NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — HutchCC President Dr. Carter File notes during Career and Technical Education Month® that those programs have been possible for a few years now in Kansas.
"Career and Technical Education has been aided and promoted so much by the Senate Bill 155 act that was put in place about 10 years ago," File said. "Now, high schools and Hutchinson Community College can partner together to offer college classes in the Career and Technical Education area to high school students."
This really helped especially moderate income Kansas kids get into these fields.
"It's really just provided a great pathway for students who, again, want that technical education, want to do more of the hands on type career than an academic career," File said. "It's given us a wonderful pipeline of students."
Not all of the classes that HutchCC gives credit for happen on their campus.
"It opened up Career and Technical Education to students that couldn't afford it before, because they couldn't afford the tuition to take the classes," File said. "The state of Kansas is paying the tuition, which the students, essentially pay to us. No real dollars exchange hands between us and the student, it all comes from the State of Kansas. That opened up the doors to a lot of students who, previous to that, their family may not have been in a position where they could actually afford to send them to college. Depending upon the relationship we have with the district, if the district provides the space and the faculty member and the materials and things like that, we then, do a revenue sharing with the district, so we reimburse them for their costs."
For more information on Career and Technical Education, check with your high school counselor, or go online to hutchcc.edu.
CLICK HERE to download the Hutch Post mobile app.
CLICK HERE to sign up for the daily Hutch Post email news update.