Tracy Rexroat Named Secretary of Arizona Precision Manufacturing Apprenticeship Program

PHOENIX, March 17, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Tracy Rexroat, one of the West's great educators, has joined the efforts of the Arizona Precision Manufacturing Apprenticeship Program (AzPMAP) as their new Secretary.

Rexroat joins the organization that seeks to give people the tools to become skilled workers in technical manufacturing fields. As part of her job, Rexroat will work to further AzPMAP mission while assisting in decision making processes. Rexroat has a diverse background in manufacturing both the public and private sector. She earned her Bachelor's in Mechanical Technology from the University of South Dakota while serving in the Air National Guard. She served in the National Guard for over two decades as a trainer and supervisor for the repair and inspection of aerospace equipment used on the flight line.

Rexroat's second was in school counseling and mental health at Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis. With this skills set, Rexroat has focused on helping young adults develop their abilities and interest in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. She believes that the future success of the United States depends upon having workers to fill roles in these fields. "This makes her perfectly suited to serve as Secretary for the AzPMAP," according to a recent interview.

In industry sectors, like medical devices, communications, solar, electronics, and aerospace, there is a diverse and broad manufacturing base that called the Greater Phoenix area home. There continues to be an ever growing need for skilled workers by electronics and aerospace equipment manufacturers and their suppliers despite the recent downturn in the global economy that has reduced employment in many of these sectors. Even with the high unemployment rate, many of these company have still had trouble finding qualified applicants.

In the area of precision manufacturing, a collaborative effort was launched in the summer of 2009 to develop an apprenticeship program that will help aid the continued success and growth of the regional manufacturing industry by developing knowledgeable and skilled employees. This collaboration that has developed a comprehensive apprenticeship program is known as AzPMAP and had brought together representatives from the public workforce system, community colleges, Arizona's workforce development division, secondary education, and industry.

The vision of the collaborative is threefold: produce value added new employees from day one, provide the apprentices with nationally recognized portable credentials, and reduces employer administrative burdens and recruitment costs. AzPMAP is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit. The founding collaborative organizations are Modern Industries, Maricopa Community Colleges, Arizona Commerce Authority, Phoenix Workforce Connection, Maricopa Workforce Connections, Excalibur Precision Machining, and Arizona Tooling and Machining Association. For more information about AzPMAP, visit their website at http://www.azpmap.org/.

Press Release Contact Information:
Tracy Rexroat
Arizona Dept. of Education
AZ Education
4157499836
[email protected]

This release was issued through WebWire(R). For more information visit http://www.webwire.com.

Press Release URL:
http://www.webwire.com/ViewPressRel.asp?aId=186203

SOURCE Arizona Department of Education