A look at Pickaway-Ross vocational school's oldest and newest programs

CHILLICOTHE— There has recently been a rise in students obtaining a career-technical education, locally the Pickaway-Ross Career & Technology Center welcomed almost 400 students with the class of 2023.

Statewide during the 2021-22 school year over 127,000 high school students pursued a career-technical education at one of Ohio's 99 career centers.

Pickaway-Ross Career & Technology Center Superintendent Jonathan Davis said students in this type of education have worked hard and are making valuable career connections. In celebration of these students, the career and technology center celebrated Career-Technical Education Month in February.

“While February is designated as CTE Month, the reality is that the demand from employers for students skilled in the trades, IT and human services makes every month CTE Month,” said Jason Vesey, Secondary Education director. “The secret is out: Career-technical education is the accelerated pathway to a successful career in Ohio.”

This accelerated pathway has been proven as the school boasts an over 90% placement rate for students and graduates.

Pickaway-Ross has been providing students the opportunity to learn about the workforce since its founding in 1974. Since then the school has adapted and eliminated older programs, like stenography, to fit with the demands of the workforce and also created new courses along the way.

The center currently offers programs such as Automotive Technologies, Commercial Carpentry, Cosmetology, Cybersecurity & Networking, Early Childhood Education, Health Administration, Health Science, Law & Public Safety, Machining & Advanced Manufacturing, RAMTEC (Robotics & Manufacturing), Veterinary Assisting and Welding.

One of the oldest and most adapted programs the school still offers is the cosmetology program. During this program, students receive training in hair, skin and nail care. They learn both the artistic side and the scientific knowledge that is needed to be successful. At the end of the program students can receive their License of Cosmetology from the Ohio State Board of Cosmetology.

Shirley Good, a cosmetology retired lab instructor, said the program has changed over time but the fundamentals have stayed the same. Students still learn skills and techniques to help them excel at any salon. After mastering the basics students are then able to go into more specialized areas if they want.

Donna Patrick, a current cosmetology lab instructor, said that the biggest change has likely been social media as now students can spread information in different ways. For example, she has students create tutorials and different hairstyles to put online. These tutorials have to have photos of the steps as well as well-written instructions. Patrick said she also teaches students how to look professional on social media.

The precision welding technologies program is also an older program at the school. This program teaches students the basic techniques needed to design, engineer, build and troubleshoot complex manufacturing solutions. Completion of the program results in students being prepared for entry-level jobs by becoming an American Welding Society Certified Welder.

When Bill Miller was a welding lab instructor he said businesses just needed someone who could weld, they did not necessarily need to be certified. This has changed a lot as today having a certification is highly necessary. Due to this Miller was able to do less testing on students and more projects.

The current welding lab instructor Tommy Collier, who was a student of Miller's adult education class, said one of the biggest changes since his time as a student has been the technology and equipment that is used. While the basic tools are still being used by many welders are now using lasers to weld and robotic machinery.

Despite being one of the older programs at the school Collier said his shop is one of the most advanced in the area allowing students to learn the new technology they will be working with once in the workforce.

Staying up to date on this new technology and making sure students are certified also ensures that they will easily find placement in the workforce. Almost all of Collier's senior students have been recruited for placement over the last few years due to the high demand for welders.

The veterinary assisting program is one of the newer programs in the school. This program teaches students to work with live animals and how to study their internal and external anatomical parts as well as how to perform health assessments.

Despite this program being one of the newer ones -- it was started in 2015 -- it has already had many interested students. Lab instructor Rebecca Hopkins said there is even sometimes a waitlist to get into the program.

Hopkins is a teacher as well as a vet tech so she is able to give students a firsthand look at what it is like in a vet's office. She said she often tells her students what she experiences to give them a better understanding of the career. As it is a new program Hopkins also has to often come up with her own solutions for hands-on teaching without actually having an animal at the school. Some pieces of training she can use her dog for but others, like ear tagging farm animals, requires some creativity. Instead of bringing in sheep and pigs Hopkins has students practice on fake skin that is often used by tattoo artists who are practicing.

Shelby Reeves is a reporter for the Chillicothe Gazette. You can email her at SReeves@gannett.com or follow her on Twitter @Shelby_Reeves_

This article originally appeared on Chillicothe Gazette: A look at Pickaway-Ross vocational school's oldest and newest programs