Hudsonville students recount Gentex manufacturing tour as a window to engineering careers
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Summary
Students from Hudsonville Public School District described a recent Gentex Corporation tour during a teaching-and-learning feature, emphasizing hands‑on exposure to tightly scheduled production, robotics and multiple behind‑the‑scenes career paths.
Students from Hudsonville Public School District detailed what they learned on a recent manufacturing‑week tour of Gentex Corporation, telling the school board the visit opened students’ eyes to engineering and other career paths.
"It was so specific, and it was so orderly," said student Isaiah Gillette during the board's teaching‑and‑learning feature, describing a production line timed down to the second. Gillette and classmates Owen Kyle and Kate Rowland said they saw robot assembly, product testing and roles beyond machine operation, from coding to supervision and quality assurance.
School staff framed the trip as part of the district’s career education programming and said 28 students participated. Board members and staff also discussed how instruction is evolving with artificial intelligence; one administrator said the district is "starting down" AI integration by working with local business and industry partners to teach students how to use prompts and analyze data.
Administrators said the trip exposed students to the scale of modern manufacturing and offered practical context for career and course choices. The visit was presented to the board as a way to broaden students’ understanding of technical and non‑technical roles inside manufacturing firms.
Board members praised the students for their presentation and suggested the district continue similar partnerships to help students explore local employment pathways. No formal board action was taken on the presentation.