DACC barbering program to start in March at Village Mall

Dec. 29—DANVILLE — Danville Area Community College's Vice President of Academic Affairs Carl Bridges said having DACC's barbering program start in 2023 in the Village Mall will be a good fit for a number of reasons.

The biggest is with the barbering students needing hours of practice, DACC officials are hoping people will be drawn to the barbering space in the mall to get haircuts and services done for the students to finish their degrees.

Bridges said they're putting the classroom space in the former GNC location in the mall on North Vermilion Street, down the Burlington wing. Next door was a nail salon DACC will use for the barbering clinic and salon.

"Barbering programs, cosmetology programs require that the students have what they call clinical hours, which are hours of them practicing on usually live individuals. But when they're not busy, they're practicing on mannequins," Bridges said.

"So, the space here will be set up like a barbershop" he said.

Bridges said he's worked with barbering and cosmetology programs before and has realized there is always space needed for products and for students to store their equipment.

"So, this is really going to be a great space," he said of the classroom and barbershop.

The classroom part will have a projection system for the instructor to teach.

DACC officials are hoping the barbering program will begin by the end of March, after spring break.

The DACC board in August approved a five-year lease, $1,800 a year for both spaces at the Village Mall to be used for the barber program.

DACC's barbering program will run all year-round on a two-year licensing track. Barbering instructor is Terry Gouard.

Bridges said they were hoping to start in January, but the challenge has been getting all of the approvals needed.

They've been waiting on the Higher Learning Commission's final approval of the program. After that, after both spaces' renovations are completed, the Illinois Department of Financial & Professional Regulation has to do a site visit to make sure the space meets the standards for a barbering program. Students take their licensure test through the IDFPR.

DACC terms are 16 weeks, but there are eight-week courses, and the barbering program is an eight-week course.

If the first session starts in March, then a second eight-week barbering course would be in the summer. Then in the fall they'd be back.

They can take 14 students at a time.

"We have a wait list of about 37 students," Bridges said. "There's some real interest in this."

"We're set for actually the next year," he said, about students.

The plan is to eventually have an evening program too. Then they'd have to hire a second part-time or full-time instructor.

Class at the start will be a day program running 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. five days a week.

"We have quite a few people who are interested, but a lot of them are interested in it as a second career. They have a job during the day, so they would rather do it during the evening. So, the evening would be perfect. It will take them longer to get through it of course," Bridges said.

He said they've had a variety of people interested in the barbering program.

He said they've seen a few people interested in the program who are looking to retire from their current job and get into barbering.

"Really, a majority of them are younger, juniors and seniors in high school and a lot of 20-somethings," Bridges said. "It's interesting because Terry is such a great success story in the community with what he's done with his shop. Other kids, relatives, family members see that and want to mirror it."

Bridges said Gouard, who owns A+ Cutz Barber Shop in downtown Danville, has been such a cheerleader for the program and getting people to be interested and sign up.

Local individuals who need to complete continuing beauty school/cosmetology education hours can do that with DACC as well.

The students in the barbering program will get a certificate and can continue on for an associate's degree. After the certificate, they can sit for the barber licensure with the state, Bridges said.

DACC previously had a Community Education site at the mall, but it closed about two years ago.

Earlier in December, DACC Maintenance and Facilites Executive Director Doug Adams said they were about 75 percent done with renovations of the barbering spaces.

"We're in the final leg," Adams said.

Construction started around October.

They were finishing carpet, putting in equipment and other work.

In the salon area, there will be two rows of seven chairs. The back area will be the shampoo area.

There will a front desk for walk-ins and appointments. That's part of the learning process for students too, the appointment systems and working with a point-of-sale system.

"All of that will be part of their training as well," Bridges said.

There will be discounted costs, promotions for the public.

Students will have to think about the business end too, besides learning how to cut hair, and think of ways to generate clients, business.