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MCCTC hosts hair and nail-a-thon
By Denise Dick
CANFIELD
Mahoning County Career and Technical Center cosmetology student Savanna Kalna bounced among a highlighting, a haircut and a pedicure, ensuring each client got due attention.
Tuesday marked the cosmetology program’s hair and nail-a-thon, where seniors raise money to fund their trip to Columbus to take their state cosmetology exams.
As a timer sounded, Savanna, 17, from Austintown, moved from cutting Kelly McMahon of Austintown’s hair, to check the color of Kerri Ferguson of Austintown, whose hair Savanna was highlighting. Both women are friends of the young stylist’s parents.
“We’re probably going to have to tone it,” she said of Ferguson’s color.
That will allow her to achieve the color her client wants. Highlighting is the most time-consuming of the tasks, Savanna said.
It takes a long time to section the hair and weave through it to place the foils and add the color. Longer hair takes even longer.
Shortly after rinsing Ferguson’s hair, Savanna began a pedicure for a young man.
Lisa Argiro, MCCTC’s cosmetology instructor, said the hair and nail-a-thon is a long-running MCCTC tradition. Each student books five clients for the day.
Students recruit their family and friends for the effort, invitations go to previous customers and walk-ins were accepted.
“Students get the real-world experience of booking their day, greeting and serving customers just like working in a salon,” Argiro said.
The students provided hair coloring, haircuts, blow drying, styling, manicures, pedicures and waxing. Most services were available for $8.
Marina Silvestri, an intervention specialist at the school, surprised one of her students, Samantha Combis, 18, from Poland, by booking an appointment for a wash, blow dry and style.
“I’m used to seeing her in an academic setting, but I wanted to see her in her career-tech area,” Silvestri said.
What she saw pleased the teacher.
“She was very professional and courteous,” Silvestri said. “She’s amazing. I’m very impressed.”
Samantha acknowledged that it was a bit odd to have her teacher as a client, but “It’s not too bad.”
Lilly Williams, 17, from Springfield, painted Kayla Pupio of Austintown’s fingernails a bright pink, except for the nails of both ring fingers.
Lilly coated them with black and added a white flower to each.
“I like to do flowers, but we don’t have a small brush here,” Lilly said. “I had to use a dotter.”
A dotter, an instrument with a wooden handle and a metal point, does just what its name suggests: adds dots to nail designs.
Austintown student Jason Pinto, 17, added highlights and lowlights to his mother Jessie’s hair.
“He’s doing a good job,” Jessie said. “He’s fast.”
After the color, Jessie planned to ask her son to trim her long tresses into a shorter ’do.
His mother was Jason’s second client of the day, but his first, his mother’s friend, got the works: cut, highlights, lowlights, waxing, pedicure.
The woman ran her fingers through her new style, showing off the new hue.
“You’re my new stylist, Jason,” she said.