America Makes continues to advance its mission to train the future additive workforce with the announcement of a recently completed pilot program designed to expose middle school students to 3D printing and future career opportunities. The virtual program allows students to earn mini-badges in additive manufacturing (AM). It was funded by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act through the Manufacturing USA National Emergency Assistance Program.
The America Makes middle school program is designed to build the career pathways and talent pipelines necessary for the highly skilled positions within the AM industry, and aligns directly to previously developed programs that target high school students, post-secondary education students, and incumbent workers. Together, these badge programs are central components of America Makes’ K-to-Grey Superhighway programming to develop career and credential pathways for learners of all ages.
The 11 micro-learning modules in the middle school program feature a series of short interactive lessons, introducing students to the basic elements of AM.