As workers scramble to convert former corporate offices — and other spaces in 140,000 of the total 375,000 square foot building — the gutted spaces are being rebuilt into modernized learning areas.
The evolving facility in Hamilton’s Riverview neighborhood, near the Great Miami River, is being reborn into the Advanced Manufacturing Hub, located just north of Miami University Hamilton’s regional campus grounds.
Butler Tech and Miami officials this week provided the Journal-News an exclusive tour of the coming hub school while revealing that $12 million of the projected $31 million project is on schedule to open to local high school students in January of the coming school year.
“It’s the largest project ever between Butler Tech and Miami from a curricula standpoint, from a physical space and a student and staff standpoint,” said Butler Tech Superintendent William Sprankles.
The joint project, which includes funding from Butler County Commissioners and the city of Hamilton, is unique in the region and perhaps the state, said Sprankles as he showed off some renovation work creating eight manufacturing and robotics learning labs and two larger, multi-purpose labs on different floors of the four-story complex.
“The opportunity here is that students from Butler Tech will be in the same labs as Miami students and Butler Tech instructors and the Miami instructors will be co-teaching and students will be co-learning,” he said.
“What makes this different and ground-breaking is that there are currently 35 (area companies) that have already signed contracts that will donate time, talent and resources to be on site, either part-time or full-time, in some capacity. Those companies are going to be providing equipment, people and projects to Butler Tech and Miami students being taught by our instructors and Miami instructors.”
“This is an important vision for the community … and by default companies want to be involved because they recognize this (school) is an opportunity to connect to the workforce that will come out of here.”
“There might be other projects in the state but not on this scale that sharing with business partners, higher ed and career tech learning in the same facility while blending curriculum, sharing projects, sharing in (job credentials) and sharing instructors.”
The Advanced Manufacturing Hub will be open to area high school students, adult students enrolled at Miami and eventually non-collegiate adult career education programing “that doesn’t conflict with what Miami University offers but compliments it,” said Sprankles.
“There is always going to be adults in the local community that don’t want to go for a two-year (college) degree but they want (job training) certification. So, Miami recognizes the importance of welcoming adult learners into this space to get their credentials and over time, if any adult finds value in the credentials they earn and it may motivate them to go back to school (college) and when they are ready, we want Miami to be that partner.”
Butler County Commissioners and Hamilton city officials are funding $12 million for the new school along with monies projected from federal, state and corporate grants for the remaining $19 million.
The Miami-dedicated sections of the complex are awaiting renovation construction, but when completed the Hub will provide college degrees and training credentials in advanced manufacturing, engineering, robotics and automation.
Liza Skryzhevska, Miami associate dean of academic affairs, joined the tour and said the partnership will provide numerous career opportunities while laying out higher education pathways for area high school students and adults who want to pursue college degrees via programs at Miami’s main Oxford campus.
Miami and Butler County Commissioners purchased the building for more than $10 million, said Skryzhevska, as a plan to makeover the facility into both a career and college launching pad for eventually hundreds of area students.
“This will be a great educational center where our students in engineering technology can pursue their career goals … while using (business) partnerships in this very innovative academic pathway,” she said.
High school Butler Tech students and adult Miami students “will be learning together … and Butler Tech students will be able to earn an associate degree as part of that pathway.”
“And those students who would like to continue on to a four-year degree will stay with Miami upon the completion of their Butler Tech program and then after earning a full year in engineering technologies, they will have an opportunity to continue on to even graduate-level programs on the (Miami) Oxford campus.”
About the Author