Photo | Courtesy of Karen Ares
Karen Ares, executive director of Blackstone Valley Education Hub
October 13, 2020
Q&A: Blackstone Valley Ed Hub bridges gap between vocational training and traditional high school
Blackstone Valley Education Hub in Northbridge, led by former Dudley Charlton School District STEAM director Karen Ares, who now serves as the organization’s executive director, is a two-year old nonprofit aimed at helping students and adults enter the advanced manufacturing workforce. Its programming currently runs the gamut between after-school classes to workforce reentry training for incarcerated people in Worcester County. Ares spoke with WBJ about the nonprofit’s mission, training offerings and goals.
What does the Blackstone Valley Ed Hub do?
We are a training center basically helping high school students, post-secondary students, career changers, young adults, and anyone who wants to get into advanced manufacturing. We get them training and try to get them some credentialing set up so we can place them into jobs.
It is the brainchild of Jeannie Hebert, the Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce president, because she saw so much trouble with her local manufacturers, and still does, trying to find qualified help.
Manufacturing just generally, sometimes, gets a bad rap. People don't know what it is and they don't know of the career opportunities, and especially our students don't. We try to open their eyes.
Is all your programming focused on manufacturing?
Yes, right now, because we’re only two years old. We opened in the fall of 2018. So, we’re really just doing advanced manufacturing right now. Some of the things we’re good at and the things we provide are a certification. It’s a local manufacturing certification called MACWIC; it’s a credentialing system manufacturers use. MACWIC level one focuses on things like blueprint reading, OSHA safety, work readiness and quality assurance.
So basically, entry-level machinist kind of things.
Do you partner with local schools?
Last year, we successfully ran a manufacturing technology class for high school students from several of the high schools from the Blackstone Valley Consortium. We had 16 kids participate.
What we're trying to do is see that develop more. Because, honestly, these are such small little school districts, the more collaboration we can do together, the better. They all can't have manufacturing equipment in their high schools. And that's where we come in.
What other programs do you offer?
We work with Grafton Job Corps. All those kids who graduated from the program, there's 13 of them in their late teens, early 20s, were placed successfully in jobs. One of them joined the service.
Our most recent program, and what we're still working on, is with the Worcester County House of Correction, trying to get these guys a second chance and focusing on what they’re going to do when they get out and really trying to provide some structure and success and routine and getting them a job.
Are you working on developing anything else?
Two things, including augmented reality welders. We have gotten some feedback from our manufacturers in the Blackstone Valley saying it’s hard to find people who are welders, so we got some grant funding back in the spring and we were able to purchase these welders. Students will be able to learn the basics, and so our instructors right now are working through curriculum on that. We are actually going to be working with Uxbridge High School to phase in some curriculum and kind of test it on them and anyone who’s interested.
The other thing is we got some robotics equipment. It’s manufacturing technology robotics, which are collaborative robots. We’re working on getting those up to speed and ready, and we’re looking forward to working with them on a program for kids.
This interview was conducted and edited for length and clarity by WBJ Staff Writer Monica Busch.
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