Free Multimedia Kits Support Workforce Development

The National Institute of Metalworking Skills (NIMS, Fairfax, VA) is partnering with Edge Factor this year to inspire students and job-seekers to pursue career pathways in manufacturing and other Skilled Trades. Their workforce development initiative will provide schools, companies, and workforce leaders with three free “Experience” toolkits that feature high impact multimedia, a keynote presentation, promotional tools, and practical guidebook on how to plan, promote, host and follow up on engaging presentations and virtual events. These online experiences will  empower students, parents, and job-seekers to explore skilled trades, apprenticeships, hands-on learning programs, careers, STEAM, and soft skills.

“We have long appreciated the work that NIMS does,” said Jeremy Bout, founder and president of Edge Factor. “At a time when we need our communities to come together and build into our youth, this partnership is going to help us accomplish more by doing it together. As someone who spent many years in my career in advanced manufacturing, I know there are extraordinary opportunities in this industry to impact people’s lives and build the future. Through our partnership with Montez King and NIMS, we will be able to inspire and prepare many new minds to launch careers in manufacturing.”

Edge Factor, a widely-used e-learning platform, has created thousands of videos, interactive activities, and lesson plans that focus on career exploration. K-12 and postsecondary schools, companies, and organizations partner with Edge Factor to help tackle workforce development regionally and nationally. Using the power of storytelling, Edge Factor produced several cinematic and inspirational films featuring NIMS graduates and NIMS executive director, Montez King, in Paradox. With these stories and more, the Edge Factor platform helps students and job-seekers explore career pathways, learn soft skills, discover STEAM on the job, experience virtual workplaces, and learn about local training and career opportunities.

Featuring select tools from the Edge Factor library, six free Experiences will be available during specific 2021 months for organizations to share in classrooms, homes, and at events.

“I am very much looking forward to this collaboration. Edge Factor and NIMS have worked together for years to bring light to the importance and opportunities available to students in emerging fields of advanced manufacturing and Skilled Trades,” said Montez King, Executive Director for NIMS. “We will now be able to share our knowledge more widely and inspire more people to look into these fields by providing exciting, modern and engaging content to educators and industry professionals.”

NIMS, a 501C-3 nonprofit, provides industry-developed and validated performance standards, competency-based credentials, and training frameworks that enable collaboration between educators, manufacturers, policy makers, and community-based organizations. Its 25 years of manufacturing training experience has enabled NIMS to use its established well-defined, timeless frameworks and processes to dynamically respond to the new fast-paced, technology-driven economy. NIMS has applied concepts of modularity and adaptability in training and performance validation to develop a new smart training framework. Its customizable format is aligned with manufacturers on the smart manufacturing journey and it is created with job roles, not occupations.

NIMS is specifically partnering with Edge Factor on the following three 2021 Experiences:

1. Women in Skilled Trades (March – April) – To celebrate International Women’s Day/ Month, this toolkit will feature Edge Factor’s special collection of tools about women in skilled trades. The goal of this Experience is to encourage more women and female students to pursue career pathways in diverse skilled trades. In addition, NIMS will be doing a weekly live interview series throughout the month of March (hosted on its Facebook page) showcasing a different woman in manufacturing each week to address challenges and opportunities in the field.
2. Rock MFG DAY (September – October) – October is Manufacturing Day/ Month and Edge Factor is providing the 2021 Rock MFG DAY kit for everyone to highlight the extraordinary world of advanced manufacturing. This toolkit will include resources to promote manufacturing careers and technology and showcase how STEAM comes alive in this industry.
3. Apprenticeships (November -December) – Many training pathways lead to successful careers; apprenticeships offer incredible opportunities for students to gain real-world skills and earn money while they learn. The Apprenticeships Experience will provide inspirational and informational tools for students and parents to discover the power of apprenticeship programs. Additionally, Edge Factor and NIMS will produce a video series interviewing King about his experience as an apprentice and his advice to students looking to enter into an apprenticeship and build a successful career.

Each free Experience will include:

• Five days of STEAM programming (including inspirational stories, industry and career profiles, STEAM content, soft skills videos, interactive activities, and lesson plans)
• A keynote presentation (pre-recorded speaker)
• “How-to” guides and promotional tools customized for schools, companies, and workforce leaders to plan, promote, host and follow-up on engaging Experiences.

Educators, business or workforce development leaders and parents are invited to pre-register for the free 2021 Experiences at: edgefactor.com/free-experiences.