Nearly 400 students attend North Country Manufacturing Day at IAM
The Institute for Advanced Manufacturing (IAM) at Clinton Community College was bustling with energy on Thursday as nearly 400 middle and high school students from Clinton, Essex and Franklin counties gathered for North Country Manufacturing Day 2025.
Hosted at the IAM, the event was relaunched this year by TDC in partnership with Clinton Community College, Brilliant Pathways, the County of Clinton Industrial Development Agency, CITEC, CV-TEC, ETS Staffing, the North Country Chamber of Commerce, North Country Workforce Development Board, NYS Department of Labor and the Workforce Development Institute.
Manufacturing Day offers students a hands-on opportunity to explore career pathways in manufacturing. This annual collaborative event celebrates the industries rooted in the North Country and showcases the region’s global impact.
“We are proud to have hosted North Country Manufacturing Day at the IAM at Clinton Community College, showing the facility to students to pique their interest in what skills and pathways exist today in advanced and modern manufacturing,” said D. Billy Jones, vice president of Strategic Initiatives and Workforce Development at Clinton Community College. “It is a wonderful opportunity to introduce North Country students to different careers and future prospects in a variety of industries.”
In the weeks leading up to the event, high school students from nine classes across the tri-county region were paired with nine local manufacturers. These companies welcomed students for tours and meetings, helping them prepare interactive booths and activities to educate attendees about their operations.
During the event, eighth-grade students explored training and educational opportunities, toured the IAM facility, met young professionals from the CV-TEC New Visions Applied Engineering program and experienced virtual welding and other jobs using Oculus headsets.
Participating manufacturers included Alstom, Fuji Semec, IEC Holden, Michelin, Monaghan Medical, MRP Solutions, Norsk Titanium, Plattco and Schluter Systems. Additional employers such as APG Neuros and Sylvamo also took part.
High school students from Beekmantown, Chateaugay, CV-TEC New Visions, Keene, Moriah, Northeastern Clinton and Peru Central School Districts presented their booths. Eighth-grade attendees from Beekmantown, Chateaugay, Keene, Moriah, Northeastern Clinton, Peru and Saranac voted for their favorite booth designs. The top booth designers will receive $500 scholarships to attend Clinton Community College, with additional prizes awarded to the second- and third-place winners.
“We are incredibly excited to have worked with our partners to develop a new approach to 2025’s Manufacturing Day,” said Danielle King, President and CEO of TDC. “Our organization’s mission to create and retain high quality jobs requires an engaged and skilled workforce to draw companies to our area, and reaching students as young as the eighth grade to share the opportunities right here in the greater Plattsburgh area and beyond is critical to cultivating tomorrow’s employees and strengthening our economy.”
