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l MANUFACTURING in Southern California's labor market. As a re- sult, the courses covered under the grant in- clude skills such as Welding & Metal Fabrication, CNC Operation & Programming, and MATLAB, a type of software and coding language used by engineers and scientists. Several of the programs are on the cutting edge of manufacturing technology. For example, students in the MATLAB program will learn how to program the robots used in automated manufacturing. Others will learn "additive man- ufacturing," or 3-D printing. Still others will learn how to program microcontrollers, the small single-circuit computers embedded in everything from power tools to appliances. "When they come to our program, it's intense, and it goes by fast – if a person survives, they're probably a good fit in that field," Kurokawa said, describing how the training benefits local employers. "Whereas, if you hire somebody off the street, you never know if they're going to say, 'I don't like this very much,' five months in. The company doesn't have to kiss a lot of toads to find a handsome prince – they already know this person likes the work." Enrollment is open to anyone wishing to pur- sue a career in advanced manufacturing or fabri- cation, or to enhance their skills. Under the terms of the grant, MiraCosta must extend prior- ity to veterans, Native Ameri- cans, ex-offenders and the unemployed. Kurokawa said the courses are all designed to include a lot of hands-on work, and to give students a foundation of knowledge and practice upon which their em- ployers can build. "We've giving them somebody who has the vocabulary and understands the basic princi- ples," she said. "Each company will take it from there and do their own specialized training." The most immediate result of the grant was an influx of students, which Kurokawa expects to last for the duration of the four-year grant. "The classes were half-full and now they're completely full," she said. "That's always really great to see – that our equipment and our in- structors' time is utilized to the maximum by having full classes. And it increases camaraderie between students." For Kris Rolfson, who teaches Engineering Technician classes at MiraCosta, the enrollment boost has meant that he can keep up with the in- tense demand for skilled workers. "Our classes are full – with a waiting list," said Rolfson. "I get industry CEOs and hiring managers calling me all the time, saying, 'I need two people right now, what've you got?' Now I have so many more potential employees to pull from." Rolfson trains his students in electrical theory, soldering, schematics, robotics, automation and more than a dozen other topics to give them "their best chance of getting into a job here in Southern California." He said he has former stu- dents currently employed with ViaSat, HM Elec- tronics, Means Engineering and Magnaflow, among other local companies. The grant is for $6 million over four years, and is shared between MiraCosta, Grossmont, Cuyamaca and Chaffey College. >> CLICK HERE for more information on the MiraCosta College Technology Career Institute. LEARN MORE NORTH COUNTY BUSINESS JOURNAL x FALL 2017 x sdnedc.org Students at MiraCosta can receive low-cost training in manufacturing careers thanks to the America's Promise grant.