LCCC adding applied science bachelor’s degree system – Morning Journal

LCCC teacher and alum Johnathon Alexander demonstrates how a Fenuc robot arm operates with processing simple tasks such as developing. (Lauren Hoffman — The Morning Journal)

Lorain County Neighborhood College has grown as a workhorse in the applied bachelor of science degrees in current years, anything that will continue as the institution announced new applications March 16 through a Board of Trustees meeting.

Kelly Zelesnik, dean of the Engineering, Enterprise and Technologies Division at LCCC, mentioned the continuation of the system will introduce a third applied bachelor’s degree in sciences as nicely as teacher and higher college applications to streamline the course of action.

“Our newest applied bachelor’s, which is in the final stages of getting authorized, is set to marry each the microelectronic manufacturing, MEMs, and cyber safety to continue to enable students make a profession in engineering and manufacturing,” Zelesnik mentioned.

Recognized as the Trusted and Assured Microelectronics Options, or TAMS, this applied science bachelor’s degree system presently is beneath improvement but should really be supplied to students by the 2024-25 college year.

The current bachelor’s degree in applied sciences supplied at LCCC, nevertheless, could enable students earn up to $48.07 an hour with quite a few going on to six figure jobs inside a couple of years of graduation with the system, officials mentioned.

Currently the field has five,383 projected annual job openings with 1,399 degree earners projected to operate in Ohio, they mentioned.

And the education does not commence just when students get to college.

Emily Graven, a graduate of Marion L. Steele Higher College in Amherst, is 1 of the very first students in the system to take benefit of the curriculum although nonetheless in higher college.

“I got a job functioning in engineering although I was a junior,” Graven mentioned. “Now, with this system in MEMs that I am taking now, I am understanding what we are presently functioning on with prospects in class, so the payoff has been instant.”

LCCC also has constructed a partnership with Firelands Schools in the type of a pre-apprenticeship system that launched in January.

So far, 43 students are enrolled in the Profession Connections classes and are set to earn a certified manufacturing associate certification as nicely as 12 points that can apply toward graduation.

Robots like this 1 are made use of on quite a few factory floors currently, assisting make something from vehicles to processing packaging. (Lauren Hoffman — The Morning Journal)

“Under this partnership, the students have the capability to take a look at LCCC Robotics and Automation, MEMS and other employer websites with a kickstart toward their personal location in the system,” Zelesnik mentioned. “Essentially what we are undertaking, is delivering these students, and the nation, with possibilities to see employers and providing them exposure to all the various fields of the certification.”

In addition to the higher college apprenticeship, LCCC introduced teacher education profession pathways delivering free of charge teacher education on Fanuc robots as a way to expose higher college teachers to instructing the applications.

“What this does is, it enables us to offer education and certification of higher college teachers as nicely as neighborhood college instructors, and even university instructors, so that these teachers can turn about and teach their personal students as nicely,” Zelesnik mentioned.

A single of the principal approaches that the system operates is via the use of a Lending Library of Fanuc robots that schools can borrow to teach students.

By way of these applications, students can earn a robotic operator certificate although in higher college, which then stacks on to the profession pathway in engineering and manufacturing currently supplied at the college level.

“This is just the most up-to-date in an fascinating new chapter for LCCC,” Zelesnik mentioned. “Through these applications and with our new applied bachelor’s, we can continue to develop the regional workforce which in turn grows our economy.”