BLYTHEWOOD — To celebrate National Manufacturing Day, Scout Motors welcomed more than 70 high school students—including teens from Blythewood, Westwood, Ridge View, and Fairfield Central high schools—to its state-of-the-art training center in Blythewood on Friday morning. The event was part of a nationwide effort to highlight modern manufacturing and the careers that help drive the industry forward.
Students had the opportunity to meet Scout team members and learn about the skills needed for careers in advanced manufacturing after high school, after college, and after time spent in the military. They also toured the training facility and participated in hands-on activities designed to showcase real-world manufacturing processes.
The experience included an up-close look at the Scout Traveler concept vehicle and discussions about future career pathways.
By the time the students worked their way through the department stations, some were already asking how to prepare to apply.
“The students have even asked to spend more time with them at the end of this,” said Clarice Henderson, Scout’s vice president for production human resources, referring to the company’s talent acquisition staff. “They’re asking questions about what is that going to look like? How do I prepare myself?”
That response was exactly what Scout hoped to accomplish.
With the production plant not yet in full operation, Henderson said, the training center offered students a place to see manufacturing processes, talk with employees, and begin considering where they might fit.
“I think we have to be able to demonstrate and open people’s minds to the work that we need … and the opportunity they have,” she said.
The morning began with students seated together as company leaders introduced their departments and described their own paths into manufacturing. Their stories emphasized that careers can begin in familiar circumstances, change direction, and grow over time.
Employees spoke about why they chose Scout, what they enjoyed about their work, and how the students could follow paths of their own.
Meredith Mann, Scout’s chief human resources officer, encouraged students to notice what interested them.
“Please pay attention to what sparks your interest,” Mann said. “Ask questions, stay curious, inquire.”
Henderson outlined opportunities ranging from production and maintenance to robotics, engineering, logistics, information technology, finance, and human resources.
“Absolutely, if you wanted to come here and work for Scout after high school, there’s opportunities for that,” she told students.
Throughout the morning, employees encouraged questions and participation. Department stations included practical, hands-on activities representing the work involved in building, checking, and testing a vehicle. Students quickly grew comfortable talking with employees, joining in the activities, and asking about everything from quality standards to crash testing.
At a testing station, employees explained how trainees use headphones to identify rattles and other unwanted sounds before vehicles reach customers.
In the paint area, training manager Stephanie Madison described instruction that starts with basic tasks and builds as employees master each step.
“You don’t have to be afraid of automotive work because everything that you need, you will get between the training center and on-the-job training,” Madison said.
Eden Yohannes, Scout’s lead manufacturing trainer and a Blythewood resident, brought a local connection. Her son was a kicker for Ridge View High School, she told students, and now plays for Benedict College. She prepared students for a Kahoot! quiz on what they learned at the stations.
Henderson said schools selected students in grades nine through 12 with potential interest in the work at Scout.
Jerome Davis, Richland Two’s executive director for secondary instruction, said the visit connected classroom preparation with workforce opportunities, including collaboration, problem-solving, responsibility, and dependability.
Scout and school representatives also discussed what could come next.
Henderson said a dual-enrollment program is under development through which students could attend school part of the week and work at Scout the other days. Apprenticeships are also a future goal, she said.
“We need to partner with the schools and create those programs,” Henderson said, so students can apply classroom lessons while learning from Scout employees.
She also hopes to bring technical and vocational teachers into the center to experience the work themselves and carry that understanding back to students.
For body shop leader Jeff Schoolcraft, the advice was direct.
“I will train any of you to know what you need to know,” he told students. “But it’s your attitude that will set you apart.”
