Watching students accept their hard-earned diplomas is always a heartwarming experience that conjures up pride and optimism. But when Onondaga Community College’s first graduating class from its new Machine Operator program celebrated the culmination of their studies on Saturday, it was a triumph not just for the graduates and their friends and families, but for the entire community.

Manufacturing is critical to the economy in Central New York. It helps support families by offering one of the highest-paying average salaries of any industry, more than $61,000 per year. What’s more, experts estimate that every job in a manufacturing facility creates an additional 2.5 jobs in other sectors.¹ Our region has a proud heritage of supporting and sustaining these jobs, from packaging to precision metalworking.² But many workers who have mastered these important crafts are approaching retirement, and we need young people to join their ranks if local manufacturing is to continue growing.

This class of accomplished students represents a major investment in our area’s future. Thanks to collaboration led by CenterState CEO, which includes local employers, educators, business leaders and community organizations, Onondaga Community College (OCC) is now home to an innovative manufacturing training program that combines the strengths of the public and private sectors. These first graduates received their certificates on Saturday and are now ready to be placed with one of the employers that helped create the program. And that’s the real power of this program; the employers and educators are working together to design curriculum, develop training, select applicants, and place graduates.

For our community, the Machine Operator program is a step toward making sure that manufacturing jobs remain a stabilizing force in our local economy for years to come. But our work is not done. I have asked the governor to include $500,000 in this year’s state budget for a new manufacturing apprenticeship program. The initiative would also help fill skilled manufacturing positions left open by retirees while at the same time opening up entry level jobs for new workers.

Congratulations, once again, to OCC’s first alumni of the Machine Operator program. Your hard work is cause for all of us to celebrate and look optimistically toward the future.

If you have any questions or concerns about this or any other community issue, please don’t hesitate to contact me at StirpeA@assembly.state.ny.us or by calling 452-1115.

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^{2. manufacturing.essentialnyjobs.com}