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Beefing up Recruitment at the District’s State of the Art Career Centers
June 18, 2021 – As a Columbus City School student, the ability to pursue a career in technical education while in high school saved Joseph Rader’s life.
“I had missed 100 days of school as a high school freshman, which forced me to repeat the ninth grade twice,” said Rader. “I went to the career center and for two years went to school during the day, at night, and during the summer so I could graduate from South High School with my class and a carpentry certificate. I went to work right out of high school building homes.”
That was 30 years ago in 1991, but Joseph Rader is still a believer in career technical education at Columbus City Schools. So much so, he’s been working in the career technical education arena for CCS for the last 20 years. Currently, Rader is a Career Technical Academic Specialist at the Fort Hayes Career Center. He leads the charge to recruit more students into the District’s two state-of-the-art career centers at Fort Hayes and Columbus Downtown High School.
“While in high school, students can earn certificates in 33 different programs at the District’s career centers, including but not limited to construction, transportation, health services, cosmetology, public safety, manufacturing, and culinary arts,” said Rader.
Because of the pandemic, many students and teachers could not physically tour the District’s career center to physically meet teachers and see the physical learning spaces. That’s why Rader and his team created a virtual tour video to help people learn about the opportunities at the Fort Hayes Career Center and Columbus Downtown High School.
“The video provides an interactive tour of both career centers,” said Rader. “There are icons to click and instructions on how to learn more about the career technical education possibilities at Columbus City Schools.
The video also highlights the types of jobs students can apply for once they are certified from a District career center and the starting income.
For more information about Career Technical Education programs within Columbus City Schools, click here.