The purpose of the Fox Valley Technical College (FVTC) Mini-Chopper Build is to expose students to learning and career opportunities that they may not have otherwise had an opportunity to experience. It is also meant to get teams of juniors and seniors in high school excited about hands-on career choices through an exploratory project. Each participating student is enrolled in a three-credit associate degree course.
In addition to the build team, there is an Information Technology (IT) portion of the project. Two or more students from each school build a web page in order to display and market their talents as IT and mini-chopper builders. These students are enrolled in an IT program course titled "Web Site Design Using Dreamweaver."
Each high school team has a business sponsor and help from teachers as their advisors. Each high school also adds to the financial resources available to each team. An additional amount of funding from a Carl Perkins Grant allows the teams to build a custom mini-chopper.
Miller Electric Manufacturing is a partnering sponsor of this project. Miller's willingness to host the teams for a an entire day at their world headquarters in Appleton, WI adds a real-world link to what is involved in the product manufacturing process. Miller also sponsors the unveiling event that is held each year in early June. The event allows the teams to display their bikes for the first time to their sponsors, families, and friends.
View the web sites documenting the
For more information contact Mike CattelinoMike can also be reached at (920) 735-4887.