The trip from factory floor to an Illinois Valley Community College classroom is a short one for Scott Fox, Greg Whightsil and Steve Gibson, college instructors who still work in 
manufacturing and provide a bridge between their classrooms and real production lines.

In class, they provide real-work examples to their students, drawing on their experience to explain a process they used that morning or the troubleshooting they did that afternoon. They also rely on panels of industry advisers to stay ahead of trends and keep their programs relevant.

All three graduated from the programs they now coordinate at IVCC: manufacturing (Fox); engineering technology (Whightsil); and industrial maintenance and industrial technology (Gibson). Fox and Whightsil still work in local manufacturing – Fox as a tooling technician and CNC (computer numerical control) programmer and Whightsil as a mechanical and electrical systems trainer. Gibson was a plant electrician who remains active as a systems technician.

“Our faculty help get students ready for the realities of the workplace and what is necessary in time, skillset, competencies and understanding how teams get things done,” said Rebecca Zamora, dean of workforce development at IVCC.

The Illinois Valley has been a manufacturing hub for 200 years, but revolutions in technology and production are fueling new opportunities for a skilled workforce and IVCC’s manufacturing programs are delivering the workers.

“Automation, programmable remote controls, and robotics repurposed many manufacturing jobs,” Fox said. “Manufacturing is not just about pushing buttons. We are teaching a lot of what we see industry needing now.”

IVCC developed an accredited robotics/mechatronics degree and expanded with new equipment. Students employ state-of-the-art virtual reality systems to simulate complex tasks not available in a classroom and practice and learn through hands-on internships. Flexible course styles prepare students to enter the workforce faster or let them focus on what they need to know and advance when they demonstrate competency.

To keep their companies competitive and to prosper and advance individually, today’s multi-faceted technicians must be comfortable solving problems, fabricating replacement components, programing digitally integrated production systems, or even designing and building, the instructors say.

The days of specialization are disappearing. “Every change leaves somebody behind who only knows how to do one thing,” Gibson said.

The instructors also seek to rectify soft-skills shortages, including time management, accountability, communication, and task management by reinforcing those values.

Fox became an instructor to bolster both technical and soft skillsets. “I wanted to see what I could change to help the industry and I saw community college as the place to jumpstart that training,” he said.

Whightsil describes troubleshooting as a lost art. “Generally, you cannot just Google your way to the answers. Understanding equipment breakdowns first requires intimate knowledge of how the equipment functions. I help my students connect the dots – how it works, how it fails, and how it can be corrected.”

“I like being the guy that found something not working and it was working after I left. I hope students see how cool it is to put something together with their own hands and what happens from something they built,” Gibson said.

Their classes attract recent high school graduates and adults in various stages of their careers. Working through IVCC’s Continuing Education and Business Services, all three coordinators also customize training and develop assessment testing for incumbent employees in manufacturing companies and municipalities.

Fox, Whightsil and Gibson carry on a tradition passed down from the faculty who taught them and that they want to pass on to their students.

“IVCC taught me how to work in my field, be successful, and enjoy it,” Gibson said.