CT teachers updating their technical skills

Connecticut companies have opened their doors to seven high school and college instructors who are spending their summer learning technological advancements they will take back to the classroom.

The Connecticut Business & Industry Association administers the six-year-old program on behalf of the Connecticut Community Colleges’ College of Technology Regional Center for Next Generation Manufacturing, which is funded by the National Science Foundation.

Each teacher will spend 160 hours in a manufacturing facility before returning to the classroom in August. They also receive a $4,000 stipend to cover costs and to implement technology lesson plans in their schools.

• Raymond Frost of Somers, an engineering teacher at Rockville High School in Vernon, will be working on computer numerical control (CNC) machining at Habco Inc. in Glastonbury from July 7 to August 4.

• Sheila Gambino of Southbury, a technology teacher at Bethel High School in Bethel, will learn about information technology and engineering processes at Branson Ultrasonics Corp. in Danbury from June 28 to August 6.

• Chris (Crescenzo) Porto of North Haven, a pre-electrical engineering teacher at Norwich Technical High School in Norwich, will focus on electrical engineering at Ultra Electronics Measurement Systems Inc. in Wallingford from July 6 to July 30.

• Frank Sesto of Bristol, the head of the manufacturing department at E.C. Goodwin Technical High School in New Britain, will study CNC machining at Associated Spring in Bristol from June 22 to July 20.

• Eric Stroehle of Oakville, an automated manufacturing teacher at Naugatuck Valley Community College in Waterbury, will learn about Lean technologies at FuelCell Energy in Danbury from June 14 to July 19.

• Ernest Todd from the Quaker Hill section of Waterford, a pre-electrical engineering teacher at Norwich Technical High School in Norwich, will learn about engineering network services at Telaid Industries Inc. in East Lyme from June 21 to July 16.

• Haoyu Wang of Farmington, a manufacturing and robotics professor at Central Connecticut State University in New Britain, will spend July 29 to August 27 learning about robotics at ABB Inc., in Windsor.