On Thursday, May 16, Middlesex Community College hosted a graduation ceremony for students who completed the RENEW Equipment Technician with Robotics course, in partnership with Mount Wachusett Community College (MWCC).
“I absolutely loved participating in the program,” said Juan Aguilar, a RENEW program graduate from Burlington who spoke during the ceremony. “The professors were incredibly helpful. Not only did they have decades of experience in automated manufacturing, but they were still working in top positions, so their expertise was up to date with a rapidly evolving industry.”
After completing the program, participants are considered for open positions at Insulet, the Acton-based medical device company that creates delivery systems to treat people with diabetes and other conditions, according to their website.
The 12 program completers included Aguilar, Paul Cates, Sophea Chea, Brett Chin, Colleen Flowers, Peter Holmsten, Eric Howells, German Pineros, Luis Rodriguez, Patricia Romano Vargas, Frizmo Sanon, Roger Tiwari. They are now sitting for the Tooling U certification exam.
Howells, from Plainville, appreciated how approachable the instructors were. He believed the experience was fun and easygoing and recommended similar programs to anyone interested in manufacturing.
“I had a great time,” Howells said. “All of the instructors were helpful. Jennifer Stephens explained the concepts of PLC programming and troubleshooting in a way that made it easier for me to understand. Collaborating and talking with my peers was one of my favorite parts.”
Using the skills and knowledge gained from the program, Pineros, from Worcester, plans to work in a robotics environment. He enjoyed learning about hands-on robotics and thought the professors were helpful throughout the process.
“I would recommend the program to anyone,” Pineros said. “The opportunity improves your knowledge and updates you on new technology in the production area.”
The Commonwealth Corporation with EOLWD and the Workforce Skills Cabinet awarded MWCC the RENEW grant through funding by the American Rescue Plan Act. MCC, Mass Life Sciences, Insulet and MassHire coordinated to run the program.
The program ran from March 25 to May 16 on MCC’s Bedford campus. MWCC provided a technical advisor and the robotics equipment and trainer, with an instructor for MCC and curriculum and collaboration with MassHire Lowell.
“Staff from MCC and MWCC worked together to make a great learning experience for the students,” said Katy Gentile, MCC’s Assistant Director of Corporate Education and Training. “I truly believe that much of the success of the program, in addition to the hard work of the students and high quality instruction, can be attributed to the partnership between the institutions. It was the largest and most successful cohort yet.”