This school is getting a $9 million expansion to prepare students for careers in welding, marine tech

Ben Anderson, The Times, Gainesville, Ga.
·3 min read

Jan. 12—The Hall County school board has unanimously approved $9 million in additional funding for two career technology labs at Lanier College and Career Academy, where high schoolers throughout the district can come to earn technical college credits and get job training in high-demand fields.

In partnership with Lanier Technical College, the two labs will prepare students for careers in welding, marine technology and diesel electrical systems, fields that are in high demand, school officials say. Students can earn Technical Certificates of Credit, making them immediately employable, and they can also earn college credits and pursue degrees in those fields at Lanier Tech.

"That's what the whole expansion is about, wanting to provide additional opportunities for students to earn college credits and become employable," said Rhonda Samples, principal and CEO of LCCA, a high school that serves as the epicenter of the district's work-based learning programs. "It's what our community needs. It's what our employers are asking for."

"Once they earn that Lanier Tech certificate, then they are employable," she added. "They will also be provided the opportunity to be able to continue on at the Lanier Tech campus."

The cost of the project, which was approved Tuesday, is expected to total about $9.4 million, and the expansion will increase LCCA's footprint by about 20,500 square feet. The expansion includes 4,500 square feet of additional warehouse and office space. Matt Cox, director of facilities and construction, said they plan to complete the project by November.

Craig Herrington, chairman of the Hall school board, said local businesses are in "desperate need" of welders. Once the expansion is complete, LCCA will have 20 welding booths and will be able to train six times as many students, from 10 to 60 students at a time.

He also spoke about the local need for marine repair technicians. "We live on one of the largest lakes in the state and nobody teaches marine repair, so it's a great career path for them," he said.

LCCA enrolls about 200 full-time students, 100 dual-enrollment students and 700 part-time students who travel from high schools throughout the district to participate in work-based learning programs. The school also offers certificates in early childhood care and education, criminal justice, industrial electronics, preparatory cooking and cosmetology.

"We've taken the approach that not everybody needs to go to college," Herrington said. "There's so many jobs out there now that are skills-based jobs. If you have a certain skill, you can go to work."

He said Hall County Schools offers more work-based learning opportunities than most other school districts across the state.

"There are other (school) systems that do portions of this. I don't know any that do as much as we do," he said. "You've got such a wide variety of students here that it makes it feasible, and the industries can take those students straight out of high school now and put them to work in high-pay positions."

Lanier Tech President Tim McDonald praised Hall County Schools' efforts in preparing students to pursue trade school or enter the workforce.

"This partnership will allow Hall County's high school students the opportunity to jump-start their careers by earning college credit and high-demand industry skills through a Technical Certificate of Credit (TCC) program in either Welding, Marine Engine Technology, or Diesel Technology," McDonald said in a statement. "The TCCs offered at LCCA will allow students to learn entry-level skills that prepare them for the workforce at high school graduation and, just as important, the opportunity to seamlessly continue their career training toward a College Diploma or Associate's Degree."