Industry Resources for Education

A collection of information from the wood industry for students and teachers

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Welcome! Thank you for your interest in Wood Industry Careers!

Here are some resources and information that may be helpful to you:

PDF Booklet from ACTE Career Tech VISION 2022

One-page flyer about YouWood for Educators

YouWood ACTE Infographic

AWI Scholarship Program

AWI Academic Grant Program

NWFA Flooring Installer Apprenticeship

Fresh Wood student woodworking competition

Check out the YouWood career awareness website!

YouWood is an industry-wide website which provides information and resources about careers in wood.

Check out these videos about careers and companies in the wood industry:

 

Watch other videos about careers in wood manufacturing here!

Career Infographics:

     

PowerPoint Presentation: Careers in the Wood Industry (Nov 2021)

PowerPoint Presentation: Careers in Wood Manufacturing (Nov 2020)

Video Presentation from the ASCA “Careers Your Students Should Know” session on Nov 3, 2020:

Industry-Education Connection is Happening in the Wood Industry! Here are some examples…

Association of Woodworking & Furnishings Suppliers (AWFS)

We are a national trade association for the wood products manufacturing industry. We are supportive of and focused on industry education. On this page you will find information about resources we have developed, as well as some others available through the industry. We hope you find this information helpful and will share this information with your students, administrators, career counselors, and others!

AWFS Education Resources & Programs (PDF)

Find other AWFS Resources for Educators here

PPT presentations, informational articles on shop machinery and safety, industry careers, and more.

For more information on any of these resources, contact:

Tovi Spero, AWFS Education Director
(323) 215-0311
tovi@awfs.org

Upcoming Industry Training Opportunities for Teachers:

AWFS Fair and the Teacher Track Seminars
Register Here (free for students and teachers)
SEMINAR PROGRAM WILL BE PUBLISHED Spring 2023
(see previous Teacher Track sessions offered here)
Las Vegas, NV
July 25-28, 2023

IWF Atlanta
LEADING INDUSTRY TRADE SHOW WITH COMPREHENSIVE SEMINAR PROGRAM
Registration will open in 2023
Atlanta, GA
August, 2024

 

Cue Career Videos

Click on the “career videos” tab to watch student-focused videos of industry professionals talking about various careers in wood products manufacturing.

Woodwork Career Alliance (WCA)

  • Industry tool-based skill certification program.
  • High school students can earn the Sawblade Certificate.
  • Recognized by CA Department of Ed as a industry certification.

Watch the webinar on Implementing WCA in the Classroom

The MiLL (Manufacturing Industry Learning Labs)

National Training Center

  • Launched in August 2017
  • Over 100 high school students currently enrolled; capacity for 500 students per day in 50,000 sq ft facility
  • Offers training opportunities for high school, post secondary, industry, and veterans
  • Dual enrollment and articulation for high school students with local community college
  • 100+ industry partners provide state of the art technology and equipment

 

Explore this website: WoodIndustryEd.org

This is a resource web site developed by AWFS, consisting of education and training information for the wood manufacturing and related industries. Appropriate for educators, students, industry professionals and those seeking career and skill enhancement information, it contains a searchable database of schools, colleges, technical centers and companies that offer a wealth of education and skill enhancement programs – from short courses to graduate degrees, from hand-crafted to high tech. There are also listings of scholarships, awards and competitions; trade organizations and events; as well as job listing links and a blog.

 

 

 

 

Wood Industry Resource Collaborative (WIRC)

A coalition of wood industry associations have gathered to address the skilled workforce gap and strengthen industry awareness. A national industry-wide career awareness campaign launched in Jan 2021: YouWood.com!

AWFS Fair: July 25-28, 2023 in Las Vegas, NV

This is a “Top 100” biennial international trade show, with over 600 exhibitors (woodworking machinery and supply manufacturers) and 15,000+ attendees (wood products manufacturers) in 300,000 sq ft of exhibit space.

  • TEACHER AND STUDENT SHOW REGISTRATION IS $0! SEMINAR REGISTRATION IS $10 EACH!
  • College of Woodworking Knowledge (CWWK) Educational Seminar Program, including Teacher Track Seminars: in 2019, topics included shop safety, funding your program, how to market your program, design-build instruction, and CAD for woodworking. The 2023 seminar information will be available in Spring 2023.
  • Industry-Education Networking mixer – opportunity to connect directly with industry professionals interested in working with schools (info coming soon)
  • Education Town Hall – learn about the leading post secondary woodworking programs across the U.S. (info coming soon)

Student Contests

2023 Fresh Wood Student Woodworking Competition:

  • Open to high school and post secondary
  • Entry deadline May 1, 2023
  • FREE to enter
  • Cash prizes
  • Students build a project and submit photos

 

AWFS, WMMA, WMIA Support CTE, Perkins Funding, Workforce Development

Career Technical Education (CTE) was the focus of the 2018 Wood Industry DC fly-in. We met with dozens of legislative offices to express our support for CTE programs and reauthorization of CTE’s primary federal funding source, the Perkins Act. Upon passage of the Perkins Act in 2018, AWFS focused advocacy efforts on apprenticeships and other work-based learning legislation, including the PARTNERS Act and the JOBS act in 2019.

Society of Wood Manufacturing (SWM) Fosters Wood Industry-Education Partnerships in Southern California

SWM supports SkillsUSA CA regional and state events, MFG Day events, and other projects and activities to help school programs. Join today for free!

POSTER-2-E-format_FINAL-201x300“Meet the New Face of Manufacturing” Campaign poster and videos

“Meet the New Face of Manufacturing” is a comprehensive marketing effort to acquaint and interest young people in careers in wood products manufacturing. We want to convey the reality of 21st century manufacturing – it is modern, high-tech, offers varied and challenging careers and is ready to welcome the next generational workforce. The campaign launched in Fall 2014 with a poster showcasing five “New Faces” of manufacturing and in September 2015, an updated poster image was unveiled with more “New Faces”, highlighting the variety of personalities and lifestyles available for those seeking careers in wood products manufacturing.

For a FREE copy of the “New Faces” poster, which contain a QR code linking to this
page of resources, send a request to tovi@awfs.org (include your name, mailing address, and quantity).  Please share this with career counselors, parents, school administrators, industry partners, or others who guide students in career choices.

 

Watch the “Meet the New Face of Manufacturing” Videos

…and learn about eleven outstanding young professionals in the wood products manufacturing industry!

 

Meet the New Faces of Manufacturing!

Spotlight: Adam K, furniture project manager

Spotlight: Thomas T, machinery sales representative

Spotlight: Jess B, product and furniture designer

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