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In recognition of October as Manufacturing Month, area students this month will visit manufacturing plants, job shadow workers and get a virtual tour of GE’s Appliance Park – all efforts to expose them to potential careers in manufacturing and create a new flow of skilled employees to fill good-paying jobs.
Mayor Greg Fischer will help tout Manufacturing Month at events throughout the month, including Carrithers Middle School’s first-of-its-kind virtual tour of Appliance Park on Oct. 7, which is National Manufacturing Day.
Other students will tour Appliance Park, KCC Manufacturing and the Louisville Ford Assembly Plant this month to learn more about careers in manufacturing and to gather information about training and educational opportunities.
“Manufacturing is vital to our local and regional economies, and it’s increasingly important that we create a stronger pipeline of educated and skilled employees to meet the demand,” the Mayor said. “These students are seeing the kind of jobs available in modern, technology-driven manufacturing facilities, and seeing people working as efficient teams to make a broad range of products.”
The Louisville area has 1,600 manufacturing companies employing approximately 76,000 people and providing an $11 billion impact to the local economy. The Louisville region has added 18,000 jobs in manufacturing since the height of the recession in 2009, outpacing the national recovery rate.
The tours at GE, Ford and KCC Manufacturing were developed by KentuckianaWorks, the Kentucky Manufacturing Career Center Employer Advisory Group and Junior Achievement of Kentuckiana, and funded by a grant from the Louisville Redevelopment Authority.
“Our goal is to promote career opportunities in manufacturing,” said Mike Kopp, recruiter with KCC Manufacturing. “By spotlighting our facilities and products, we hope to educate and motivate these young people to consider a career in manufacturing. “
“This year’s manufacturing celebration allows JA to reach even more students with JA Job Shadows,” said Debra Hoffer, president of Junior Achievement. “The experience of spending time in an actual workplace is extremely impactful for students and helps them to make better decisions in regards to their future careers. Students will have exposure to jobs in manufacturing that have opportunities for advancement, education and a great pay right here in our community. “
As manufacturing rebounds in the Louisville region, the demand is increasing for workers who have greater skills and training.
KentuckianaWorks is currently offering free training through the Manufacturing Training and Employment Connection (M-TEC). It’s an intensive, two-week program where participants can earn multiple training certificates valued by local manufacturing companies. Graduates also get direct connections to employers who have jobs to fill.
New M-TEC classes are scheduled for October and November at the Kentucky Manufacturing Career Center in south Louisville. For more information, call (502) 276-9711, ext. 4001.
Schedule of Manufacturing Month activities
October 4
- Students from Bullitt County High School will tour GE Appliance Park, 9 a.m. – 12:30 p.m., 4000 Buechel Bank Road.
October 6
- Rabbit Hole Distilling, NuLu’s first distillery, will break ground on its new $12.5 million distillery, 1:30 p.m., 711 E. Jefferson Street.
October 7
- Students from Butler, Iroquois and Shawnee High Schools will tour KCC Manufacturing, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m., 2716 Grassland Drive. Contact: Mike Kopp, 502-491-9881.
- More than 90 middle school classes from Greater Louisville will participate in a first-of-its-kind virtual tour of Appliance Park. Mayor Fischer will join 8th grade students from Carrithers Middle School for the virtual field trip, 9:30 a.m., 4320 Billtown Road.
October 12
- Mayor Fischer will team up with Ford and Junior Achievement to give students from Jefferson County and Central High Schools a look inside the Louisville Ford Assembly Plant through the JA Job Shadow program, 9:00 a.m., 2000 Fern Valley Road.
October 14
- Crown World, dental laboratory and manufacturer, will have its ribbon cutting ceremony and grand opening celebration of its new state-of-the-art facility, 1:30 p.m., 3841 Business Park Drive.
October 15
- Mayor Fischer will join officials from BAE Systems, along with employees and their families to celebrate the 75thanniversary of the Naval Ordnance, 2 p.m., 163 Rochester Drive.
October 21
- The West Louisville Career Fair will be heldFriday, October 21 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. at the Louisville Central Community Center, 1300 W. Muhammad Ali Blvd. Companies recruiting at this career fair will have a heavy focus on the manufacturing sector.
October 26
- Mayor Fischer will join officials from Clariant Corporation to break ground on its new manufacturing facility, 11 a.m., 1300 S. 11th
Louisville-based manufacturers and those participating in events are encouraged to join in Manufacturing Month by using #LouMFG on social media.
To learn more about Louisville’s robust manufacturing sector, visit
Navigating the path between high school and college can be challenging and overwhelming for both students and parents. In order to ease the transition, the University of Louisville is offering a series of workshops to assist with federal financial aid applications, as well as a daylong campus open house event.
