With so many career options available to today’s students, it’s hard to catch their interest with more facts about skilled trades. More often, the kind of student who will be interested in a manufacturing career after graduation is going to need a hands-on example of what we mean. That’s where our Foundation’s long-running summer camp programs come in. 
 
NBT Manufacturing camps teach participants some of the basics of working with tools, measurements, and computer assisted design. They also give students an opportunity to see the reality of working with metals and machinery to create fabricated products. These students often have misconceptions about the industry, and the camp experience is the best way we’ve found to dispel those manufacturing myths of the past. 

We recently met up with Chris Ellingsen, an advanced manufacturing and fabrication instructor at Grayslake Central High School, to talk about his experience running an NBT camp for his students. He told us, “it was a great opportunity to get the kids in the classroom; it pays dividends tenfold to get the kids in your workshop if the facility can handle them.” 

Ellingsen spoke with us about how helpful the NBT staff were in getting started, guiding him through the application for camp grants, and the various project ideas other camps had tried. The list of tools and processes that his students experienced during their program was impressive and Ellingsen was proud of the excitement they felt at seeing the finished projects.   

“Eyes lit up, they were so excited,” he said, “All the kids had a tremendous time, I got emails and calls from parents saying what a great experience their child had, and asking what’s the plan for next summer.” 

NBT Manufacturing Camp Grants like the one Ellingsen qualified for are made possible by donations from our readers, followers, and sponsors. We are grateful for all the support we have received over the last 30 years and each year we publish an annual report to showcase the impact we’ve had on the manufacturers of tomorrow.  

If you would like to be a part of our mission’s success, please make a donation any time of the year. We appreciate you for being a part of our foundation’s efforts to bring more young people to successful careers in manufacturing. With your help, we will continue to assist schools and teachers in offering these camp opportunities for many years to come.