De Anza Middle School Students Tour InTech

Seventh graders from De Anza Middle School in Ontario learned about manufacturing careers and entrepreneurship during a tour of the Industrial Technical Learning Center on April 3.

From welding at construction sites to maintaining amusement park rides, 35 students learned about potential salaries and the training required for various jobs for which InTech provides training.

Work-based Learning Liaison Yudith Granero told students about jobs in mechatronics as students viewed robot arms in action.

“Robots have replaced people for some jobs, but we’re always going to need people to learn how to use them and fix them,” she said.

At the end of the tour, students gathered to discover what it takes to start and sustain a business, with elements such as business plans, marketing and more.

Logan Bines, who had been to InTech before for Manufacturing Day, said it was another chance to learn about other career opportunities besides engineering, his career path of choice.

“I really liked the hydraulics and the mechatronics,” he said. “I liked the opportunity because if I wanted to swap career paths, it would make it easier because I would have the knowledge.”

Isabella Gonzales Vega said she isn’t necessarily interested in industrial trades, but did find value in the instruction about entrepreneurship.

“I’ve always been really interested in making things,” she said. “I would be interested in starting my own business, maybe in jewelry.”