During the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) completion workshops, staff from the university’s student financial aid office will walk student and parent participants through the process of filing the FAFSA. Changes to the FAFSA process, as announced by President Obama last September and in effect beginning with the 2017-18 application, include an earlier filing start date of October 1 (previously January 1); and a requirement to report income and tax information from an earlier tax year. A detailed overview of the changes from the Federal Student Aid office is available here.
The UofL-led workshops are free and students are not required to apply for admission to the university in order to participate. The workshops will take place on:
- Oct. 5, 5–7 p.m., Seneca High School, 3510 Goldsmith Ln., Louisville
- Oct. 6, 6–8 p.m., Oldham County High School, 1150 North Highway 393, Buckner
- Oct. 11, 5:30-7:30 p.m., Martha Layne Collins High School, 801 Discovery Blvd., Shelbyville
- Oct. 11, 6–8 p.m., Fern Creek High School, 9115 Fern Creek Rd., Louisville
- Oct. 13, 5– 8 p.m., Jeffersontown High School, 9600 Old Six Mile Ln., Louisville
- Oct. 15, 10 a.m. to noon, during Cardinal Preview Day at the University of Louisville (details follow)
- Oct. 20, 6-8 p.m., Southern High School, 8620 Preston Highway, Louisville
Cardinal Preview Day on Oct. 15 is open to anyone interested in learning more about attending UofL. Activities, including campus tours, workshops, information sessions and student panel discussions, take place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. A complete schedule is available here. Pre-registration is not required, although participants need to check in at the Swain Student Activities Center (SAC) West Plaza next to the George J. Howe Red Barn upon arrival. There is no cost for Cardinal Preview Day and parking is free at the Floyd Street parking garage, 2126 South Floyd St.
For more information about the workshops and FAFSA changes, contact Sandra Neel, 502-852-5517, sandra.neel@louisville.edu. Jenny Sawyer, 502-852-4957, jenny.sawyer@louisville.edu, is available to discuss Cardinal Preview Day activities.
JCPS elementary school one of 329 nationwide to earn distinction by U.S. Education Secretary
Today Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS) Superintendent Dr. Donna Hargens announced that Schaffner Traditional Elementary has been selected as a Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Education Secretary. The award, given to 329 schools across the country, is based on the school’s overall academic excellence or progress in closing achievement gaps among student subgroups.
“I am proud to lead a school district that is focused on raising the achievement of every child in every school,” said Dr. Hargens. “Congratulations to Principal Phil Poore and his teachers for achieving this prestigious honor for our district.”
The National Blue Ribbon Schools Program honors public and private elementary, middle and high schools where students achieve very high learning standards or are making notable improvements in closing the achievement gap. The award affirms the hard work of students, educators, families and communities in creating safe and welcoming schools where students master challenging content.
“We are very excited to receive the 2016 National Blue Ribbon Award for excellence in education,” said Schaffner Principal Phil Poore. “This honor is a testament to the committed partnership between our parents, our staff and our students for the success of all.”
All schools are recognized in one of two performance categories, based on all student scores, subgroup student scores and graduation rates:
- Exemplary High Performing Schools are among their state’s highest performing schools as measured by state assessments or nationally normed tests.
- Exemplary Achievement Gap Closing Schools are among their state’s highest performing schools in closing achievement gaps between a school’s subgroups and all students over the past five years.
The National Blue Ribbon Schools flag gracing a school’s building is a widely recognized symbol of exemplary teaching and learning. National Blue Ribbon Schools are an inspiration and a model for schools still striving for excellence.
Now in its 34th year, the National Blue Ribbon Schools Program has bestowed this coveted award on fewer than 8,500 schools. On Nov. 7 and 8, the department will formally recognize the 279 public and 50 private schools at an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C.
The department invites National Blue Ribbon School nominations from the top education official in all states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, the Department of Defense Education Activity and the Bureau of Indian Education. The Council for American Private Education (CAPE) nominates private schools. A total of 420 schools nationwide may be nominated each year.
Educators qualify to compete for 2017 Teacher of the Year
Three teachers from the Jefferson County Public School (JCPS) District are among the 24 statewide named this week as recipients of the 2017 Valvoline Teacher Achievement Awards by the Kentucky Department of Education and Valvoline.
Winning teachers Carren Cook of Kenwood Elementary, Alexandra Howard of Barret Traditional Middle and Kip Hottman of Fern Creek High now qualify to compete for the 2017 Kentucky Teacher of the Year Award, which will be announced next month.
“I am extremely proud of these remarkable teachers who are highly deserving of this great recognition,” “Each Teacher Achievement Award recipient is selected by a process that includes recommendations from peers, students, parents and administrators – making this award a very special honor and true reflection of the dedication and passion these teachers have for their students and for learning.”
Judging was conducted in August by a blue-ribbon panel of veteran educators, many of whom have more than 25 years of teaching experience.
