Caldwell County Career Center High School

Our History

"From Vision to Reality"

In 1996 key leaders of Caldwell County business and industry, government, and education came to the table to solve problems that faced them. Those problems included an undesirable dropout rate, the need for high-tech training for the industrial and business workforce, and the reality that 85% of the students entering the system's three high schools indicated no plans to attend a post-secondary institution. Ongoing collaboration resulted in the concept of The Career Center at CCC&TI. Even though successful work-based career training programs existed nationally, Caldwell County was the first in North Carolina to form a partnership that resulted in public school bond funds being used to construct a career training center on a college campus. The Career Center would serve high school students during the usual school day and community college students in the afternoons and evenings.

The forging of an alliance among education, government, business and industry, and the citizenry resulted in a model plan to bring world-class training and education to students in Caldwell County. Careful planning and surveying of workforce needs in the area by a diverse Planning Team resulted in four career cluster areas: Business/Computers, Furniture Manufacturing, Building Trades, and Industrial Maintenance Technology. In addition, the concept included program features such as:

Focus on workplace values and ethics

Shared faculty, facilities, and curriculum resources among college, public schools, and industry;

Career guidance and job placement;

Emphasis on contextual learning through work-based learning experiences;

Involvement and development of the at-risk student population;

Inclusion of quality processes and practices.
It was at this point that financial resources began to emerge to support the concept. The public schools succeeded, with community support, to pass a local bond referendum for 2.6 million dollars in1997 to build the facility. The N.C. Legislature then gave their approval to the use of public school bond dollars being spent to build a facility on the community college campus. Caldwell Community College sought and received State Board Reserve funding to supplement its share of the costs associated with the planning and development of The Career Center. In addition, the public school system sought official designation through the Department of Public Instruction to have staff funding for planning. Simultaneously, key furniture industry leaders contributed a cash startup fund for assistance.

All of these funding streams combined to collaboratively move the Planning Team-composed of 30 business, community, and educational leaders-into the development and implementation phase for facilities, curriculum, financial support, and instructional staffing during the twelve-month period from July 1, 1998 to June 30, 1999. The Career Center team has sought additional funding from the Appalachian Regional Commission to provide state-of-the-art technological infrastructure for the facility. Furniture leaders have provided for the donation of almost $450,000 in equipment for that cluster of study. Additional sources of funding have surfaced to assist in providing equally first-class lab facilities for the business/computer, construction, and industrial maintenance clusters. Amazingly enough, all efforts have merged so that The Career Center opened to high school students in August 1999.

High school students who choose to enroll will be involved in three years of technical training at The Career Center, all three years in the same cluster area of study. They will be on campus studying Level 1 and Level 2 of the curricular area during their sophomore and junior years. As seniors they will be earning course credits by apprenticing or interning in an area business or industry. At the conclusion of their three years of high school study, the students will be highly trained in all of the basics related to their field of study and will have earned credits that count toward a post-secondary certificate, diploma, or degree. They can then go into immediate employment, finish the apprenticeship training while employed, and/or continue into the next level of study at the college.

The birth and growth of The Career Center concept in Caldwell County is remarkable for several reasons. First, it was born from business and industry interest in both supporting education and better preparing the future workforce for satisfying and productive careers. Second, it is truly a model of cooperation among secondary education, post-secondary education, local government, local industry, and the citizenry. Third, it will elevate vocational education to a new level in this state and nation by involving high school students in double and triple the usual number of technical credits that apply to graduation requirements. Finally, it has redefined "collaboration" and "partnerships" by developing a powerful consortium of diverse stakeholders in every phase of the design.

In a collaborative spirit transcending traditional partnerships, the Caldwell County community has actively embraced the vision and promise of the Career Center. The concept has enjoyed the active support of the JobReady Partnership Council, the Caldwell County Economic Development Commission, county and municipality governments, the Western Piedmont Council of Governments, the Chamber of Commerce, and local business and industry. In addition, efforts have received the endorsement of Governor Hunt's office, State Superintendent Mike Ward, the State Board of Education, and U.S. senators and congressmen. The emphasis throughout the process has been on the alignment of education with the needs of business and industry for continuous improvement of Caldwell County as a place to live and work.

The Career Center opened to approximately 75 students from the three area public schools - Hibriten High, South Caldwell High, and West Caldwell High - on August 9, 1999. Students stepped off the yellow buses onto the first high school campus situated on a community college campus in North Carolina and began their journey to develop competence in Industrial Maintenance Technology, Furniture Manufacturing Technology, Building Trades Technology, or Business and Computer Technology. During the second year, there were 100 students enrolled. Enrollment has continued to climb to an all-time high of 203 in year 2005-2006.

In early 2005, the Career Center was awarded a National Tech-Prep Demonstration Grant in the amount of $980,000 for the purpose of moving the half-day school to a full-day high school to graduate "Gold Collar Workers." The Career Center was one of only 11 schools in the United States awarded this grant. The school year 2005-2006 was a planning year. Five planning committees were formed: Business and Industry Buy-In and Support, Comprehensive Academic and Career Counseling, Curriculum and Instruction and Professional Development, Student Readiness, and Student Recruitment and Marketing. Members from the community, secondary schools, community college, and business and industry served on the committees. In January, the committees presented their results and recruitment of the first Junior class began.

Four academic teachers (one English, one Social Studies, and two Math) were employed in May of 2006. Continuous meetings were held with community college personnel to determine the curriculum in each major area so that students would be able to take advantage of college offerings when available.

In August of 2006, the first Junior class will emerge on the Caldwell County Career Center High School campus. The collaboration between Caldwell Community College and Caldwell County Schools continues to remain strong. CCC&TI has just purchased additional property to house their trucking and Auto Mechanics program; this will allow the Career Center High School to utilize all of J Building. This will allow room for the academic classes needed for this full-day high school.

The Career Center has smaller learning community principles at the heart of its design. It will be a secondary school that challenges students to step up to rigor, connect theory to application, and prepare for postsecondary credentials that lead to 21st century careers. Business partners have agreed to place Caldwell County Career Center High School students in work-based learning experiences, including internships, apprenticeships, and eventual employment. Students will be fully articulated into community college degrees and credentials and may transfer to baccalaureate institutions for further study. When students complete their articulated, 2 + 2 sequence, the Joint Student Services Support Team will assist in job placement in the appropriate field and/or additional post-secondary educational opportunities. The Career Center is on the go and growing.