The Kids to Love Foundation has served foster children in the Huntsville area for years. As the foundation addressed a wide variety of needs over the years, it became increasingly obvious that the support systems for children aging out foster care had a critical gap in job and life skills development.

After identifying this need, Kids to Love accomplished something that many thought would be impossible — launching the KTECH Mechatronics lab. This $300,000 lab includes state-of-the-art training equipment for advanced manufacturing. As a high-tech hub for the Southeast, Huntsville has more advanced manufacturing jobs than they do people to fill them. In addition to identifying this need for skilled labor, Kids to Love identified another population that would benefit from this program: veterans returning from service. If this program could successfully train students for advanced manufacturing jobs, it would be a win-win solution to meet the needs of veterans, foster children, and industry.

We featured this program in February, but we wanted to revisit KTECH now that the first class has completed the program. The results are shaking up preconceived notions at technical training colleges and schools around the South.

Our First Graduating Class

The KTECH program is designed to train up to 12 students per class, but the initial group was limited to 5 students to test the process. These 5 students have completed the KTECH program and exceeded even the highest hopes. Each student earned their Siemens Mechatronics certification. This is remarkable because Siemens doesn’t offer pre-packaged course documentation. KTECH’s instructors developed a curriculum that hit the nail on the head the first time. Siemens certification is an industry benchmark that is opening doors for graduates. KTECH’s program is unique because other educational institutions are not equipped to deliver this certification in such a short period of time along with additional life skills training that will help students succeed in the workplace.

The initial class included a disabled veteran, a female student who aged out of the foster care system, illustrating the program’s relevance to the populations that KTECH hoped to serve. Within 30 days of graduation, all 5 students had secured jobs. Several students had multiple job offers. This says a great deal about the program, but the real story is the transformation in the lives of these students.

Lives Transformed

Kids to Love and KTECH are focused on facilitating real transformations in the lives of the individuals they serve, but the credit goes to the students. Without a desire to succeed and the determination to overcome obstacles, no amount of job training would help these students accomplish their goals. For these 5 individuals, their personal drive dovetailed with an effective job training program to open new doors that will affect generations.

One student had maxed out his career opportunities at a local grocery store. Now, he has a new job with higher earnings because the Siemens certification met his new employer’s requirement for a 2-year degree. He now has a career roadmap for advancement and development for years to come.

A veteran who is a single father of 3 set aside time each night to do his homework. His kids joined him at the dinner table to do their homework alongside their dad. His children were motivated by his determination to succeed, and the time working together brought this family closer to each other.

Students have accepted positions at Remington, SCI, Motlow State Community College, and Technicolor, and these graduates are exceeding expectations on the job. They can really explain mechatronics and what they learned in the program. This has highlighted a unique skill set that many of these facilities did not have previously. These students have an uncommon level of general expertise that makes them better at troubleshooting across a variety of different systems. They are an invaluable partner for systems specialists that sometimes struggle to see the big picture.

KTECH Accelerates to the Next Phase

The success that the first class has experienced in the workforce will open doors for future students in the KTECH program. Dorothy Havens with KTECH said, “These guys are rock stars. Based on their performance in their jobs, companies are starting to come to us to meet their need for skilled workers.”

While the first class was a tremendous success, KTECH learned a great deal that will help them improve and expand the program. They have signed articulation agreements with Calhoun Community College and Motlow State Community College so that KTECH credits can carry over as students pursue additional certifications.

KTECH has also added an option for night classes in order to serve more students. They are also expanding their scholarship base. Tuition for the first class was mainly provided by individual donors, but local industry is starting to provide scholarships based on the results and the local need for skilled labor.

Word is starting to get out. Technical training schools from around the region have contacted KTECH to learn more about what they are doing, and they have even hosted delegations from India and Africa.

Through all of this success, KTECH remains committed to the individuals that they serve, and they will follow up as these students continue in their jobs. Seeing these real world results has been the greatest incentive to seek additional students for the program.

The Next Great Challenge

The greatest challenge that KTECH faces is recruiting students. They are actively seeking students that have motivation and are willing to work. The comprehensive program can help individuals develop job and life skills, but the will to succeed has to come from within. They are developing relationships with local nonprofits and social services to identify the next group that will seize this great opportunity.