I write to you on the eve of a transformational event for the people of the Ozarks and the state of Missouri. Tomorrow, August 15, 2022, Ozarks Technical Community College will hold a grand opening for the new Robert W. Plaster Center for Advanced Manufacturing.
This state-of-the-art facility is a game changer for our economy, and its construction would not be possible without your help. In 2018, local citizens voted to add 5 cents to the OTC tax levy to support increased workforce development in our region. This increase made several projects possible, the largest of which was the construction of the $40 million, 120,000 square foot advanced manufacturing training center in Springfield. This beautiful facility will be home to many of the college’s high-tech programs, including precision manufacturing, mechatronics, and automation and robotics.
Dr. Hal Higdon
The Plaster Manufacturing Center will have an immediate positive effect on our local economy as we offer our citizens and companies the opportunity to train and grow in a facility that is the first of its kind in Missouri. Whether a student is still in high school, a recent high school graduate, or an adult student seeking to retrain to attain a better job, this facility is designed to serve for generations to come.
Dr. Hal HigdonOur local manufacturers now have a place dedicated to providing the latest technology and training methods to allow them to train, test and research without taking space away from their production facilities. With the doors of the center not yet open, companies seeking to expand or relocate to our area are already taking notice. This facility puts our region on the map for companies that may not have considered us before.
Additionally, this building was purposely designed to provide tours to groups from elementary students to Fortune 500 executives to highlight the clean, safe and technologically advanced world of modern manufacturing. The Plaster Manufacturing Center removes the myth and stigma that manufacturing is a dirty, dangerous and repetitive world, when the reality is nothing like the perception.
Every week, I hear people say, not everyone needs to go to college. This is not true. The reality is that everyone needs college, the question is what type of college. College can mean going to university to obtain a four-year degree, or a community college to earn a two-year associate degree, a one-year certificate, or a diploma in a short-term workforce training program. It is all going to college, and it is all valuable.
The Robert W. Plaster Center for Advanced Manufacturing is here, thanks to you, to begin students on a path to work in the fields of robotics, mechatronics, engineering, drafting, artificial intelligence and many other areas so they can have a career that is both rewarding and lucrative.
Mark your calendars for August 15, 2022, a milestone day in the life of the people of the Ozarks.
Dr. Hal Higdon is the Chancellor of Ozarks Technical Community College.