Career technical education is here to stay.
For students not intending to go to college or not prepared for higher education, career technical education may connect them with fulfilling jobs or specialized training.
Kathy Wyman, coordinator of the Merced County Office of Education's Career and Alternative Education Department, said parents and students need to know there is an alternative to high school programs preparing them for junior college or four-year colleges.
February is Career Technical Education Month in Merced County.
Wyman said high school counselors sometimes steer students in a direction they don't want to go.
"Not all students are college-bound and they need options after graduation," Wyman said. "Today's CTE provides students with academic subject matter taught with relevance, rigor and real applications. CTE also provides employability skills, from job-related skills or workplace ethics."
Learning by doing
Holly Newlon, assistant superintendent for career and alternative education for the Merced County Office of Education, said career and ROP courses can provide students with relevant academic courses.
"They help students understand how math and English are used in the workplace," Newlon said. "They often are the most enjoyable and relevant, the classes students look forward to."
Steve Gomes, county superintendent of schools, said learning by doing is the core of career technical education.
"Research suggests students will make 1.3 years of growth in one year when their instruction includes learning by doing," Gomes said.
Student benefits
Cynthia Xiong, a human resources generalist at the county schools office, took Wyman's ROP office occupations class during her senior year of high school. After completing the required in-class training, she was placed at Mercy Medical Center's human resources department.
Through the ROP class, Xiong said she gained real-world working experience and valuable life skills.
"I learned how a human resources office collaborates with the different departments to support a workforce; I gained technical skills that would be an asset to every employer I would subsequently work for," Xiong said. "I learned how to effectively communicate with all levels of management. I was offered a position at Mercy Hospital right after graduating from high school and from there my career took off."
The skills she acquired through the ROP program have been invaluable as she progressed in her career, Xiong said.
"Initially, I was very uncomfortable about being in the hospital environment due to certain beliefs that I grew up with," Xiong said. "However, Kathy encouraged me to give it a try and I am so glad that I did. It was the best thing I ever did."
Janice Rogge, ROP business occupations and technology instructor at Merced High School, said students enrolled in career technical education programs have the advantage of receiving experience in their future areas of employment.
"Many employers use this experience in determining who they will hire," Rogge said. "I often have employers contact me asking me to refer students when they are looking for new employees."
Large enrollment
Wyman said there are about 2,000 high school and adult students enrolled in Merced County and Chowchilla career technical education programs.
"CTE classes are engaging, exciting and often the key that sparks many students' interest for the first time," Wyman said. "When students connect, they learn, and that keeps students in school. CTE courses show students the relationship between what they learn in school and their future career."
ROP courses are offered at all high schools in Merced County and Chowchilla. ROP courses include sports and entertainment marketing, logistics and warehousing, creative design and merchandising, foundations in education, veterinary science, food science, marketing foundations, virtual enterprise, business occupations and technology, and medical occupations.
Several CTE courses are coordinated with Merced College so students can obtain college credit for their high school class. Merced College also has several CTE courses available to students that can lead to a career.
For more information about CTE courses, contact the county schools' ROP office at (209) 381-6688, or students can visit the career center on their high school campus.
Reporter Doane Yawger can be reached at (209) 385-2407 or dyawger@mercedsunstar.com.
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