All PRIME Success Stories

Working directly with customers isn’t something students normally get to experience in high school classes.

Trent Trout, computer integrated manufacturing instructor at Saline High School (SHS) — an SME PRIME (Partnership Response in Manufacturing Education) school — was taken aback recently when his former boss strode into his classroom followed by a group of cheering coworkers.

Students at Proviso West High School, in Hillside, Illinois, have earned thousands of manufacturing certifications, taken top prizes at industry competitions and been placed into local apprenticeships since their school was awarded an SME PRIME® (Partnership Response in Manufacturing Education) program in early 2022.

Asaad and Neran Kalasho, a married couple who emigrated from Iraq to the Detroit area in the 1970s, envisioned establishing an engineering-focused educational opportunity for students arriving from war-torn regions

Stratasys went above and beyond with its preparation of SME PRIME® teachers in August during their 2 ½ day training at Stratasys’ headquarters in Minnesota. “We talk about applications, materials and segments, and then we dive into the equipment itself — and really get these instructors upskilled to talk intelligently about how the technology is used.”

Flowery Branch High School (FBHS), one of 12 Georgia secondary schools to join the SME PRIME® network in 2023, recently participated in the state-level SkillsUSA Additive Manufacturing Competition. Not only did FBHS win at the SkillsUSA Georgia state championship in April, it advanced to compete at the SkillsUSA national level in June.