On Feb. 25, Catalyst Connection partnered with the Beaver Valley Intermediate Unit (BVIU) and The Consortium for Public Education to host a one-day general Industry 4.0 Teacher Academy session.
This session featured an overview of manufacturing in Southwestern Pa including a panel of local industry professionals. Teachers also received demonstrations in coding and robotics from BOTSIQ, a workforce development program that promotes STEM education.
From there, educators had time to consider both hard and soft skills needed by students to move into manufacturing jobs. They started to consider course creation that promotes these skills.
The day ended with a tour of Kenson Plastics in Chippewa where the group learned about Industry 4.0 in the workplace, as well as got to network with key staff members on how Kenson may be able to support their students.