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SOME PROGRAMS OFFER OLDER STUDENTS AID TO PAY FOR COURSES In Florida students 50 and older will get their first three courses and one certification free under a collaboration between AARP

and St. Petersburg College underwritten by the Department of Economic Opportunity. Each course normally costs $199, and a certification is $50. Books and course materials are also covered,

along with career counseling through the college. Connecticut residents 50 and older and those of any age who are eligible based on income and unemployed qualify for scholarships to

manufacturing programs at the state's public higher education institutions. AARP Connecticut members can also get tuition discounts at several private universities and colleges. Most

job seekers in advanced manufacturing need only a certificate, not necessarily a degree. Plus, community colleges typically give credit for life experience, which makes the process even

faster. "The idea is more of, ‘Let's bring you up to speed on the things you need, rather than starting you from scratch. You already have all that,’ “ explains Jacob Longacre,

associate professor of electronics engineering technology at Quinsigamond. Quinsigamond President Luis Pedraja points out that at a community college, “you can build a credential and do it

in a lot less time." Making the training process quick is particularly important for older workers, says Christopher Cain, grant project manager for engineering technology at St.

Petersburg College. “When people are in that stage of their life, they just need to get something done and get going.” A CAREER THAT WELCOMES OLDER WORKERS Other problems employees over 50

sometimes face, such as age discrimination, tend to be less of an issue in the manufacturing industry, according to people who work in the field and those who advocate for older workers.

Manufacturers, they say, are just eager to fill jobs. "I've seen employers be very flexible,” observes Chris DiPentima, president and CEO of the Connecticut Business and Industry

Association and a former division president of an aerospace company who ran manufacturing facilities in the U.S. and abroad. "I never thought, _I wonder what their health care will cost

me compared to my other employees,_” DiPentima says. “That was never a concern, and I've never heard any other manufacturer raise it. Quite honestly, I've seen the opposite."

That's because such things are offset by the experience that older workers bring to a sector that needs problem solvers, he and others say — who can fix a snag in the production

process, without delays or interruptions. "They have the hands-on experience, but they also have the attitude experience, which has become more and more important to manufacturers over

the past decade,” DiPentima notes. Employers “are just trying to find the people who will come into work every day, be on time, work in teams." These are essentials that older workers

know how to do, says Jeff Johnson, state director of AARP Florida. “What we hear from employers is that older workers, with more job experience, just have a better sense of what it means to

be a good employee." But while manufacturers may have a high regard for people 50 and older, they have to overcome the negative perception that some prospective employees have of the

manufacturing industry. "I don't think people think of manufacturing” as a career, French says. “It's not in the forefront of their minds." Many people think of factories

as dark, dirty and dingy, DiPentima adds. But in fact, he says, production facilities today are “lean, green and clean” and look more like computer centers than the clock-in, clock-out

sweatshops of the past. "The appetite is there, the need is there, and it's really about shattering perceptions,” says Kara Cohen, community outreach and volunteer engagement

manager for AARP Massachusetts.