MILTON — Blackhawk Technical College held its annual Manufacturing Day event on Tuesday, showcasing manufacturing career opportunities to nearly 300 high school students and connecting them with about 30 area employers.

Students also took tours of Blackhawk’s Advanced Manufacturing Technology Center and engaged with Blackhawk instructors to learn about the various technical and associate programs offered. They learned about the options to get started in high school, including Youth Apprenticeship, Internship and Job Shadow programs.

“This day is part of Blackhawk’s ongoing mission to inspire students to pursue careers in manufacturing. The collaboration between employers, the school districts and our workforce economic groups is exciting as we prepare tomorrow’s workforce to meet the manufacturing and technology needs of Rock and Green counties,” said Greg Phillips, Dean of Manufacturing, Apprenticeship, Technology and Transportation at Blackhawk.

In addition to local employers and high school students, other public officials and economic leaders attended the event, including the Department of Workforce Development’s Assistant Deputy Secretary Danielle Williams, Rhonda Suda, Southwest Wisconsin Workforce Development Board Executive Director, and James Otterstein, Rock County Economic Development.

The talent gap continues to hold back the manufacturing industry’s growth. Of the 400 manufacturers interviewed in an October 2022 Wisconsin Center for Manufacturing and Productivity survey, 84 percent of participants said it was challenging to find qualified workers, and 56 percent had open positions that needed to be filled.

“Exposing high school students to the job opportunities in manufacturing is key to helping close this gap and create a solid skilled workforce in Rock and Green counties. Blackhawk is taking a lead in making this happen through events like Manufacturing Day,” said Dr. Tracy Pierner, President of Blackhawk.

2022 Participating Employers

●  Baker Manufacturing Company, LLC

●  Ball Corporation

●  Charter Next Generation

●  Cotta Transmission Company, LLC

●  CPT, Inc

●  DSB Technologies

●  Fairbanks Morse Defense

●  Frito Lay, Inc.

●  Husco International

●  IKI Manufacturing

●  Jones Dairy Farm

●  Kuhn North America, Inc

●  Mid-States Concrete Industries

●  NorthStar Medical Radioisotopes

●  Novares US Engine Components, Inc.

●  Precision Drive & Control, Inc.

●  Prent Corporation

●  Provisur Technologies

●  Scot Forge Company

●  SHINE Technologies

●  Southwest WI Workforce Development Board- Rock & Green County Youth Apprenticeship Consortium

●  Spacesaver Corporation

●  Spray-Tek

●  SSI Technologies, LLC

●  Stoughton Trailers

●  Sugar River Machine

●  Tigre USA

●  United Alloy

2022 Participating High Schools

●  Albany High School

●  ARISE

●  Beloit Learning Academy

●  Beloit Memorial High School

●  Clinton High School

●  Craig High School

●  Edgerton High School

●  Evansville High School

●  F.J. Turner High School

●  Juda High School