Exciting things are happening in Sheet Metal Technology, and instructor Steve MacKay wants to share the good news. 

Local company Gensco Inc. has been a significant source of sheet metal donations over the years, reports MacKay. Special thanks to Gensco Inc. for supporting Bates' Sheet Metal Technology program.

A recent partnership between the Lakewood Lions Club and Sheet Metal Technology offers annual scholarships to students enrolled in the program. In turn, students use their skills to retrofit newspaper dispensers into donation boxes for the Lions Club. Special thanks to Gensco Inc., a Local 66 union employer, for donating blemished metal for the newspaper dispenser project. Sheet Metal Technology students recently toured the company’s newly expanded facility to learn about emerging technologies from the production sector of the industry. A recent story in The News Tribune showcased this partnership. 

Sheet Metal is one of the many career education programs that enjoy program-specific scholarships. The recent addition of the Lions Club scholarship brings the total of sheet metal scholarships to three--the most of any career education program. To learn more about scholarships offered to Bates students, visit the Foundation.

Steve MacKay, working to increase program enrollment, raise occupation awareness

In a proactive effort to increase enrollment in Bates’ Sheet Metal Technology program, instructor Steve MacKay is reaching out to teachers and students in local area high schools. Steve regularly visits high schools and skills centers, meeting with high school educators and counselors to build potential articulation agreements between their schools and the college.

Steve serves on various school district advisory committees that help guide program content, and participates in the educational shadow program that brings students to our campuses. On Monday, April 16, Fred Fishback and Randy Lippold, career and technical education instructors in the Puyallup School District, put on their apprentice hats to spend a day of hands-on training in the sheet metal shop at the downtown campus.

“As teachers, we are never done learning,” said Fishback. “Thanks for the great time and best education ever,” commented Lippold. “We learned skills, techniques and tricks of the trade that we can take back to the classroom to better equip students with real life skills and help them be productive in the workplace.”

“Between the two of us, Randy and I reach about 200 metal trades students a day,” Fishback said. “We want our students to be aware of the educational opportunities available at Bates as well as career opportunities in the sheet metal industry.”

“I am grateful and blessed to be a part of this industry,” Steve said. "I work not only to increase enrollment, but also to give back to an occupation that has been so good to me.”  

Al Patnode from local 66 donated the equipped tool box. Al, a 36 year veteran of the sheet metal industry, retired in 1990. Al attended the Sheet Metal program in 1955. The donation shown was provided through The Greater Tacoma Community Foundation from the Dayton E. Finningan family. This is an award granted yearly to a deserving two year graduate. The site will be featuring more images of equipment soon. 12-19-06

Sheet Metal Technology forges relationship with apprenticeship

A recent agreement with the Joint Apprenticeship Training Council (JATC) allows Bates sheet metal graduates direct entry into the program.

The testing process for apprenticeship eligibility occurs only once a year. “Not having to wait for that annual testing date is a real plus for our students,” says instructor Steve MacKay.

Dimitriy Kostyanchuk is one of the first students who will circumvent the process and go directly into the JATC. Dimitriy was recently awarded the $450 Dayton E. Finnigan scholarship which was offered through the Greater Tacoma Community Foundation and facilitated by the Bates Foundation. Dimitriy used the funds to purchase tools he will need in the workplace.

Dimitriy may be leaving Bates, but he leaves behind a lasting and remarkable impression on his instructor. “He has been in the United States for only two years,” says MacKay. “Even though he was taking ESL courses and raising a family, he was able to complete the 22-month program in a mere 14 months. That is an extraordinary accomplishment for any individual.”  

Ezra Meeker Historical Society scholarship

We are pleased to announce the Ezra Meeker Historical Society is providing a one-time $1,000 scholarship to the Sheet Metal Technology program in care of the Bates Technical College Foundation. This scholarship is in recognition of the outstanding service provided by students in the program whose commitment to craftsmanship has resulted in the re-creation of ornate metal pieces crucial in the restoration of the historic Meeker Mansion.

Steve has also received notification that The Greater Tacoma Community Foundation will continue to grant the annual Dayton E. Finnigan scholarship in the amount of $900 to a deserving sheet metal student(s). This year the funds will be used to purchase $450 in tools for each of two graduating students to boost their start in the workplace.

The Western Washington Sheet Metal Joint Apprenticeship Training Council (JATC) continues to support Bates' sheet metal program by providing scholarship funds and enhancing an articulation agreement with Local 66. Previously, interviews for entry into the Sheet Metal JATC Local 66 apprenticeship program were available only once a year. To better accommodate Bates’ competency-based curriculum in which students complete their programs throughout the year, Local 66 will now accept Bates' sheet metal graduates to be placed on the bottom of the out of work list for apprentices at any time during the year. This will greatly enhance a graduate’s chances for employment in the union side of the industry, and translates to entry-level wages of $21 per hour for our degree earning students. An added bonus for sheet metal graduating degree students is that the JATC credits 2,700 hours (18 months) of program study towards completion of the industry apprenticeship.

These program activities would not be possible without the dedicated efforts of the instructor, who tirelessly works to promote his students, the program, and continuously encourages industry to invest in the workers of tomorrow. Job well done!