MAGNET OFFERS MACHINE SHOP, TOOL TRAINING : MENTORS JOIN VAN NUYS HIGH.

Byline: Luz Villarreal Daily News Staff Writer

Manuel Anzaldo was tired of school when he started his junior year at Van Nuys High School last fall.

His grades dropped, and he wrote off the possibility of college.

``This year, I failed everything but voice and metal shop,'' said the 16-year-old. ``I didn't want to go to school, but I had nothing to look forward to. I knew I had to do something.''

Now, Anzaldo can hardly wait to do homework, take tests and apply his academics to real-life practical working skills.

He is one of 30 students - male and female - who will begin a new Machine Tool Partnership Academy at Van Nuys High School on Tuesday. The program is the first of its kind and the 13th career academy offered through the Los Angeles Unified School District.

The academy comes at a time when machine and tooling skills are in high demand. There are about 3,000 manufacturing shops in the San Fernando Valley and few people with necessary skills to fill the jobs.

``The demand is enormous,'' said David Goodreau, president of the San Fernando Valley chapter of the National Tooling and Machining Association, or NTMA. ``Most school districts in the state have had other priorities in the last 20 years, and these industrial arts programs have been gutted. Now the marketplace is hurting for kids who have good entry-level skills. It's very difficult to find people.''

Jim Konantz, director of career development for the school district, said the programs have been cut because of funding.

``Like all technology, heavy machine technology is changing very rapidly,'' he said. ``We've gone from manual control lathes and milling machines into computer assisted design and manufacturing. As technology progresses, schools always have a problem. There's never any money to upgrade.''

Van Nuys High School is getting that chance, thanks to a $75,000 grant from the state Department of Education. Money will be used to buy new equipment, a full-time youth coordinator and supplies.

The academy is a partnership in every sense of the word. In addition to the school district, the program is supported by Valley College, the Valley chapter of the NTMA and New Directions for Youth, a social service agency.

Valley College is providing a professor who will visit the high school twice a week to teach students how to read blueprints. The NTMA will offer students internships and mentors at various manufacturing shops. And New Directions for Youth will offer a youth coordinator and help match students with the manufacturing companies.

Under the program, students will attend four academic courses together - math, English, science and history - and two periods of machine tooling. The academic courses have been restructured for the academy program so that students will learn more about the economy, job growth, the industrial and technological revolutions, and the properties of metals.

``All their curriculum will be organized around this theme,'' said Mark Eiduson, a program director at New Directions for Youth. ``No kid from this academy will never have to ask, `Why do I have to learn this?' ''

On Wednesday afternoons, the students will shadow mentors and learn how to operate equipment at one of about 20 participating manufacturing shops.

Charlie Wilken, the high school's machine shop teacher and academic coordinator for the academy, said he hopes students will graduate from school with viable skills and potential jobs.

``The students will spend two to three hours a week in a shop with a mentor and learn real machine shop experience,'' he said. ``Many students might find they want to be engineers. Others might want to go into inspection, sales, programming or computer numerical control. What we want to do is get the kids focused on a career path so that they know why they are in school and developing skills.''

Manuel Anzaldo plans to make it work for him.

``Now these classes will make it easier to understand why I need to learn,'' he said. ``I'm going to be more enthusiastic. I can already feel that next semester I'm going to do good. I want to get straight A's.''

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2 Photos

PHOTO (1) Van Nuys High School student Karla Contreras listens, while mentor Anthony Mudy explains machine shop.

(2) Machine Tool Partnership Academy students, parents and mentors gather to kick off the program.

Joe Binoya/Special to the Daily News