Philanthropy Today
Philanthropy Today
Manhattan Area Technical College on the GMCF Community Hour Show Episode - 273
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We showcase how Manhattan Area Technical College aligns new programs with real employer demand, turning education into high-wage jobs and community growth. From a community-driven campus to regional testing and NBAF-ready talent, we map the path from skill to paycheck.
• New plumbing, electrical, and cybersecurity-focused IT programs
• Community building as shared training and meeting space
• Employer connections that speed hiring for high-demand roles
• NBAF job alignment in electricians, ops techs, and lab techs
• Workforce housing pressures tied to talent growth
• Regional testing center drawing thousands across states
• Enrollment gains and second welding cohort launch
• Graduate earnings including linemen averaging $103k
• Strong ROI with lower tuition and faster completion
• Funding gaps and tangible ways to support technical education
You can always find out more about the mission that they have and the work and how you can help at the website, which is manhattantech.edu
Opening And Guest Introduction
SPEAKER_00Philanthropy Today is brought to you by the Greater Manhattan Community Foundation. In this episode, we feature a recently broadcast segment of the GMCF Community Hour, as heard on News Radio KMAN. And we are back with the GMCF Community Hour here on News Radio KMAN. And we're going to be uh focusing in this segment on Manhattan Area Technical College, David Umanzor. Spell that for me. C U M-A-N-Z-O-R. Okay, so that's Umanzor. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01I can't tell you how many times I have to spell my name out, and that's what I'm saying.
SPEAKER_00I don't know if that's any easier than you, Khrushchenko, or not. We've had this debate here in the studio. So you.
SPEAKER_01Yep. Yeah, U-M-A-N-Z-O-R Umanzor.
SPEAKER_00All right, David U is here.
SPEAKER_01There you go. Yeah. And tell me your title. Uh Director of Workforce Innovation and Partnerships. What does that mean? Uh it doesn't mean a whole lot. What it does mean is I get to go out and solve people's problems. And that's uh that's that's the fun part of my job.
SPEAKER_00So what's your tie-in? How did you get involved at MATC?
SPEAKER_01Uh well, I I I was moving to the area. I found the opportunity and applied for it. And it was a little bit outside of what I'd done before. Uh I came from like nonprofit private sector. I've done a lot of things in small business. Uh uh, you know, growing up, even my dad was in construction and he was, you know, we were doing so I was doing uh sales for him and other pieces. So very little connection to what we do at Manhattan Tech besides finding a problem, solving it. And uh that's the opportunity I've been able to do here.
SPEAKER_00What's it like to work with Jim Jeanette on a day-to-day basis?
SPEAKER_01Uh it's uh Be careful what you say. No, no, no, I hear you. It's um uh every day is not like the other. So when you say day-to-day, it's uh it's very much a uh one day's again, we're doing one project, the next day is uh a different thing, and it's uh but it's all moving us forward. So it's uh he's a great proud, you know.
SPEAKER_00We uh we we we bond over music and we just always enjoy each other's company.
Role At Manhattan Tech And Daily Work
SPEAKER_01And so it doesn't get boring.
SPEAKER_00Then I was I bet not. I bet not. I bet not. Well, David, let's talk a bit about some of the things that are happening at uh MATC. There's uh always, you know, new programs, new developments, new buildings, a lot of new things happening at MATC. So I'm just gonna open up the door and let you walk through and and tell me what some of the great things that are happening.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I think uh recently, I mean, one one is some some exciting things that are coming up. Uh so one is we have our uh we this is our first year we've run a plumbing program. Uh in the fall, we're gonna be opening up an electrical program uh so people can come in, become an electrician through us. Uh, we're gonna be, we had uh go ahead and revamp some things on our uh kind of IT uh department and our IT program. And so we can reconfigured it to being more focused on cybersecurity and uh things that are really relevant for businesses today. Um that's really on our academic side, but really what we're focused on at the college and what we're seeing a lot of excitement for is how can we be that connection for people who are looking to make higher, you know, higher wages in their in their careers fields, and then how can we connect them to the employers who uh are needing the talent in-house? So it's uh it's every day we're going in and seeing how we can make that connection simpler and bring people to the table faster.
SPEAKER_00Well, you got this new building that you had the grand opening what a year ago or so?
SPEAKER_01Uh year and a half ago now.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_01So yeah.
SPEAKER_00How's that working out?
SPEAKER_01And so I'm one of the lucky people that gets to be in there a lot. So it's uh it's it's it's working out pretty well. Um, I think the most exciting part besides having the space for students to come in and have spaces, is that we it's really uh uh we have a community space there. So we have a lot of community that come out. Uh they use the space, they use it for meetings, they use it for training, they use it for, you know, we have uh uh several food folks that have used our conference room to uh uh to meet together. We've also had businesses come in and do their training in that space, and it's uh it's so it's a really great space to be able to share with with uh the business community.
