PARTNERS in QUALITY

April 1997
Volume 1, Issue 3

VICA Business & Industry Partnership's Mission Statement: To promote mutually beneficial partnerships among business, industry, labor, and education which enhance the quality of training for America's technical work force.

Membership has increased from 231,396 to 244,600! That's over 13,000 more members than last year. It wouldn't be possible without the support our students receive from business, industry, labor and education.

Donald Gray, General Director - Service Administration, General Motors Corporation, has received membership on VICA's Youth Development Foundation (YDF). The YDF assists in fund-raising, offering expert advice and counseling, and overseeing VICA's programs and activities.

Countdown Begins For Skills USA

by Tim Lawrence, Director of Business and Industry Partnerships, National VICA

This issue of Partners in Quality comes at a time when many of our partners are working diligently to assist students and teachers with springtime VICA leadership activities and skill competitions all across the country. More than 10,000 local, regional and state VICA Skills USA Championships competitions will take place prior to "the nationals" this June in Kansas City. Each student involved in these competitions has set a goal to take home the gold. They are the best in their craft and they want to be recognized by the judges who represent business, industry and labor. This is indeed an exciting time of year!

At the end of June during the Skills USA Championships in Kansas City, we will honor America's top vocational-technical education students in the nation's foremost showcase of skilled workers. This event occupies over 500,000 square feet of floor space in the Bartle Hall Convention Center and an estimated 10.5 million dollars of in-kind contributions are provided from industry and education to make Skills USA a reality. If you have not marked your calendar for this one-of-a-kind event, do it now!

As the pace quickens in preparation for Skills USA, we are extremely excited about the formation of the Kansas City VICA Advisory Council. This council consists of key business, industry and labor leaders from the Greater Kansas City area who have agreed to help raise human, financial and in-kind resources in support of Skills USA. This is a partnership that will greatly benefit VICA as our national event continues to grow and as we seek to improve our services to our students, teachers and business partners.

Enclosed with this issue is the newly revised How Your Business Can Work With VICA. If you and your company or organization are not yet involved in the excitement of a VICA partnership, I urge you to strongly consider getting involved. The enclosed booklet will show you how. For those who are now involved, THANK YOU for all you do for our students!

Skills USA Dedicated to Harold Lewis

This year's Skills USA Championships are dedicated to Harold E. Lewis. He has been associated with VICA since its inception in 1965, first as a local advisor, then state VICA director. In 1974, he joined the National VICA staff as director of the Skills USA Championships. He has served as the official delegate for the United States in the International Organization for the Promotion of Vocational Training and managed our national teams competing in the International Youth Skills Competition. He is retiring after being an integral part of VICA for 32 years. VICA owes a debt of gratitude not only for his length of service, but for the phenomenal growth the Skills USA Championships has experienced under his management. His efforts have benefited thousands of students.

International Youth Skills Competition

The International Youth Skills Competition (IYSC) is a biennial contest in skilled trade occupations. The 34th IYSC will be held in St. Gallen, Switzerland, July 4-7, 1997. Thirty-one countries compete. So far, we have 14 competitors slated to attend. Competitors are chosen through a series of VICA trials, most often held in tandem with national trade shows and conventions. Team USA is supported by corporations, trade associations and trade unions. Sponsorship of this prestigious competition gives your company an opportunity for international exposure, while at the same time a chance to highlight American pride.

Corporate Chapters

by Ann Schreiber, Program Manager
New Markets Division, National VICA

Students who are part of career-training programs with work-based components may not have the opportunity to participate in VICA activities at their home schools due to location and transportation problems.

To better serve these students, task force members of VICA's New Markets Division are developing VICA Business/Industry Corporate Chapter models. These chapters will operate at business and industry sites to provide students with the VICA experience.

According to Michael H. Regauld, director of VICA's New Markets Division, during the next year National VICA will be working with selected chapters to develop specific models of operation.

