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Both had lots of technical ability to draft and design concepts, yet no degree, he explained.
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Jim Connors, a student enrolled in the Western Technical College machine tool operation program, works on a lathe in the schools shop Monday.
PETER THOMSON photo |
It led Smith, chairman of S&S Cycle, to donate $100,000 to the Western Technical College Foundation on Monday to provide scholarships for the school’s machine tool and mechanical design programs.
“Western has a good program, and I want to help fund students that have the aptitude to be able to pursue this,” said Smith.
The George Smith S&S Cycle Scholarship will provide up to $25,000 a year to students in those programs who do well on a test that measures ability to visualize a concept, said Peggy Langreck, Western development
manager.
Scholarships of up to $2,500 per student will be available starting with the next school year.
The donation is somewhat self-serving, Smith said, as S&S Cycle needs skilled workers. The company, which manufactures motorcycle components and engines in Viola, Wis., and La Crosse, wants people who can create a concept through computer-aided design, or CAD, or write a numerically controlled computer program that tells machines how to make a part.
“Part of the problem is that S&S Cycle is in a remote part of the Kickapoo Valley, and sometimes people yearn for the bright lights of the big city,” said Smith. “It is tough to find people that want to stay in a rural environment.”
S&S Cycle’s Viola location now has five Western graduates of the machine tool and mechanical design programs, while none yet are at the La Crosse location, Smith said.
A couple of Western’s graduates are the most skilled employees the company has in these trades, said Smith.
Such community support is crucial to prepare the next generation of skilled workers, especially since many now in the region’s work force will reach retirement age in the next five to 10 years, said Western President Lee Rasch.
“We are going to do everything we can to make these scholarships a successful part of the future in our community,” he said.
For more information about the scholarships and how to apply, contact the Western Technical College Foundation office at (608) 785-9261.
KJ Lang can be reached at (608) 791-8226 or klang@lacrossetribune.com.
