Educators and manufacturers from around New Hampshire will meet Thursday, May 24 to discuss the need to prepare students for work in the state's top industry, which employs more than 67,000 people.
Pathways to Success: Connecting Manufacturing to Education is set for 8 am to 1 pm on Thursday at Nashua Community College and will feature a keynote address by Bill Symonds, director of Harvard University's Pathways to Prosperity: Meeting the Challenge of Preparing Young Americans for the 21st Century program. Other featured speakers include Gov. John Lynch, Department of Resources and Economic Development Commissioner George Bald and Dr. Brenda Dann-Messier, assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of Education.
Manufacturers tell us this is one of their most pressing issues and they are concerned about the shortage of young workers with advanced manufacturing skills, said Christopher Way, interim director of the Division of Economic Development. This industry plays such an important role in our economy and it's up to educators, business groups, parents and communities to make sure it remains vibrant and viable.
Zenagui Brahim, executive director of the New Hampshire Manufacturing Partnership, notes that manufacturing raises four times more revenue than tourism, the state's second largest industry and that manufacturing accounts for 95 percent of all New Hampshire exports, which, since 2003, have risen three times faster than the state's overall economy.
Through this summit, we want to ensure that young people know about the opportunities in manufacturing in the 21st century and that they are prepared with the skills they need to pursue a career here in New Hampshire, Brahim said.
The summit is sponsored by the New Hampshire Business and Industry Association and the New Hampshire High Technology Council.
To register, or for information, call 603-226-3200 or visit www.nhmep.org/pathways_summit.html.