Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1108006
64 FLEX007 MAGAZINE I APRIL 2019 teacher who has done the program—and we've had upwards of 80 iterations of this across the country—has asked to do it again. Matties: Do the teachers go on the facility tours with the students? Parmeter: Yes, the teachers participate in every step. The program is truly a partnership between the project manager—who provides technology, entrepreneurship instruction, mentorship, and external coordination—while the teacher ensures students meet their learn- ing objectives and project milestones and coor- dinates the activities. Matties: You're also teaching the teachers some new skills to take into the classroom. What is the greatest challenge about teaching a teacher a new skill set? Chi: The teachers have varying degrees of tech- nological savviness. So, we have the opportu- nity to help participating teachers learn how the technology works and how they can incor- porate FlexFactor to reinforce or build on their existing in-class learning objectives. Parmeter: One of the teachers who imple- mented the program was actually Clarence's teacher about 10 years ago—a computer sci- ence teacher at one of the schools we work with. Chi: She was so shocked to see me! Her class is incredible. And working with my former instructor again is an amazing thing. She is a big fan of FlexFactor and wants to do it every year. She does an amazing job, and her stu- dents won the FlexFactor Finals—all three of her classes. The FlexFactor Finals is an event we throw at the end of the year where the top teams from each class compete. It has been a great joy working with her. Matties: I think that schools must see this as a breath of fresh air too in many ways. Ridi: The exposure that students gain through our industry and college partners is very impactful. When I was in high school, I didn't know what the real world looked like. Being able to expose these students to the real world is great and something I wish I had when I was in high school. Johnson: What response do you get from work- ing with the universities watching this pro- gram? Are you getting much feedback from them? McGrath: We highlight the range of educational pathways available to students, which means we emphasize the variety of institutions of higher education that can provide the skills needed by our industry partners, including both two-year and four-year options. Locally, we engage students with both Evergreen Val- ley College (EVC), which is a two-year pro- gram, and San Jose State University (SJSU), highlighting the fact that students can go to either school or they can transition from EVC to SJSU. Parmeter: We've also had some fairly advanced conversations with the University of Massa- chusetts System as well. They see this as an interesting program because of its value as an economic and workforce development bridge to create the talent needed by industries in the region. FlexFactor can be used by university systems not just to recruit students directly to the school but also students from the two-year systems as well. Matties: We see a lot of interest in computer technology jobs and not in manufacturing. However, there's a shift in manufacturing jobs. It's not loading a board into a machine; it's more of an activity that blends computer and The teachers have varying degrees of technological savviness.