News

Calhoun Students to be Featured on Pilot Episode of “Clash of Trades”

March 18, 2021

Calhoun Community College is one of four teams remaining in the Project MFG National Challenge Competition who will also be featured in a pilot episode of “Clash of Trades”. The filming and competition will take place on March 18-19 from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. on Calhoun’s Decatur campus in the Advanced Technology Center, 6250 US Hwy 31 N., Tanner, AL. (Best photo opportunity will be Friday, March 19th)

The five-member student team will compete against Danville Community College, Tennessee College of Applied Technology and Southwestern Illinois College. Students competing will have an opportunity to win scholarships, prizes, as well as receiving the national champion title. The final four colleges were selected based on rigorous judging of each team’s complex advanced manufacturing project. The teams worked together on a challenge, which mirrored a real-life manufacturing industry. During that challenge, students had to rely on their hands-on skills training to complete each task.

Interim President Dr. Joe Burke says, “We have an outstanding team of students and instructors. Their training and preparedness have landed our team a spot to compete on a larger scale. With so many Baby Boomers retiring, this leaves many high-paying jobs waiting to be filled. This team represents the future of manufacturing, and their future is bright.”

John Holley, Dean of Technologies at Calhoun Community College, is excited to see the college’s students compete on a national stage. “We hope to change some misconceptions. This just goes to show that students at community colleges are highly trained and well skilled. These students work hard. Once they graduate, they’ll immediately join the workforce and earn a good salary.”

Calhoun boasts close to a 100% job placement through its manufacturing degree programs. To learn more about Calhoun’s technologies programs, visit www.calhoun.edu/technologies.

About Project MFG

Project MFG shines a light on the need and opportunities for skilled trades by focusing on the development of new talent to provide a path forward for individuals and our country. Project MFG competitions throughout the United States promote the trades across industries and help advance the next generation of highly skilled trade professionals. As an integrated workforce development and recruitment effort, Project MFG collaborates across communities, the private sector and government to expand the US industrial base workforce. Project MFG is a program of the Global Learning Accelerator Inc., a 501(c)3 nonprofit, funded by the Department of Defense, and operated and managed by RD Solutions, LLC. The mission of the Global Learning Accelerator is helping people find the nexus between their passions and what the world needs. For more information about Project MFG and the Clash of Trades premiere on April 20, 2021, please visit our website: www.projectmfg.com.