On Friday, October 2, Councilman Bobby Henon (6th District) joined Mayor Michael Nutter, Senator Robert Casey Jr. (D-PA), local philanthropists Leigh and John Middleton and School District of Philadelphia Superintendent William Hite, to open the new Center for Advanced Manufacturing at Benjamin Franklin High School.
The new center will train students in the use of state-of-the-art manufacturing technology and techniques to prepare them for internships and jobs in technical fields with local employers. Councilman Henon was part of the manufacturing task force that helped develop the plan for this and other centers in local schools. The goal is to match student skills with the workforce needs of local employers.
The Center’s opening also coincided with National Manufacturing Day. Students from School District of Philadelphia technical schools spent part of the day touring area manufacturers and learning about the kinds of skills needed for jobs in this sector.
Councilman Henon called the new Center for Advanced Manufacturing at Benjamin Franklin High School “a pipeline to education, to jobs and to entrepreneurship.” Senator Robert Casey told the students that the Center could help them develop the mindset and skills to “invent the future, right here in Philadelphia.”
Additional coverage from 6abc.
