A generous donation from a local Fox Cities employer is giving Fox Valley Technical College a big boost in funding several automation, electronics and empowerment/career exploration projects at the college.

Amcor Cares, the corporate giving organization for Amcor Flexibles North America, made three donations to the FVTC Foundation, totaling $118,700. They include:

• A $58,700 gift to support high school teacher and faculty training, and curriculum enhancement
•  A $50,000 gift to fund new equipment in the Industrial Manufacturing Technician lab  
•  A $10,000 gift to support education for young women and single mothers

With 13 facilities and more than 3,000 employees in the Fox Valley, these gifts are part of Amcor’s workforce development efforts to broaden the availability and the talent of skilled workers for the area’s strong manufacturing job market.

“It has become increasingly clear that the pool of technical talent – not just for Amcor, but for the many manufacturing companies that operate here – will be integral to supporting successful operations,” says Vanessa Wellens, human resources and communication vice president at Amcor Flexibles North America. “This is why now is exactly the right time for Amcor to support Fox Valley Technical College to deliver the trained, talented workforce we’ll need for the future.”

How the donations will be used

A gift of $58,700 is being used to enhance automation education in the K-12 sector throughout the FVTC district and beyond. As the project gets underway, six schools have been chosen to receive curriculum development and teaching materials for instructors to either start or enhance automation-related coursework in their high schools.

 A gift of $50,000 will help pay for laboratory equipment designed to evaluate the skill levels and competencies of future machine operators. The equipment compliments each of the four modules in the Industrial Manufacturing Technician apprenticeship program (safety, quality, production processes and maintenance awareness). FVTC is budgeting for the remaining cost of the technology and it should be a teaching tool in the classroom in August 2024.

A gift of $10,000 gift will support the Starting Point 2.0 and EmpowHER programs at FVTC. Both of the pre-enrollment workshops for single mothers and young women without children are designed to help them identify and remove barriers to continuing their education. The programs will expand to Oshkosh in fall 2022.

“FVTC Foundation is proud to receive such a significant gift from Amcor for such a wide variety of programs,” said Becky Boulanger, executive director of FVTC Foundation. “Amcor has been a partner to FVTC Foundation for more than 20 years. We’re thrilled to have their support for efforts that will positively impact high school students, returning adult students, and currently enrolled FVTC students.”