President , Guam Community College
Brief Chat
Mary Okada
President , Guam Community College
By Mar-Vic Cagurangan
Gearing up for a new industry
In three years , 3D printing , also known as additive manufacturing , is expected to be fully operational on Guam . The shiny new object is envisioned to position Guam as a manufacturing and training hub for Navy operators in the region .
In a community faced with perennial labor shortages , the emerging industry comes with challenges and opportunities . Guam Community College , which is at the forefront of workforce development on island , is preparing to explore plans to meet the new labor demand for the new industry .
“ Our participation in this project is to identify and develop the pipeline that can help support the workforce needed for additive manufacturing ,” said Mary Okada , GCC president .
The facility is anticipated to generate 85 to 100 jobs , according to the Applied Science & Technology Research Organization of America , or ASTRO America , a military think tank that is spearheading the plan .
Okada said GCC is currently seeking to establish a plan to tap the high school population in preparation for post-secondary courses and ultimately a degree path . The plan will involve the development of a pertinent curriculum in collaboration with the Colorado School of Mines .
“ Right now , we ’ re gathering information as to what is necessary so we could establish a pilot program ,” said Okada , who has been the GCC president since June 2007 . “ We ’ ll initiate the pilot so that we can get students who may be interested in it and provide them some basic overview of what it ’ s going to be like , and then eventually it will help guide them to the next steps of either certification or post-secondary credentials .”
The Guam Additive Materials & Manufacturing
Accelerator , also known as the GAMMA initiative , requires operations that will include the education , manufacturing , post-processing , testing and evaluation capabilities necessary to produce finished products , according to ASTRO .
Okada said the pilot program will provide the students with educational opportunities or certifications “ just to pique their interest so that they have choices when they finally get to high school or when they start to enter post-secondary , determining what that career path is going to be .”
The first phase of the GAMMA project , which is expected to begin by the end of the year , involves the construction of a satellite campus proposed to be built at the University of Guam . Based on the GAMMA implementation plan prepared by ASTRO and released in June , the facility would require a 20,000-sq . ft . building with manufacturing , lab , classroom , conference room and office space . It is projected to cost $ 38 million .
While there are no current plans to build a separate facility on the GCC campus , Okada said the college ’ s role in the project focuses on using its existing academic infrastructure . GCC currently offers Career and Technical Education ( formerly vocational-technical education ) programs in the island ’ s public high schools . The high school CTE programs offer students a pathway into postsecondary education through GCC Dual Credit Articulated Programs of Study , in which students can earn college credit in corresponding GCC postsecondary programs upon graduation from high school .
Okada said the CTE program is currently available in six high schools . However , the 3D printing-related pilot program will be offered only to select schools . “ Our
While there are no current plans to build a separate 3D printing facility on the GCC campus , Okada said the college ’ s role in the project focuses on using its existing academic infrastructure .
intent is to identify high schools where there ’ s the most interest and to set up a pilot during the summer . Or we can set it up at one of the institutions and then grow it from there ,” she said .
Five Guam students are currently taking up a 16- week program at the Navy ’ s advanced manufacturing training center at the Colorado School of Mines . The first batch of students sent in July has completed the training .
“ Four of them are GCC students . Two of the students recently graduated from George Washington ( High School ) and are enrolled in the GCC program that is offered in that school ,” Okada said .
“ That whole partnership is being developed right now in terms of GCC ’ s role in the initial stages . We ’ re identifying different pathways to consider , but the School of Mines is interested in setting up , not necessarily at the college , but building off what we have built at the college and the university ,” she added .
According to ASTRO , many of the initial highly technical positions will need to be filled by hires from the U . S . mainland .
“ Once the initial industry is set up , then it would be determined how fast it may expand based on the interest and the business that is actually generated through this project ,” Okada said . “ I think it ’ s something everybody has been willing to explore .”
According to ASTRO ’ s document , establishing a 3D printing facility on Guam would address the challenges faced by the Naval Sea Systems Command in acquiring parts and materials for submarine maintenance in the region . Currently , parts are not in inventory when needed by the Navy ’ s public shipyards , resulting in significant delays in maintenance service .
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