John Muir Middle School Tours County Materials Marathon Facility

More than 74 eighth-grade students from John Muir Middle School in Wausau experienced concrete product manufacturing when they toured County Materials’ Marathon, Wis., facility on Wednesday, October 5th. Dubbed the “Heavy Metal Tour,” the students were participating in a series of field trips to manufacturing facilities around Wisconsin. The tour was conceived in 2011 by the North Central Wisconsin Workforce Development Board to address the shortage of skilled workers in Wisconsin’s manufacturing industry. Students are introduced to the realities of modern manufacturing and successful career opportunities available. What started with 350 students has since grown to include 3,800, making it the largest tour of its kind in the country.

Students who visited County Materials learned about diverse career options available in the 70-year strong company, including positions as professional drivers, equipment operators, mechanics and production managers to name only a few; they also heard personal stories from employees, including Rachelle Cota. “I want students to know careers here are for everybody and see how I was able to grow into new positions. I started as a semi driver and then moved into a position in dispatch. Last year I began taking courses at Northcentral Technical College and now I’m a Central Regional Environmental Health and Safety Administrator for 13 County Materials’ locations. Both girls and boys alike have great opportunities in a variety of occupations at County Materials.”

In addition to inviting students to tour their production facility, County Materials supported the tour as a Platinum Sponsor.

“We greatly appreciate the support of County Materials in making this tour a continued success and further establishing a talent-rich pipeline of skilled labor in our region,” said Ray Rogers, Business Services Specialist with the North Central Workforce Development Board. Rogers explained, “The tour aims to get students in 8th grade thinking about manufacturing in a cool light in hopes they choose some technical trade courses in high school, as well as look at staying here after college to work in manufacturing.”