NIMS, Gene Haas Foundation, and Edge Factor announced a new partnership to provide schools and training centers with cutting edge educational materials to inspire students and provide pathways to advanced manufacturing careers. Through the INSPIRE Grant Program, schools will receive funding towards eduFACTOR memberships, providing them access to and extensive library of cinematic films and TV series; CTE, STEM and event resources; hands-on CNC and 3D printing; and other interactive activities.

“With 3.5 million manufacturing jobs needing to be filled over the next-decade, our economic competitiveness depends on preparing today’s students for current and future jobs,” said Gene Haas Foundation’s Kathy Looman. “eduFACTOR is a critical resource to help educators and students understand and embrace the skills they need to be successful in advanced manufacturing jobs.”

A recent survey found that only 30% of Americans believe that schools encourage students to pursue manufacturing careers and that only 1 in 3 parents encourage their children to consider a career in manufacturing. The resources available in eduFACTOR, which is produced by Edge Factor, will directly address this perception by helping educators make manufacturing careers and technology relevant and exciting to students and their parents. “Edge Factor believes that everything starts with a good story, which is why we produce storydriven, cinematic films and accompanying resources that educators and business leaders use to inspire students and parents.

With eduFACTOR, imaginations are sparked and careers are launched. We are proud to stand beside exceptional, forward thinking leaders in manufacturing education like the Gene Haas Foundation and NIMS to impact communities and help make these resources available to more schools,” said Jeremy Bout, producer and host, Edge Factor. Through funding from Gene Haas Foundation, up to 500 schools will receive full access to eduFACTOR.

“NIMS is committed to empowering companies and education institutions to build a skilled workforce in their communities by equipping them with the right knowledge, tools and resources,” says NIMS Executive Director, James Wall. “The INSPIRE Grant Program will enable more schools to deliver relevant and exciting information and career training to their students.”

“The Edge Factor video content is Hollywood quality and draws the audience into the fast paced and exciting world of manufacturing. By changing the way communities perceive manufacturing, they are moving the needle in education and workforce development. Without the Grant, it would not be possible to provide eduFACTOR memberships to schools across my district,” said Marlo Loria, CTE Director at Mesa Public Schools. “So many people talk about filling the skills gap, but Edge Factor is doing something about it.”

About the Gene Haas Foundation

The Gene Haas Foundation was formed in 1999 to fund the needs of the local community and other deserving charities, at the discretion of its founder, Mr. Gene Haas. High on the list of priorities of the Gene Haas Foundation is supporting manufacturing education, which encompasses many types of programs that inspire and educate young people about careers in manufacturing. In addition GHF provides scholarship funding for students to attend colleges that teach machining based skills. Visit http://ghaasfoundation.org.

About Edge Factor

With eduFACTOR, everything starts with a good story. Based on Edge Factor’s cinematic films and TV series, eduFACTOR is a membership based library of media and interactive resources meant to inspire the next generation of CTE graduates and advanced manufacturers. It includes technology and career pathway videos, CNC and 3D printing projects, event kits, virtual field trips, interactive classroom and STEM activities, tools to reach parents, CTE training success videos and much more, available via www.eduFACTOR.org.