BC3, Oberg education program evolves
Matt Kovac said past success in a partnership between Butler County Community College and Oberg Industries led the program to evolve, grow and hit a new attendance high.
The “apprenticeship technology workplace certificate,” a company-specific college program, is taught by a college professor inside Oberg's Freeport facility.
Selected employees take the course at the company's expense. If successful, they earn national industry and college certifications as well as 26 credits applicable in further education.
Company spokesman Ken Eck said Oberg worked with BC3 and its dean of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics division), Matt Kovac, to develop the Apprentice Technology Workplace Certificate curriculum that is part of the company's state-certified apprenticeship program.
BC3 started the classes at Oberg's apprentice training center in January 2016. The program allows students to also participate in the company's required hands-on training while completing the 26 credits needed for the BC3 workplace certification.
Credits can also be applied to the pursuit of more advanced degrees at BC3 for apprentices.
“The program prepares students for careers in the metalworking trades and is designed primarily for apprentices and industrial workers,” Eck said. “It has been a very successful addition to the program at Oberg.”
Kovac said the college offered similar noncredit programming until 2015, when Oberg leaders “decided they wanted to get (college) credit for their employees' efforts.”
That first year, the company and college teamed up to offer an existing course in CNC (Computer Numerical Control) technology. Kovac said officials aimed to make the class even better by tweaking material to exactly match jobs at Oberg.
The new, four-semester program was born and is updated annually, according to Kovac.
“Oberg is a great partner, and this is an evolving program. It's not static ... There's a lot of communication and advising. There's been relatively few problems but when there is one, we work through it,” Kovac said. “It's always a collective, 'How can we solve this?' And I really value that.”
One of the more recent changes is that the professor who leads the classroom part of the course, Karen Riethmiller, took note that the students reached proficiency in some study areas while on the job.
“Now, we give them the credits for what they are learning internally for three courses,” Riethmiller said. “We give them credit for what they know, and what they have done.”
The program, taught in groups known as cohorts, started with a dozen students and grew this year to a class of 24. Riethmiller said there's a waiting list.
Kovac notes Riethmiller's rich industry background and ease working with students as “the perfect fit for this unique situation.”
Riethmiller teaches the classroom side of the program, like theory and technical writing, while the hands-on training is Oberg-supervised.
“The students are exceptional with a tremendous work ethic,” Riethmiller said. “These are pretty busy students, plus they're working a full shift.”
Riethmiller said the Oberg students almost always graduate with honors. But, by company policy, if a student scores less than 80 percent in the program, “they do it again on their own dime.”
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