New Programs And Cybersecurity Focus
SPEAKER_00So what's next for MATC? What's your next big jump?
SPEAKER_01Uh I think uh our that the next thing is uh that's that's a question we keep getting. Uh for us, I think the next thing is uh what we're working on is making that connection simpler. How can we make sure that employers are knowing we know where to access the talent they need faster um and uh and that people get into jobs quicker? And so uh that's that's ultimately what we're what we're headed after and and uh how we can make Manhattan take that one-stop shop and continue to be in that one place where people could come in, have no skills, build their skills, and then leave with uh verification of their skills that demonstrates to employers, hey, I I know what I'm doing here. Uh and uh and uh we're proud to be able to do that uh through our programs, uh through our hands-on programs, uh from nursing all the way to welding and and building trades, all the way to our our uh, you know, our regional tech testing center that has nine national certifications where people come in for testing for real estate, AFA, FAA, FBI, uh, and any other acronym you can come up with, they're they're testing for it.
SPEAKER_00And um, I think MATC has uh just a remarkable history over the last, you know, 10, 12 years, whatever. Just so many significant things that have that have happened. You know, we talked about the new facility, we've talked about new programs, but I think one of the keys to this is the partnerships that MATC has built in the community over the years, you know, things that are happening in Womigo, you've got all kinds of new developments, new things, new concepts. Just the other day, NBAF announced that they're having 150 local jobs. And is it safe for me to say that a lot of those jobs can be filled by MATC graduates because that may be the work that they're looking to be have done there?
Community Hub And New Building Impact
SPEAKER_01Um I know exactly what you're talking about. And I remember uh I think some of the ones that they've highlighted that they're trying to hire for the quickest are electricians, their uh their operations technicians, their lab technicians, and those are all the people that we train at the college. And so uh for us, it is something that for these critical businesses, these critical uh organizations like NBAF, uh, that's very necessary. I think of some of the other challenges we have in our community that uh sometimes can be solved by creating that demand for more, you know. I think of of one thing that I think that I've I've been mulling over recently, and that's been uh workforce housing. And I think that's a conversation that keeps coming up and regularly comes up. And part of the solution is how can we create the demand for workforce housing by equipping more workers, by bringing in more people that need somewhere to stay so people can take that risk and start developing. And I think that's uh that's something that we want to be a part of the solution. And how can we prepare developers too? And so those are those are all things that uh we think about with these challenges and how we can solve them uh through workforce education.
SPEAKER_00I'm looking at my sheet here and talks about MATC has impacted 4,000 or does impact over 4,000 people each year. How do you get that number?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, no, it's uh it's for us, it's all the way from our partnerships with high schools. So we do have around 750 students that go through our tech our programs at the high schools, all the way through the ones who are enrolled on our campus, uh, those who are going through and doing education outside of the academic world and doing uh short-term training. We just wrapped up a uh uh uh uh NHR uh class where people are going in and getting HR certifications. And then the last part where we get a lot of traffic is our testing center. Uh so we have we bring in people from uh Missouri, Nebraska, uh, and Oklahoma, Iowa on a on a very regular basis. Uh just a few months ago, we had uh uh some construction uh crews come up and do some uh do some exams from Texas, which I'm a I'm from Foot Worth, Texas. So I'm like, you know, uh as you know, let's bring some more up, you know. But they're coming up here, they're looking for for opportunities to do business here in Kansas, and uh and they found an opportunity that they needed to test for. They came, they stayed in a hotel, they ate, they asked our testing folks where they can eat, and they point them in the right direction for our local places to eat here, and uh and uh and they enjoyed it. They and they're they're gonna be doing business here in Kansas. And so it's it's some of those opportunities that we're able to film. But that's that testing center itself uh gets about three between three and four hundred of between three and four thousand people walk through it every year. So yeah, so it's uh we get a lot of uh a lot of foot traffic through there.
SPEAKER_00What's your student enrollment like now?
Connecting Talent To Local Employers
SPEAKER_01Uh we we we're pushing 500. We're we're somewhere between four and five hundred every year. Uh so um it's it's it's grown, especially since we brought in the new building. It's opened up a lot of capacity. Um, we did before the building, we were able to run classes for our building trades of around 14. And now we've been able to uh get closer to 24. That's where our capacity is, and we keep uh meeting the capacity, and and and now we're we what's one thing that's exciting is we're opening up a set second welding cohort this spring. So uh welding uh isn't we have about 25 booths on campus, I want to say. Uh, and uh it's not enough for what the demand is for for learning welding. And so we opened up, we have an afternoon uh session opening up this this semester. So uh we'll have two cohorts going at the same time.
