GM puts $500,000 into a program bringing 3D printers and robotic arms to Dearborn and Detroit middle schools

DEARBORN, Mich. — General Motors is putting $500,000 into a program that will bring 3D printers, robotic arms and hands-on manufacturing lessons to middle school classrooms in Dearborn and Detroit, with the goal of pointing students toward skilled factory and trades careers before they reach high school.

The program, called Manufacturing Futures, was launched Thursday, Oct. 22, at Dearborn Public Schools’ Michael Berry Career Center, according to the district. It is expected to reach 2,800 middle school students a year in Dearborn Public Schools and the Detroit Public Schools Community District, and to roll out this fall.

What students get. The money will equip eight middle school classrooms across the two districts with 3D printers, robotic arms and manufacturing activities, the district said. Students will also tour high school career and technical education shops, and families will be brought in along the way, so the path into high school manufacturing classes is clear.

The grant also pays for new equipment in a construction trades classroom at the Berry Career Center. And 24 high school students will be trained as paid ambassadors, each earning a $500 stipend, to mentor younger students in the program.

“Every student deserves the chance to chart a bright path toward the future,” said David Massaron, GM’s vice president of infrastructure and corporate citizenship. He said the company wanted to help young people “build the skills and confidence to shape what’s next for themselves and their communities.”

Dearborn Superintendent Mike Esseily called middle school “a critically important time for exploration and self-discovery.” Detroit Superintendent Nikolai Vitti said the timing fits his district’s high school redesign, which is expanding career programs at its neighborhood high schools.

Who runs it. The program is administered by the AFT Educational Foundation, the charitable arm of the American Federation of Teachers, whose president, Randi Weingarten, attended the launch. It builds on a career-education curriculum the foundation has been piloting in 12 New York districts. That work was cut short in 2025 when its federal grant was canceled in a Commerce Department realignment, and GM’s money is now reviving it, according to the district’s announcement.

About the career center. The Michael Berry Career Center belongs to Dearborn Public Schools, though its address is in Dearborn Heights, at 22586 Ann Arbor Trail. It marked its 20th anniversary this spring with a renovated construction trades lab and a new cybersecurity lab. High school students from across the district take programs there in automotive technology, construction trades, culinary arts, criminal justice, digital media, health science, information technology and more. The cybersecurity program started in 2024 with help from a $250,000 state grant.

The district has also drawn up plans for an automotive technician addition at the center that would combine programs now at Edsel Ford and Fordson high schools, but said in March that money to build it was not yet available. New career and technical education space is also part of the $1.51 billion bond the district has on the Nov. 3 ballot.

Families with questions about which middle schools are taking part can contact Dearborn Public Schools; the district did not name the eight classrooms in its announcement.

Sources:
The First Bell (Dearborn Public Schools), “National leaders announce new manufacturing grant at district career center,” Oct. 22, 2026 (program details, quotes, funding, AFT pilot history), https://firstbell.dearbornschools.org/2026/10/22/national-leaders-announce-new-manufacturing-grant-at-district-career-center/
The First Bell, “Career Center celebration, open house on March 24,” March 2, 2026 (address, programs, renovations, automotive addition plans), https://firstbell.dearbornschools.org/2026/03/02/career-center-celebration-open-house-on-march-24/
The First Bell, “Cybersecurity program being added at Berry Career Center,” April 12, 2024 ($250,000 state grant), https://firstbell.dearbornschools.org/2024/04/12/cyber-security-program-being-added-at-berry-career-center/
The First Bell, “District seeking $1.51 billion bond on November ballot,” June 23, 2026 (career and technical education space in bond plans), https://firstbell.dearbornschools.org/2026/06/23/district-seeking-1-51-billion-bond-on-november-ballot/
Photo: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Prosek_school_students_use_YSoft_be3D_3D_printers_in_the_classroom..jpg

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Tags: Dearborn · Dearborn Public Schools · Skilled Trades · Manufacturing · General Motors · Education