Conner Klaft
Conner Klaft grew up in suburban Toledo and graduated from Penta Career Center, which is located minutes from the Owens Community College Toledo-area Campus.
After learning about the Manufacturing Technician Apprenticeship, formerly FAME, on the Owens Findlay-area Campus, he acknowledged, “It was such a great opportunity that I did not want to pass it up.”
The program was created through a unique partnership including local companies from Hancock County, Hancock County’s economic development organization Raise the Bar and Owens. Students earn while they learn as the companies hire the students, pay for at least half of their tuition and fees at Owens, and employ them a minimum of 24 hours a week at a competitive hourly wage.
The collaborative partnership is known as the Regional Advanced Manufacturing Partnership (RAMP). The list of partnership companies may change depending on what companies are hiring but the most recent partners were Ball Metal, Cooper Tire, DS Brown, GSW, Freudenberg – NOK, Graham Packaging, Kalmbach Feeds, Hitachi Astemo (formerly Nissin Brake Ohio), Molten, Rowmark, Simona PMC and ZF, which employs Klaft.
“The program is optimal for my leaning style,” Klaft said. “I’m a hands-on learner. We practice what we learn in class at work. The people at work also help with our projects, which go more in-depth. Last semester, I was working on a project on lean manufacturing in addition to my regular job. I was focused on how to make things more efficient and streamlined.”
As the region’s education leader, Owens is dedicated to producing a job-ready workforce. According to labor data from July 2021, advanced manufacturing workers in Lucas, Wood and Hancock counties earn $69,000 annually on average.
Klaft said he enjoys the personal attention he receives in his manufacturing cohort as the students follow a curriculum of “learn it, do it, apply it and tell it” with safety emphasized at each phase.
“The class sizes are ideal so that the instructors will work with you 1-on-1,” he said. “They can walk you through the material when it’s needed. And things are opening back up on campus. There’s more students around.”
The Owens Findlay-area Campus provides more than 20 start-to-finish degree options and Express dual admission transfer programs, including the Oiler Express with the University of Findlay and Falcon Express with Bowling Green State University.
“Besides the Manufacturing Technician Apprenticeship, some of our more popular programs are nursing and electrical,” Julie Baker, dean of the Owens Findlay-area Campus, said. “We’re seeing more students enrolled direct from high school. Some are choosing career programs and others are choosing to enroll in our transfer partnership programs.”
Featuring the Education Center and Community Education and Wellness Center buildings, the Findlay-area Campus covers more than 60 acres.
“Our students like the campus setting, how they get to know other students and the faculty because of our small size,” Baker said.
Published September 2021