Since its origin, the LIT program continues to evolve, and a related program—Luddy Industrial Arts (LIA)—has been developed, offering coursework for junior high students as well. Although originally developed to serve students at Thales Academy, the LIT and LIA curricula are now available for other students, parents, and educators, and more materials are in development.
Origin Story
In little more than three centuries, America was transformed from a wilderness into a world-leading economy through the hard work and perseverance of self-sufficient people who grew and made things with their own two hands. Many of our founding fathers and leading Industrialists had little formal classroom education, yet they achieved greatness in their chosen professions through on-the-job training and a lifelong pursuit of self-improvement, combining skills and intellect to create real wealth & improve others’ lives with their products.
My own family has followed this tradition, with most Misegades men being engineers, mechanics, inventors, fabricators, and industrial business leaders since our ancestor, Heinrich Friedrich Misegades, arrived from Bremen, Germany in 1845 – and promptly went to work as a machinist to support his growing family.
Since the 1970s, American schools have largely eliminated classical skills training, subjects such as industrial arts, home economics, wood-, metal- and auto-shop, as well as lessons related to agriculture. Like many young adults of the 70s who enjoyed such classes, I was raised by parents with many skills – my father was a US Navy-trained electrician who later became an electrical engineer. My mother was a home economics teacher and efficient homemaker. The decay of stable families and demise of such life-essential training have had a devastating impact on young adults’ ability to live independently with fulfilling careers soon after high school, the norm in the America of my youth.
While serving on the Board of Directors of Thales Academy in its initial years, we discussed the need to restore classical skills education to the schools. This led rather quickly to the establishment of the Luddy Institute of Technology (LIT) in 2013. I had the pleasure of developing the original curriculum and teaching the courses at the Apex and Rolesville, NC, campuses.
Since then, the LIT has grown significantly in scope and sophistication, but has kept true to a focus on classical skills training while also making use of modern engineering and fabrication methods. Today, the LIT has set a new standard for providing young adults with basic life skills while exposing them to the many exciting careers that exist for people who enjoy making things.
An interesting spinoff of the LIT is the North Carolina Triangle Apprenticeship Program (NCTAP.org), which I founded with Raleigh-area manufacturers in 2013. Based on the best such programs found in Germany and Switzerland, NCTAP provides young adults with an excellent path into industrial careers, the preferred path in many parts of the world since it provides for financial independence at a young age and serves as a strong foundation for lifetime learning. Such programs are thankfully becoming more commonplace in all states where Thales Academy campuses are found, and LIT graduates are uniquely prepared for them.
A decade after my involvement with the foundation of the LIT, it gives me great pleasure to learn of its continued success, and that Thales Academy has expanded on this through its new Industrial Arts program.
Come visit Thales Academy at Flowers Plantation and see our Luddy Institute of Technology and Luddy Industrial Arts programs in action and take a tour of our state-of-the-art facilities. Learn more, schedule a tour, and apply at: ThalesAcademy.org
By Kent Misegades, Thales Academy LIT Founder; President, AeroSouth Technology