Although the selected models will provide a framework to operate, some basic guidelines have been established.
These guidelines include the following:
· Follow state guidelines and deadlines for local, state, national and international competitions and other VICA activities.
· Operate similar to VICA sections and mail the appropriate national VICA membership forms early in the school year.
· Appoint a chapter "advisor" from the corporation.
· Hold a start-up meeting and establish a regular meeting schedule.
· Elect chapter student officers and establish guidelines for these officers. (Use the VICA Leadership Handbook and /or State Handbook for examples.)
· Establish a chapter Program of Work for the year. (Use the VICA Leadership Handbook and/or State Handbook.)
· Participate in the Professional Development Program (PDP).
· Conduct career and school-to-work awareness projects.

IYSC Sponsors
ABCI, Inc., AlliedSignal, American Welding Society, American Honda Motor Company, Inc., Arcet Equipment Company, Architectural Woodworking Institute,
The Association for Manufacturing Technology, Autodesk, Blue Hills Regional Tech Center, Bridgeport Machines, Brown & Sharpe Manufacturing Company,The
Builderburg Group, (publishers of Tools of the Trade, The Journal of Light Construction, and Construction Business Computing), Canadian Valley AVTS, Chrysler,
Clausing Industrial, Inc., Cleveland Electrical Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee/I.B.E.W. Local 38, Consumer Electronics Manufacturers Assn., Culinary
Institute of America, Delta
International, DEWALT, Dochellis Machine Corporation, DuPont,
Emco-Maier, Fontana Unified School District, General Motors, Haslett & Company/Air Conditioning & Refrigeration Institute, Hennepin Technical College, Hobart
Institute of Welding Technology, Hunter
Engineering Company, I-CAR, Inland Steel Company, Institute for Automotive Service Excellence, Kennedy Manufacturing, Light Machines Corporation, Lincoln
Electric, Miller Electric, National Auto Dealers Association, National Institute for Metal Working Skills, Northeast Voc. Tech. School, PPG, Precision Metalforming
Association, Reynolds Machine & Tool Corporation, San Bernardino Valley College, San Pasqual High School, Smith Equipment, Snap-on Tools Corporation,
Society of Manufacturing Engineers, Texas VICA, Tischler Wood Products, Tool Development, Inc., Toyota Motor Sales, USA, Inc.,Valenite, Inc.

New E-mail Address
VICA has a new E-mail address: (anyinfo@vica.org). Our Web address remains unchanged: (http://www.vica.org).

Goodwill Tours
VICA's nationwide goodwill tour recently visited Arizona and Missouri.

In January, VICA's student officers Jimmy Gilmore, Secondary President, and Jason Rodriquez, Region 5 Vice President, accompanied National VICA Program Manager, Nan Moring, to Arizona. They visited AlliedSignal Aerospace, Hughes Missile systems and the Motorcycle Mechanics Institute.

The Kansas City tour, February 11-14, was an opportunity to become acquainted with the new Kansas City VICA Advisory Council. The Kansas City VICA Advisory Council's role is to provide key support for equipment, supplies and human resources for the Skills USA Championships. They also provide financial resources for the National Education Team. The Council membership includes executives from Farmland Industries, Nation's Bank, Helzberg Diamond Shops, J.E.
Dunn Construction Company, Builders' Association of Missouri, Building and Trades Council, Hall Family Foundation, Gateway 2000 Inc., Kansas City Area Development Council, Health Midwest, Sprint Corporation, The Kansas City Star Company, Metropolitan Community Colleges and the Convention and Visitors Bureau of Greater Kansas City. They are an integral part of our continuing commitment to Kansas City for hosting our Skills USA Championships.

