Woman breaks collegiate mold

Oak Creek - Katherine Ewaskowitz made history last week when she became the first woman to receive a tool-and-die-making diploma from Milwaukee Area Technical College.

"It's something I'm very proud of," said Ewaskowitz, 20.

A 2010 graduate of Franklin High School, Ewaskowitz credits her dad, Ken Ewaskowitz, owner of Masik Tool and Die Corp. in Cudahy, for her feat.

"He's been working there since he's been 17," she said. "He used to teach the program at MATC. That's what got me started.

"I grew up watching him," she added. "My dad was definitely a huge influence."

He suggested that she take a metals class in high school, a class not promoted by teacher or counselors, she said. " don't think I would have ever learned about it if it wasn't for my dad."

Ewaskowitz, who is a machinist at Masik, followed his advice.

"I loved it," said Ewaskowitz. "I love the hands-on. I don't mind getting dirty."

Tool-and-die making, she explained, is the process of making products by creating a two-part mold (the tool), putting both parts in a press and injecting them with plastic (the die), which hardens.

"Basically, we make stuff that makes stuff," she said.

Masik is a job shop, which means it makes products for many manufacturers; it does a lot of work for the aerospace industry.

"Whatever our customers want," she said.

Learning the process, Ewaskowitz said, helps her appreciate common plastic-injected products she uses all the time. It could be a plastic drinking cup or an ice-scraper for your car.

"Everyday things you take for granted when you don't know how they're made," she said. "I like to be able to say, 'Hey, I made this.' "

She likes the idea of being a pioneer in the field too. "I'm able to say, 'I made it,' " she said. "I'm the first girl. I'm proud."

As the first female to receive a tool-and-die-maker's diploma from MATC, she wants to encourage other young women to enter the field, and she said she's looking for speaking engagements at area high schools to offer advice.

She said her presence in the MATC classes was not always welcomed by teachers, who "gave her a hard time.

"They're not used to having a girl in the shop."

Ewaskowitz considers herself somewhat of a tomboy. "I grew up playing with hot wheels," she said.

At the same time, she wants other women to know it is a viable career for them. "Job placement is 100 percent," she said.

And Ewaskowitz plans to continue in the field. She'll be entering MATC's mechanical design technology program next year to earn an associate degree.

"A lot of that is creating the blueprints … and with the experience I already have, it's going to give me an advantage."

JUST THE FACTS

There were 68,000 tool-and-die makers in the United States in 2011, and just 0.9 percent were women.

The metropolitan Milwaukee area was listed as having the fifth highest employment of tool-and-die makers. The hourly mean wage was $25.73 and the annual mean wage was $53,510.