SPEAKER_00You know, it's no secret that what you might call a blue-collar job, which is what a lot of what you you do, those blue-collar jobs are paying more than white-collar jobs these days. And that's gotta provide, you know, some some pretty good incentive for people to come through MATC.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, it's uh it's it's always exciting looking when we go and review the numbers and seeing what what are our graduates making when they graduate. What are they making? And um the average salary for a for a lineman right now is much higher than what people think. When I ask people what their say what they think it is, usually we play the little game and everybody says 75,000. Then we go up to 85,000. It's it's at 103 right now. Is it? Yes, it is. Uh, and so uh very high-paying jobs. Most of our jobs uh across the college, uh the average is around 60. Uh, and so it's uh it's if you're going in, you're spending a year to two years working, you know, doing your education, and you're able to make that when you when you graduate. That's a that's a solid start.
SPEAKER_00Boy. And your cost of your education is a fraction of what it is.
SPEAKER_01It's uh it's you know, let's just say we've been awarded for for the uh for the our return on investors for seasons.
SPEAKER_00About being number one or number two in the nation for various different uh different achievements that you've had. That's quite a track record.
SPEAKER_01It's exciting to be a part of this team.
SPEAKER_00Uh really do we have like a uh a whole hallway dedicated to all the plaques and trophies that MATC has won?
SPEAKER_01We'll just stack them up in Jim's office.
SPEAKER_00Jim that way.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, we'll put that right, we'll put that right next to the Beatles and right next to you know, like Neil Diamond and Got to put things in proper place.
NBAF Jobs And Regional Workforce Needs
SPEAKER_00Yep, yeah. Well, let's talk a little bit about um how people can help because MATC uh it doesn't get all the funding that two-year or four-year colleges, you know, like K-State get from a national or state. So funding is always a challenge. Yeah. And you know, getting kids to come here is a challenge. And and it's not just kids, these are young adults, you get middle-aged students coming in that want to change their careers. How can people help? And we talk about this higher education. That's H-I-R-E, which is a great play on words.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_00But but there are ways that you can help MATC continue to further its its its mission.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I think uh to your point, I mean, this is this is something we don't as a technical college, we don't uh we we don't put levy any taxes. Uh we don't receive uh as large of uh operating grants as what other colleges. In fact, I think the first year they put that in was not too long ago and they reduced it and we're uh working with the state level to to see what we can do to bring that up to the level that they had approved to begin with. And so uh we've learned to do a lot with less. Um, but if someone were to say, you know, how can I help? And I think this is where uh there's there's a few different ways. And one is uh be an advocate for us. And so that's both with people in your community. If there's folks that you know are looking for a job opportunity or looking for some kind of training, you know, tell them about us. Look, there's a great opportunity. I'll drive you there. I'll tell you, I'll give you a ride, we'll go together. Come and look at our building. It's it's a it's fun to walk around. Um I I think the other part is when you see these opportunities to to speak up and you know, uh, be a part of that. Uh, when you're seeing that uh technical colleges here in the last couple of years uh are our funding, like like many other uh you know higher ed institutions have been cut. And so when when you look at the opportunities to say, how can I, you know, send a letter to my senator or to my local uh representative, let's do that. But I think the the third part that I think is is really important is uh really just connecting with us. There's great ways to partner through, you know, giving to scholarships. There's great ways to partner through through uh you know, but through through donations, through giving. Uh but there's also great opportunities to just come on campus and and you know, find those opportunities. We're we're very entrepreneurial. And for us, sometimes the best thing you can do is connect with someone and find a way to help. And uh, and so I invite anybody who would like to come and talk to us uh to come to the campus, schedule a time uh with our admissions office. Come and schedule a time with me and we'll uh we'll walk through what what opportunities there are to partner.
SPEAKER_00You can always find out more about the mission that they have and the work and how you can help at the website, which is manhattantech.edu, David Umanzor. Umansor.
SPEAKER_01There you go. Nailed it.
Housing, Testing Center, And Regional Reach
SPEAKER_00I'm gonna have to really I I need a pen. There you go. Thank you for joining us. It's a it's great to have somebody other than Jim in.
SPEAKER_01Hey. Every once in a while we need a little break, but uh but hey, he's uh he he's I'm sure he's uh he's a great character.
SPEAKER_00I don't I don't kid people. I don't uh I don't like her respect. So uh give him my best, all right? I will. Good job here today. Coming up next, Special Olympics, Kansas. We've got uh Caitlin Andrist, who is uh special events uh coordinator with Special Olympics, and she's got a couple of friends that are going to be coming along talking about the Manhattan Polar Plunge. That's always a good time. Good time. We'll be back with more on the GMCF Community Hour in two weeks. Uh on February 9th, we move up an hour to the 9 06 time slot here on News Radio K M A N.