Meet Instructor and Industrial Technologist Joe Vanstrom

Joe Vanstrom says his job as program chair and industrial technology instructor is “a dream come true.” The 6’6″ former Iowa State offensive lineman stood a bit taller than most of the attendees at last week’s PLM Connection. He was on hand to share how Iowa Western community college is helping revitalize manufacturing. Joe has a bachelor’s and master’s of science in Industrial Technology. I sat down with him to find out a little more about his dream job.



Joe integrates NX in the classroom through real-world projects. He says “being able to apply a real-world application to your curriculum is going to be the best thing for a student to learn the material.”

That is a universal theme I hear from all the folks I talk to regarding academic programs in our industry. What real-world application would you recommend schools integrate in their curriculum?

– Dora