The State Fair Community College Foundation recently received $100,000 from WireCo for its capital campaign to help build the Olen Howard Workforce Innovation Center. The new building will expand the college’s capacity to meet the growing demand for technical workforce training and strengthen the communities it serves.
WireCo is one of the world’s largest manufacturers of steel and synthetic lifting products. The company operates 25 facilities and employs nearly 4,000 people worldwide. One of those facilities is located near Sedalia.
The campaign, Stronger Workforce, Greater Community: A Capital Campaign for the Olen Howard Workforce Innovation Center and Center for Excellence was launched last year. The college broke ground on the new center in December 2020 on the site of SFCC’s original buildings, formerly known as Plywood U.
The Olen Howard Workforce Innovation Center and the Fielding Center for Excellence will increase the college’s capacity to deliver workforce training by 200 percent and increase enrollment by at least 120 percent in career and technical areas. The new workforce training center will provide expanded lab and classroom spaces for training in welding, precision machining, industrial technology, leadership and supervisory skills and logistics. It also will house a new pre-apprenticeship program. Renovations to Fielding will provide a Center for Excellence that includes a climate, refrigeration and energy control (HVAC) lab and an advanced manufacturing and robotics lab.
PHOTO: The State Fair Community College Foundation recently received a $100,000 donation from WireCo for its capital campaign to help build the Olen Howard Workforce Innovation Center on the Sedalia campus. Pictured from left, Scheduling and Materials Manager Mike Beebe, SFCC Foundation Executive Director Mary Treuner, SFCC President Dr. Joanna Anderson, Chief Operating Officer Scott Thompson, Human Resources Manager Katie Albrecht, Production Manager Jerod Johnson, Sedalia Operations Manager Mark Blankenship, Vice President of U.S. Steel Operations Zach Schamaun, and Quality Manager Tom Scroggin. (Photo courtesy State Fair Community College)