Video: Cooper Tire Brings “Manufacturing Experience” To High School

TUPELO, MISS. (WCBI) – One of the region’s largest employers is exposing students to diverse opportunities in the world of manufacturing.
Cooper Tire employees set up shop at Tupelo High School, with an interactive , hands on event.

As an engineer at Cooper Tire, Jessica Sinak spends most of her days inside the plant, but Thursday morning, she was demonstrating the finishing and testing process each tire goes through.

Sinak is part of the “Dream Team.” Forty employees from Cooper tire who work with students and bring the “Manufacturing Experience” to schools, showing students the tire making process.

“Not many people do know what happens in a plant, and in the manufacturing process, we want them to be more involved and more educated on it,” Sinak said.

The interactive, hands on career experience takes career and tech students through eight stations, ranging from raw materials , tire design, manufacturing and safety.

Students say they learned a lot about highly skilled positions needed to make tires, and also how science, technology, engineering and math all play a role in the process.

“It shows us more potential career options, and even if you think it’s a little far fetched you can work and build your way up for it,: said Megan Riley, a THS Senior.

“I’m pretty sure most people think it’s just like, put it in there, take it out, you have to go through different stations, a lot of people work together to make tires,” said Zakaria Bradley, a THS Junior.

Those positions require a variety of skills and education levels. Teachers say the “Manufacturing Experience” allows students to see what opportunities are available.

“You can actually go into Cooper Tire straight out of high school or you can go in after four years of college. Cooper Tire has seven or eight different options for engineering in their company. Gives them a wide range to choose from,” said Construction Teacher Tim Wiggington.

The Manufacturing Experience takes place Thursday and Friday at the high school.

This is the second year “The Manufacturing Experience” has come to Tupelo High School.