BUFFALO, W.Va. — The next generation of auto workers is getting to work at Toyota’s plant in Buffalo after graduating from the manufacturer’s 4T Academy last week.
4T Academy is a work-based learning program that allows high schools students in Kanawha, Mason, and Putnam counties to gain experience working at Toyota’s advanced manufacturing facility while finishing high school.
“It really can be life-changing for some of these students. At such a young age, they have an opportunity to pick a career path, develop a skill, and one that’s going to be transferable into the real world and really create a career pathway that’s rewarding and successful for them,” Toyota West Virginia President David Rosier said last week on MetroNews Midday
The 4T curriculum includes training in electrical, pneumatics, hydraulics, precision machining, industrial automation, robotics and more. The program gives an in-demand skillset to students looking to enter the workforce right after high school.
“It reaches kids where they are. Education shouldn’t be one-size-fits-all and we should make sure that we meet those kids with their strengths and give them skills that they need to be successful as they leave high school,” Mason County state senator Amy Nichole Grady said.
Toyota hopes that 4T Academy can continue to create pathways that connect students in the area with careers that can serve them as soon as they graduate. As an elementary school teacher, Grady has seen up close how valuable it can be for young people to have a vision for the future.
“I can tell with fourth graders already which ones are just destined to work with their hands or that want to go straight into work and it’s really important that we make sure that they all see their strengths and they know that this is a program that they can feel successful in,” she said.
Each 4T class is celebrated with a signing ceremony modeled after national letter of intent signings for high school athletes. Rosier said those ceremonies bring a lot of joy to more than just the students.
“We want to celebrate them just as much so we created this event. The smiles on their face–and it’s not just the students, it’s the families–it’s one of the best things I get to do all year long,” he said.
The 4T Academy launched in West Virginia in 2022 in partnership with The Education Alliance and Purdue University’s Indiana Manufacturing Competitiveness Center.