Barry Wulf, Postsecondary President, and Angela Barnett, Postsecondary Secretary, were accompanied by Tim Lawrence, Director of Business and Industry Partnerships, and Harold Lewis, Director of Skills USA Championships, from National VICA. VICA recognizes the following companies for being part of our Kansas City Goodwill Tour: Kansas City Chefs' Association, Missouri Restaurant Association, J.E. Dunn Construction Company, Builders' Association of Missouri,
Hall Family Foundation, Gateway 2000, Inc., Sprint Corporation, The Kansas City Star Company, Sosland Companies, Farmland Industries, Inc., Kansas City Southern Industries, Inc., Lady Baltimore Foods, Inc. and Health Midwest.

TECHSPO
A combination of the words technical and exposition. VICA's TECHSPO is the largest exposition of trade and technical education in America. Last year we sold out, so we've added additional booths and days. It's the ideal place to promote education products, recruit students or demonstrate your services. We've sold over 50% of the booth space. Call 703-737-0611 to reserve your space today!

VICA Alumni
Today, Sid Gooch is a leader in industry and will become the American Trucking Association's, General Chairman and Treasurer for The Maintenance Council next year. Mr. Gooch, 48, is the director of vehicle fleet maintenance for FedEx Corp., "the world's largest express transportation company." He has been with FedEx for nearly two decades, starting as a fleet manager. Mr. Gooch got his start in maintenance while in high school, where he participated in VICA, and worked at a garage in the evenings. He was a member of VICA during the 1966-67 school year. He stated that VICA "allowed me the practical experience of the work place as a vehicle mechanic as well as the classroom experience."

New Sponsors
VICA is pleased to welcome the following new sponsors. Thank you for your commitment to our students.
Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute
Bon Tool Company
Haslett Heating & Cooling, Inc.
Independent Electrical Contractors, Inc.
Northeast Vocational-Technical Center (OK)
Michael P. Shouvlin (NJ)
Dr. Byrl Shoemaker (OH)
Society of Manufacturing Engineers
SuperCuts
Texas VICA (HS)
Anthony Vitale (MI)

Mark Your Calendars
June 23-27
33rd VICA National Leadership and Skills Conference and Skills USA
Championships
Kansas City, Missouri
June 23&25
VICA, Inc. Board of Directors Meeting
Kansas City, Missouri
June 25
VICA Corporation Meeting
Kansas City, Missouri
June 27 - July 11
34th International Youth Skills Competition
St. Gallen, Switzerland

AlliedSignal Partnership

VICA's goodwill tour to Phoenix, Arizona, gave national student officers and national VICA staff a chance to see a successful VICA partnership firsthand.

In 1979, the AlliedSignal/VICA Applied Technology Partnership was formed. This partnership has involved almost 2,000 VICA students who joined AlliedSignal Aerospace in Phoenix as youth apprentices.

AlliedSignal spent millions in the 1980s to recruit skilled workers from the East Coast. When this failed, they turned to VICA to develop skilled workers from within their own community. Mr. Ruben Coronado, training director for AlliedSignal Aerospace and Director of AlliedSignal/VICA Partnership, has stated: "VICA students come to us with a wealth of professionalism, with problem-solving ability and solid communication skills ... the results have been outstanding."

AlliedSignal Aerospace recognizes the importance of having a well-trained manufacturing work force. To this end, AlliedSignal supports vocational training in local schools as well as within the organization, thereby ensuring a supply of well-educated and qualified employees.

VICA membership is a prerequisite for students who want to be hired. Areas of training include: machinist apprenticeship training, welder apprenticeship training, engineering drawing and computer-aided drafting (CAD), graphics design and desktop publishing, and supplemental skills training.

AlliedSignal realizes that even though the initial costs may be high, the return is well worth it and is ultimately cost-saving.

"The reason that AlliedSignal got involved with VICA is twofold: one-we saw the organization as one that was producing students that were at a higher caliber than non-VICA students. Again, they had the professionalism and teamwork, (knew) how to be leaders in a group as opposed to a non-VICA student. The other thing is, we wanted to get involved in the community."
Ruben Coronado AlliedSignal Aerospace