Students at Dixie Technical College, St. George, Utah, undisclosed date | Photo by Dixie Technical College, St. George News
Contributed Content – After months of planning and preparation, Dixie Technical College welcomed its first group of high school students into its electrical apprenticeship program earlier this month. This adds electrical training to the list of programs for high school students with previous morning groups.
“I see an opportunity to further benefit students and expand the electrical program,” said Dixie Tech Interim President Jordan Rushton. “I’m really excited about the new morning group of students who are just high school seniors.”
Feedback for this expansion has been enthusiastic from faculty and students. A group of 14 students started this group, and expansion plans are already in place.
“Our electrical internships fill up quickly, often months in advance,” said TJ Empey, an instructor in the program. “Not only can we help these high school students work with their programs, (but) we can help them develop skills that will be useful for a lifetime.”
Just because the students in this class are only high school students doesn’t mean that teachers are lagging behind when it comes to their training and teaching.
“We don’t want anyone to think we’re going to make the curriculum or the training for high school students,” said Jayden Priest, an instructor in the program. “These kids, like our other students, are doing the first year of the electric housing program. And they’re off to a great start.
The expansion of this program is the culmination of many months of hard work, coordination and collaboration with the Washington County School District and each of the local high schools.
“This expansion of our electrical program is another example of Dixie Tech serving Dixie Tech high school students and helping them get a head start on a strong career path.” “These students have access to high-quality training that leads to highly technical and well-paying careers.”
Dixie Tech is the first technical college in the state to open a team in electrical apprenticeship program for high school students only. Students who are actively enrolled in high school at Dixie Tech will have their tuition waived and only pay program fees. This makes it a great opportunity for every student.
“I love the program-based learning classroom,” said Crimson Cliffs High School Superintendent William Barlow. “It was very satisfying to try things and figure them out.”
Dixie Tech’s mission is to train students to learn important skills that will take them directly into the workforce, empowering them to support their families, strengthen their communities, and contribute to local industries by growing their careers. The college is constantly looking for opportunities to continue that mission by expanding programs to make quality technical education accessible to the community.
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