Photo from CTEC’s Facebook page.
For students who want to get a job in construction trades such as welding, masonry, carpentry, or heating and air conditioning, which require high-paying jobs, there is a short cut to doing so.
First-year students or juniors at Fort Scott High School and Uniontown High School have the opportunity to get a head start on these jobs, said Chris Mingarelli, director of the Fort Scott Community College Career and Technology Center at the Fort Scott Community College Career and Technology Center.
“CTE courses prepare students with the technical, academic, and employment skills needed for life after high school,” from the CTEC Facebook page. “The courses hone critical thinking, problem-solving, teamwork, and communication skills—all valuable tools needed to succeed in today’s workforce.”
“Beginning in the fall of 2023, we … offer Basics of Woodworking, OSHA 10 (Training for Certification) and Introduction to Craft Skills to high schools and colleges,” he said. “This is usually for juniors and seniors. It is a two-year degree program.”
“The teacher will be Michael Kasner, a teacher at Fort Scott High School,” he said. “He will be teaching double credit classes for those three semesters in high school. Uniontown will be able to send students to take those classes as well. The schools will coordinate what is best.”
The target student is any interested in a trade for a profession.
Kansas State offers Excel in its CTE initiative, for high school juniors and seniors to take free college tuition in approved technical courses offered at Kansas Technical Schools and Community Colleges.
“The state looks at places where there is a shortage of manpower,” he said.
“There are some small fees for the student, but not huge,” Mingarelli said.
After dual high school semesters and college credit, students will earn a nationally recognized certificate.” “Students who want to go into construction, this makes them employable after they graduate from high school.”
CTEC is located in Crawford County.
Destry Brown, the $234 Fort Scott superintendent, was “a key player in the startup of the Crawford County Trade and Technology Center,” Mingarelli said.
Formerly Superintendent of Schools in Pittsburgh, in Crawford County, Brown is currently Superintendent of Schools in Fort Scott.