CPS educators visit EquipmentShare for information to pass along to their students

A group of Columbia Public Schools teachers, counselors and principals toured EquipmentShare corporate headquarters and learned details of the company they can share with students.

The field trip was part of the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry's Show-Me Careers Educator Experience. It's the second year the project has been in Columbia.

EquipmentShare is a nationwide equipment rental company based in Columbia. It received tax breaks to expand the Columbia headquarters and construction equipment was at work in the property adjacent to the former furniture store where the company now is located.

Employees Rodney Dixon and Riley Burke gave educators an overview of the company before the tours.

"We have snacks and drinks available all day, every day," Burke said. " A chef prepares breakfast and lunch every day.'

"For free?" asked incoming Battle High School Principal Aly Galbreath.

It's all free, Burke said.

Dixon told the company about the technology used on the equipment that allows them to know who is using it and where.

"It's a holistic suite of software," Dixon said.

The tracking is useful, he said.

"Last year we were able to recover $5 million to $8 million in stolen equipment" using the technology, Dixon said.

Some equipment that made its way past the Mexican border the company could do nothing about, he said.

Devin Gibson led one group of educators on a tour. One stop was a large fitness center with free weights, equipment, racquetball courts and a climbing wall.

The snack bar was a popular stop.

"If there's a snack bar, educators will pick it clean," said Hickman High School Principal Mary Grupe.

The conference rooms were named for space missions, including Opportunity, Mariner, Pathfinder and Odyssey.

"What Jabbok hopes is that one day our equipment will be used in space," Gibson said, referring to company co-founder Jabbok Schlacks

The visit was useful, said Will Beerly, social skills improvement teacher at Oakland Middle School.

He learned about the skills the company is looking for in employees, he said.

Possible internships for students is another interest, he said.

"I also learned a little bit about the culture of these companies," Beerly said.

The educators also have visited Veterans United Home Loans, University of Missouri Health Care and the MU Research Reactor.

Other stops will include American Outdoor Brands Moberly Area Community College, QuesTec Mechanical and Emery Sapp & Sons.

The depth of jobs at some businesses is eye-opening, Beerly said.

"MU Health Care, that place operates like a small city," he said. "There's a lot of jobs, not just those in health care."

The project allows educators to create relevant content for classrooms and also provides opportunities for company employees to visit classrooms during the school year about their areas of expertise, said Brian Crouse, vice president of education programs for the Missouri Chamber.

"The overall goal is to bridge the gap between business and industry and education," Crouse said.

Retaining employees is a goal of the program for the Columbia Chamber of Commerce, said Chad Massman, vice president of workforce development.

"Our biggest goal is to try to retain students to develop our next workforce," Massman said.

It educates students to start looking at careers and begin getting information about local companies while in school, he said.

The educators reconvened with Dixon and Burke after the tours, learning about apprenticeship and internship opportunities and the company's employee substance abuse recovery program.

The educators expressed an interest in student field trips to EquipmentShare, so the students can experience what they did.

Roger McKinney is the Tribune's education reporter. You can reach him at rmckinney@columbiatribune.com or 573-815-1719. He's on Twitter at @rmckinney9.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Missouri Chamber brings Show-Me Careers Educator Experience to town