Gadsden State FAME students sign with companies during May 19 ceremony

J.J. Hicks, The Gadsden Times
·3 min read
Tyshawn Kerley, center, signs a FAME contract as Dr. Kathy Murphy, president of Gadsden State, and Scott Haywood, technical specialist at Honda of Alabama, look on May 19 at the Cheaha Center on Gadsden State’s Ayers Campus.
Tyshawn Kerley, center, signs a FAME contract as Dr. Kathy Murphy, president of Gadsden State, and Scott Haywood, technical specialist at Honda of Alabama, look on May 19 at the Cheaha Center on Gadsden State’s Ayers Campus.

The fourth cohort for Gadsden State Community College’s FAME Chapter signed with their respective companies during a signing ceremony May 19 at the Cheaha Center on the Ayers Campus in Anniston, according to a press release.

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FAME, or the Federation of Advanced Manufacturing Education, is an apprenticeship-style program that allows students to attend class on the Ayers Campus two days a week and work three days a week in a local advanced manufacturing facility, the release said.

"FAME students have the unique opportunity to work and get experience while receiving instruction," Alan Smith, Dean of Workforce Development at Gadsden State, said to the students, according to the release. "Today, you are signing your golden ticket. If you do everything asked of you by the college and by your employer, you will graduate and immediately start a career making as much as $60,000."

Smith said 119 people applied for the new cohort of students, with 28 being selected for employment at one of eight industry partners, the release said.

The Gadsden State FAME Chapter works in partnership with East AlabamaWorks, an organization that provides solutions for closing the skills gaps and maximizing workforce efforts to ensure alignment of resources, according to the release. The partnership was formed from the beginning of the program in 2018.

After five semesters of classroom education and on-the-job training, graduates of the FAME program will receive an Associate in Applied Science in industrial automation, a FAME advanced manufacturing technician credential and five lean manufacturing credentials.

"One of the best rewards for completing the FAME program is the two years of verified experience you will earn," Andy Robertson, Gadsden State Workforce Coordinator Andy Roberson said during the signing ceremony according to the release. "It’s huge to make money while you’re in school but it’s even better that you get two years of experience."

To be considered for the FAME program, students must apply and be accepted to Gadsden State, complete a FAME application and write an essay.

Qualified applicants then go through an interview process with a panel comprised of up to 15 industry partners. Program participants then are selected by the industry partners in a draft-style process.

Aragonn Gauge Mitchell from Randolph County High School and Hunter Lee Johnson from Lincoln High School each were selected for the FAME program and will work with industry partner Bridgewater Interiors, the release said.

Jackson Roberts from Cleburne County High School will work for Eastman Chemical; Austin Mulligan from Fyffe High School will work for GH Metal Solutions.

Honda of Alabama will see a number of students come into their employ – Trey Lovvorn from Gadsden City High School, Noah Monday from Hokes Bluff High School, Brennan Butler from Cleburne County High School, Jose Arroyo from Munford High School and Tyshawn Kerley of Central High School of Clay County.

Working for Koch Foods will be Evan Owens and Matthew Alexander Galbreath from Glencoe High School, Alexander Cole from Sardis High School, Justin Lindsey from Sand Rock High School and Briteon Husk from Oxford High School.

Mason Lockridge from Hokes Bluff High School, Caden Mitchell and Kaleb Harman from Ranburne High School, Madison Wiley, Nathan Carr and Gavin Mosley from Oxford High School, Lucas Grant Harcrow from Cleburne County High School and Kade Alexander Keith from Munford High School will work for Kronospan.

M&H Valve will employ Michael Carney from Munford High School and Ryan Devon Miller from Oxford High School. Tanner Holderfield from Southside High School, Mackinzy Bonds from Oxford High School and William Roblero from Anniston High School signed with Prince Metal Stamping.

Gerardo Rios-Reyes from Oxford High School was named an alternate. He will start the FAME program in the fall with work placement expected by January 2023.

For more information about the FAME program, visit http://ww2.gadsdenstate.edu/fame/GadsdenStateFAME.html.

J.J. Hicks is a news reporter at The Gadsden Times. He can be reached at jhicks1@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on The Gadsden Times: Latest batch of Gadsden State students to study, work as apprentices