Lee James, representing Congressman Tom Reed, assemblyman Joseph Giglio, and Olean mayor William Aiello.
JCC president Daniel DeMarte as well as Jason Miller, director of the Cattaraugus/Allegany Workforce Development Board, and Chris Napoleon, owner and CEO of Napoleon Engineering Services, also provided remarks, emphasizing the economic impact of manufacturing on southwestern New York.
“JCC’s Workforce Readiness department is working with area manufacturers to find creative and innovative ways to address the talent pipeline in our region,” said DeMarte.
JCC has also applied for more than $4 million in federal and state grants to support area employers by focusing on talent attraction and retention.
As part of the college’s effort to improve its responsiveness to employers, a full-time trainer/instructional designer is expected to help fulfill the training needs of manufacturers specific to machining/ and computer numerical controls.
“We have established new fast-track program pathways in automation, controls, robotics and machining/CNC and been awarded SUNY grants to support the growth of apprenticeship programs,” added Holger Ekanger, JCC’s vice president of workforce readiness.