All 24 teachers will be honored at a ceremony in Frankfort on Oct. 19 in the State Capitol Building. State leaders and Valvoline company officials will honor the teachers and recognize the Kentucky Elementary, Middle and High School Teachers of the Year.
From this group of three finalists, the Kentucky Teacher of the Year will be named and will represent the state in the National Teacher of the Year competition.
More than 50 students from the Jefferson County Public School (JCPS) District are among the 16,000 
across the country competing for merit scholarships worth about $33 million.
Semifinalists in the 62nd annual National Merit Scholarship Program were announced last week by the National Merit Scholarship Corp. Semifinalists from JCPS include students from Atherton, Ballard, DuPont Manual, Eastern, Male Traditional and Seneca High. Those students are:
- Atherton High School’s Madison Dalton
- Ballard High School’s William Brennan and Leah Kasdan
- DuPont Manual High School’s Vaannila Annadurai, Andrea Ballena, Clare Bosco, Sylvia Bosco, Austin Bridges, Veronica Chancy, Emily Coffield, John Cullen, Emily Dotson, Nicholas Dudzinski, Joshua Dye, Eleanor Ellis, Ryan Folz, Sara Frigui, Anna Gilbert, Rebecca Goldberg, Catherine Ho, Morgan Horsley, Lavanya Kanneganti, Jacob Keisling, Jumin Kim, Austin Kline, Sanjana Kothari, Rohan Kulkarni, Sofia Labrecque Nieves, Emily Liu, Vincent Liu, Lydia Mason, Diya Mathur, Andrew McFarland, Nicole McGrath, Praharshasai Paladugu, Nelson Penn, Benjamin Ragsdell, Matthew Raj, Sterling Richmond, Abraham Riedel-Mishaan, Nathaniel Stromberg, Rishi Talati, Sneha Thirkannad, Mukund Venkatakrishnan, Carolyn Williams, Callie Wright and Manting Xu
- Eastern High School’s Silas Zoeller
- Male Traditional High School’s Cameron Fontes and Makenzi Mulkins
- Seneca High School’s Chloey Ramsey
“I am extremely proud of these remarkable students and what they have accomplished,” said JCPS Superintendent Dr. Donna Hargens. “They are leaders – both in our schools and in our community. At JCPS, we’re producing some of the brightest students in the state and the country, and the accolades today are a reflection of the hard work of these students as well as the dedicated efforts of our teachers and staff.”
The students were among approximately 1.6 million juniors in more than 22,000 high schools who entered the program by taking the 2015 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, which serves as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of semifinalists, representing less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest-scoring entrants in each state.
To become a finalist, the semifinalist and his or her high school must submit a detailed scholarship application, in which they provide information about the semifinalist’s academic record, participation in school and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities, employment, and honors and awards received.
From the approximately 16,000 semifinalists, about 15,000 are expected to advance to the finalist level. Finalists will be announced between April and July of next year.
The free family event, 200 Years On the Ohio: A Living Timeline Event, will take place this weekend, Saturday 17 September and Sunday 18 September.
The event will feature exhibition of clothing, tools, pastimes, weaponry and cooking from Louisville’s historic timeline.
Highlights of the educational event include a late 19th century “base ball” game on Sunday, September 18 at 1:00 PM between the Cincinnati Red stockings and the Cincinnati Buckeyes.
Attendees will also have the opportunity to meet Mr. Lincoln as portrayed by Dennis Boggs as well as a “fashion show” featuring the clothing from various periods throughout Louisville’s history.
Gov. Matt Bevin and Labor Sec. Derrick Ramsey today announced the launch of the “Kentucky Trained. Kentucky Built.” apprenticeship campaign at Voestalpine Roll Forming Corporation (RFC) in Shelbyville. They were joined by Lt. Gov. Jenean Hampton; Ray Leathers, Roll Forming Corporation President and CEO; and Micah Craig, Roll Forming Corporation Process Engineer.
This initiative sets forth a goal of helping new program sponsors tap into the potential that apprenticeships have for their workforce needs.
“In our efforts to make Kentucky the manufacturing hub of excellence in America, we recognize the value of apprenticeships and their ability to help us achieve this goal,” said Gov. Bevin. “While a significant number of employers in Kentucky already realize the potential in apprenticeships, this initiative will seek to devote more resources and identify new industries where apprenticeships can play a pivotal role. This will be essential in addressing the workforce needs of employers in the Commonwealth.
“Apprenticeships provide career pathways for those just entering the workforce as well as increased opportunities for those looking to expand their career track. This is why the apprenticeship model’s ‘Grow Your Own’ approach will be a crucial tool for employees and employers alike. The future of workforce development looks bright in the Commonwealth. By re-committing ourselves to fully embracing the power of apprenticeships, we are placing ourselves in the best position to move Kentucky forward,” Gov. Bevin concluded. Continue reading
