Manufacturing Academy
Beginning in 2014, AJAC partnered with the Washington Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) to provide a 12-week pre-apprenticeship training to incarcerated young men living in a DCYF transitional living facility in Tacoma, WA.
The success of the DCYF partnership in Tacoma provided a blueprint for a pre-apprenticeship program design for opportunity youth, with funds from the Aspen Institute’s “Pathways to Careers,” provided critical capacity building and instructional support for AJAC to work with partners including Federal Way Public Schools, the Boys & Girls Club of King County, the YMCA Social Impact Center, and the Workforce Development Council of Seattle-King County (WDC).
The Boys & Girls Club’s EX3 Teen Center in Federal Way was identified as a training location for opportunity youth associated with Federal Way Public School’s Truman Campus, which hosts two alternative high school programs, Open Doors at Truman and Career Academy at Truman, as well as the Internet Academy for grades K-12.
Over the last two years, AJAC has partnered with Federal Way Public School’s Truman Campus and the Federal Way Boys & Girls Club to offer AJAC’s Manufacturing Academy to FWPS students looking to explore different career paths and interests.
Upon completion of the 10-week program, students will not only leave with technical manufacturing skills, but soft skills that can increase their chances of employability. AJAC’s instructors teach students how to work independently and in teams, how to develop an effective resume, and how to dress and act appropriately in the workplace.
I just see kids that are excited, excited about the outlook of what’s out there. It’s not just law school or medical school. There’s trades that can be done and be a responsible young person that can provide for themselves and their families.
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Manufacturing Academy
Federal Way, Washington
To capitalize on the skills learned in class, AJAC works with its network of 300 advanced manufacturing employers to identify internship opportunities for students who wish to apply their knowledge of the trades to a real-world environment.
Interns will work full-time at a partnering employer that elects to temporarily hire them. Upon completion, interns may be offered a full-time position with the hiring employer.
Starting July 2021, 4 students have participated in a paid internship at American Structures & Design, a Pacific-based aluminum and stainless steel products manufacturer who is also an AJAC training agent (apprenticeship employer partner).
Have a question about our Truman High School Manufacturing Academy program? Send us an email!
Training of all those served shall be without discrimination based on race, sex, color, religion, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or as otherwise specified by law. AJAC also encourages women, minorities and veterans to apply with their employer.