Tuesday, December 25, 2007
By HAROLD GWIN
VINDICATOR EDUCATION WRITER
CANFIELD — Nearly 1,200 adult students passed through the doors of the Mahoning County Career & Technical Center in 2007.
Some came to learn a new trade, others to improve skills in their current occupation and still others just to learn more about a special interest.
That number doesn’t include an additional 500 adults who came to take part in the Adult Basic Literacy Education academic programs.
Adult interest in career-related programs that MCCTC has to offer has been growing, said Kathy Schlarb, adult education supervisor at the school.
Adult education, as directed by the Ohio Department of Education, comes in four instruction methods, and MCCTC offers them all, she said.
There is career development for people seeking a new vocation, career enhancement for those wanting to improve certain skills, special interest classes such as cooking or golfing and customized training that a company can arrange for its employees.
MCCTC, in a partnership with Jefferson Community College, is also launching a new five-year electrical apprenticeship program in January.
By the time participants complete that program, they will have earned an associate degree, Schlarb said.
The school does have articulation agreements with Youngstown State University on some of its medical and other programs, said Barb Griffith, MCCTC transitions coordinator. They allow students to earn credits for work completed if they go on to earn an associate degree at YSU.
Most adult education programs are two years, but the majority of the courses offered at MCCTC run for one year or less, making them an attractive alternative, Schlarb said. It offers a quick turnaround, and the curriculum is very specific to the particular course of study.
It can also make a difference in cost, she said. Fees for certified courses range from a low of around $1,000 to more than $8,000. MCCTC students are eligible for federal grant and loan assistance, and the school works with area agencies to help find financing, she said.
The career development courses are all certified, which means participants sit for a state or national certification test at the end of the program.
Medical assistant, medical billing specialist, phlebotomy, computer technology specialist, cosmetology, welding and modern machining are just some of the programs offered under that category.
“The people we serve need jobs, and they understand the importance of credentials that go with our career development programs,” she said.
There is a demand for trained individuals, said Abbey Thomas, diversified industrial training coordinator. The school gets calls from companies who want people right now. They want to hire trained people, he said.
Certified customized training programs are available too, from marketing/sales, to human resources, computer programs, pre-employment testing, industrial maintenance, fire safety and even Career Readiness Certification, which assesses an individual’s specific workplace skills.
The school has a mobile laptop computer lab that it can take on site to teach in a company boardroom or lunchroom, said Sandy Furano, business and industry training coordinator.
“It’s whatever the customer needs,” Thomas said.
“What we do increases the productivity of the work force,” Schlarb said.
Oversight of adult education in Ohio will move from the Ohio Department of Education to the Ohio Board of Regents next year, Schlarb said, adding that she would like to see OBOR create a “credit bank” that would allow students to earn credits that they can take with them to any public college in Ohio.
For details on program offerings, call (330) 729-4100.
gwin@vindy.com