STATE BUDGET BOOSTS CLARE-GLADWIN CTE EXPANSION
(CLARE) - Local students enrolled in the Clare-Gladwin Career & Technical Education program stand to benefit significantly with the passage of the new state budget for fiscal year 2023. Included in the financial plan negotiated by state lawmakers is $15 million for upgrades and expansion at the John C. Magnus Center, the campus for CTE programs serving 380 students in Beaverton, Clare, Farwell, Gladwin and Harrison.
Sheryl Presler, recently retired from Clare-Gladwin Regional Education Service District, serving as superintendent for 15 years, was instrumental in moving this funding forward.
“This is excellent news for our CTE students, and the impact will be far-reaching,” said Presler. “Not only will students have increased access to state-of-the-art equipment and training, but local employers will benefit from a market brimming with kids who are even more prepared than before to enter the workforce right here at home.”
Specifically, the funding will enable CTE to:
Expand facilities at the Magnus Center, currently home to CTE’s Construction Trades, Automotive Technology, Health Occupations and Agricultural Science programs; CTE will relocate its Culinary Arts, Criminal Justice, Education Occupations and Digital Media classes to the Magnus Center campus.
Provide the flexibility to consider a wide variety of potential new and expanded course offerings, in addition to enhancing and expanding programs already offered.
Dramatically reduce transportation time for students to and from their local districts, maximizing time spent in classrooms and laboratories. This will also aid in providing a safer, more secure experience for students.
Move CTE offices, work-based learning and counseling spaces to the site, allowing nearly all CTE students and staff to learn and work in one central location.
CTE Director Eric Johnson expressed CGRESD’s gratitude to state legislators in the House, Senate and Governor’s office, particularly House Speaker Jason Wentworth, with whom CGRESD Superintendent Tara Mager, Johnson and CTE Program Coordinator Clint Colosky, have been working to make the expansion a possibility.
“This budget funds our top priorities and addresses some of the biggest needs in our area,” said Wentworth, R-Farwell. “I’ve been working closely with local community leaders to find the best use for state funds, and I’m glad we were able to work together to make sure several local projects made the cut. These investments in our future are important to the people I represent, so they’re important to me.”
Aside from the most apparent benefits of better preparing CTE students for careers and college, Colosky said local communities will also have much to gain from the expansion.
“The infusion of a stronger, better-trained young workforce has always been CTE’s mission, and that will only get better with this development,” Colosky said. “We’ll also be able to offer new possibilities to the community, like a daycare run with Education Occupations students or a community café operated through our Culinary Arts program. We’ve already discussed collaborative possibilities with several local employers that are quite exciting.”
While planning has been in the discussion stage for several months, the project will now move forward with the new state fiscal year which began on Oct. 1. Although construction on the new facility probably won’t start before next fall, Mager is confident it’ll be worth the wait for all involved.
“We’ve worked hard to establish CTE’s strong reputation with parents, schools and employers, and we view this project as an affirmation that we’re doing things right and on a scale and scope that makes sense for our students,” Mager said. “We’ve seen a renewed emphasis on the importance of skilled trades training in the last decade, and the 30 percent jump in CTE enrollment this school year reflects that.”
ABOUT CTE: Clare-Gladwin CTE provides what was previously recognized in local high schools as vocational education or skilled trades training. CTE offers that training to juniors and seniors at high schools in Beaverton, Clare, Farwell, Gladwin and Harrison in many diverse career fields, including Automotive Technology, Culinary Arts, Construction Trades, Health Occupations, Advanced Integrated Manufacturing, Digital Media, Welding Technology, Education Occupations, Criminal Justice and Agricultural Science. Students learn valuable professional and personal skills that help prepare them for life after high school, whether it’s in college, the workforce or both. For more information, visit the CTE website at www.CTEitsworking.com.