PHOTOS: Ivanka Trump talks higher education, workforce pipeline during Mooresville visit

Ivanka Trump, daughter of and adviser to President Donald Trump, paid a visit to the NASCAR Technical Institute in Mooresville on Wednesday to lend her support to the organization's mission.

The NASCAR Technical Institute provides students with training in the automotive and computer numerical-control machining industries. It opened in 2002.

Trump participated in a tour and program demonstrations while visiting the institute.

"The real reason we're here today is to talk about how we can ensure that this roaring economy works for all Americans and how we can close the skill(s) gap that has been growing in this country for many decades," Trump says. "You know how critical it is to engage with the private sector to help accomplish our goals of closing that skill(s) gap."

Trump notes the importance of offering other options besides a four-year college experience that can result in thousands of dollars of debt.

About 19.9 million students in the U.S. were projected to attend colleges and universities this fall, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. In the 2016-17 academic year, the average annual price for attending college in the U.S. was $17,237 at public institutions, $44,551 at private nonprofit institutions and $25,431 at private for-profit institutions, according to NCES. Those numbers include tuition, required fees and room and board.

Building additional lower-cost pipelines can help funnel more skilled workers into the economy, Trump says.

"We also can't have a workforce that doesn't have people ... who have the skills that are required to secure jobs in a modern economy," she says.

Others in attendance at Wednesday's event included Jennifer Lynn Bergeron, president of the NASCAR Technical Institute; Richard Childress, chairman and chief executive officer of Richard Childress Racing; U.S. Rep. Ted Budd, District 13; and U.S. Rep. Richard Hudson, District 8.