Ken Kinley

Like most teenagers in high school, I was not sure what I wanted to do for a career. Computers were becoming more popular, so my father suggested taking an electronics class. I enjoyed the class because there was not only theory; there were labs to back it up. I took two electronics courses in high school and realized not only did I enjoy it, but also, I found something I would not mind doing for a career.

When I worked for IBM, we considered electrical everything from the breaker box to the wall outlet. From the wall outlet to the circuitry inside the machine, whatever that machine would be, was considered electronics. Another common definition of the difference between electrical and electronics is electrical devices provide electricity to power machines. They have no decision-making capabilities. Whereas, electronic circuits have decision-making capabilities.

Most of our electronics courses are in a lab. Meaning as we do theory, we can quickly switch to a lab project to reinforce what the teacher is saying. We find it is more effective to do theory in short time intervals with practical mixed in than to talk for 50 minutes before they experience any practical application. It is easier keeping a student’s attention when they are doing something.

We have a variety of equipment from older to very new. Some companies still use the older equipment because it still works well for them. Other companies like to keep their equipment up to date. We try to expose our students to both sides. We also have a new automation lab coming online soon, which showcases four Kuka robots with vision and an automated conveyor system. In this same lab, students will be trained on Allen-Bradley and Siemens PLCs. PLCs are the heart of any automated system.

Many schools do not teach electronics until the junior year. We teach electronics courses every semester from the first until graduation. We believe the only way to get familiar with it is to be exposed to it constantly. The amount of hands-on training you receive at Penn College is unique.

Very good, especially in the field of automation. We have companies constantly contacting us, needing our graduates to design, implement, integrate and troubleshoot automated systems. More companies are looking to automate their facilities to compete, and they need people who can do that.