I have written multiple posts about community colleges, which I consider a hidden gem within our educational system. Back in 2016, I wrote an homage to community colleges, and I wrote a follow-up in 2017.
In 2019 I also wrote about an alternative form of post-secondary education, the trade school, and focused on one particular trade school – Williamson College of the Trades, located in the Philly suburbs.
Imagine what would happen if you mashed those two ideas together.
Well, that is the general idea behind the Federation for Advanced Manufacturing Education (FAME) apprenticeship-style program, began in 2010 as an experiment among several companies, including Toyota Motor Corp.’s Georgetown, Ky., factory, which was having trouble finding “middle-skill” workers to operate new technology. The program pairs employers with community colleges in an apprenticeship-like program. Today, nearly 400 employers participate in 13 states.
Students of FAME—a mix of new high-school grads and older factory workers well into their careers—typically spend two days a week in class and three days on the factory floor, earning a part-time salary. They learn to maintain and repair machinery; traditional subjects such as English, math, and philosophy; and soft skills such as work ethic and teamwork. The FAME program typically covers five semesters, or two years. After earning an associate degree, most work full time for the factories that sponsored them.
FAME graduates fill what might be called “grey-collar” jobs, which involve both traditional blue-collar manual labor and the kind of critical thinking and communication typically associated with a four-year degree.
New research shows it is paying off big for graduates, who typically earn nearly six figures within five years of graduation. The study, to be released Monday by Opportunity America and the Brookings Institution, Washington-based think tanks, contributes to the intensifying debate over how best education can promote income mobility.
Conventional wisdom is that a high salary requires a four-year degree. To be sure, the “college premium” remains near all-time highs: Workers with a bachelor’s but no graduate degree earned $78,000 on average in recent years, compared with $45,000 for those with only a high-school diploma.
But many college graduates don’t get a payoff. The lowest 25% of earners with a four-year degree earned less than the top 25% of earners with only a high-school diploma.
Apprenticeships have long offered a path to high-paying work for high-school graduates but have historically been reserved for skilled trades such as plumbers, carpenters, and electricians. But research on apprenticeships based at community colleges is limited.
FAME looks like a winner; it combines the best of community college, trade school, and apprenticeship to create opportunities for people for whom college has no interest or is outside their financial reach. Earning close to six-figures in your mid-twenties is more than many college graduates earn at that age, and FAME graduates have no student loans to worry about.
I wish the program and its graduates the best.
*image from Bridge Valley
*primary source for info about Fame: story by Josh Mitchell in WSJ
Sounds like a great program!
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it does indeed!
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Sounds like a good program and also, I believe, a needed program.
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it seems to meet a need…
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Earning six figures sounds great. Does FAME accept retirees?
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I’ll let you know in a couple of years… 🙂
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Great idea. I’ve never heard the term grey collar but I’m all for this type of learning. How much does a first year teacher earn so I can get a feel for salaries?
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it seems like a great opportunity; it seems like the average starting salary for a teacher is in the mid $40s
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This is a really good idea, Jim. There is a need for people with these sorts of skills. Everyone can’t be a doctor, accountant or lawyer.
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I agree, it fills a need. and not everyone would want to be a doctor, lawyer, or accountant…
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Follow the money, that’s what I say. If only I had said that back in my college days, I would have chosen a more lucrative career. I think this would be a great program for those students who aren’t afraid to work with their backs and think with their brains.
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I am sure many students who went to college back in our day might have chosen something like this if it existed…
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Completely off topic from your post, but when you said “Community College,” I had to ask – are you familiar with the sitcom Community?
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yes, I have caught a few episodes here and there. it looked pretty funny…
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Community college is a great alternative for many because they are usually much more affordable. There are lots of different paths, and this is a fine one.
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well said, Pete…
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This sounds like a wonderful program and shows what thinking outside the box can achieve. We must find a way for education, and in turn a living wage, can become more attainable to everyone. I had not heard of this program, so thanks for bringing it to light. I hope they continue with great success!
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I agree that there seems to be a need for such students, and I don’t see that changing for quite a while…
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this sounds like a great marriage. the trades need each and every one of them.
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it is a great opportunity for student and employer.
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This is a great idea! People shouldn’t think there is just one way to start a career, and this program would give people the hands on experience that a lot of college graduates don’t even have after finishing school.
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exactly; these grads are ready to be productive on day one…
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I used to believe that as long as you got the ability for the job, papers and education shouldn’t matter. We only need to be able to read, write, and calculate, sadly, in reality, more often than not this isn’t enough. Fame makes a promising program.
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I agree; just having a college degree does not mean you are capable of doing a job. And I wish FAME and its students the best…
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Excellent post about a worthy program. Having taught high school business education for much of my career, I appreciate this combination of community college with apprenticeship. The world of 21st century work skills will benefit from these type of partnerships.
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it seems like it should be an effective partnership for many, many people…
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Sounds good to me. And how about making such an experience required for all those who aspire to management positions? That would – potentially – do a world of good for all concerned.
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what a great idea; I think it could only help a manager to have actual hands-on experience with what they are managing…
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