SHEBOYGAN, WI (WHBL) - The Sheboygan School District's Red Raider Manufacturing program is entering another year, and officials say they're gearing up to help place more students in skilled jobs.
Superintendent Joe Sheehan says the district will be expanding their apprenticeship programs this year. "This whole plan, we're going to start them in 9th and 10th grade. So by the time they're juniors and seniors they're not going to be on campus all day, they're going to be half the time in a business, in a company. Quite frankly, that company now has a first chance at 'hey we like this kid, we're going to hire them.'" He adds that businesses from across the area have been partnering with the district in order to help place those students with jobs.
The Initiative came about after many years of talk over the lack of students wanting to take part in skilled labor once they leave high school. Sheehan says the district turned that around on the businesses. "'Hey, there's a ton of skilled labor jobs that we need and they aren't here. Can you guys help us?' And then we flipped it around and said, 'We want to help you, can you help us?'" He says that the partners with the program have realized that fighting over what few students came out of the school's tech ed programs was less successful than supporting and partnering with the district to build the programs instead.
Sheehan says the district's guidance counselors are also working with students to change the idea that everyone needs to go off and get a four-year college diploma. Sometimes he says all it takes is an idea for a career instead. "Do you like to work with people? Do you like to work with your hands? Do you like to do the same thing every day? Do you like different settings? You like something different every hour? After you start answering those questions then they give you 'hey you might want to try this career pathway.'"
Construction crews are finishing up the new facilities for Red Raider at both North and South, and should have the new buildings in place in time for the start of the school year next month.