From the Daily Mining Gazette, February 11, 2023; by Graham Jaehnig, Staff Writer
HANCOCK — Monday, Feb. 13, begins the annual Copper Country Intermediate School District’s Career and Technical Education (CTE) recruitment week.
[Programs included in the event include the Michigan Tech Mechatronics Bachelor of Science.]
Recruitment week, said CTE Director Shawn Kolbus, offers students from the nine high schools within the CCISD to spend a day touring the programs available through the ISD’s program.
It is an all-day event, from 9 a.m. to 2:20 p.m. Lunch is provided.
Program tours will occur at both the CTE building, located at 110 E. Quincy St., in Hancock, and at remote sites.
Programs at the CTE building are:
- Auto Technology
- Welding and manufacturing
- Business/Entrepreneurship
- Construction
- Health Careers
- Teacher Education
- Those programs and classes offered off-campus are:
- Finlandia – Graphics (Graphic Design and Marketing)
- Canal View – Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA)
- MTU – Mechatronics
Kolbus said that the recruitment is aimed at sophomore students, but if the high schools have students interested in the CTE program who have not previously toured the program, they are also welcome. This also includes home-school students from within the ISD.
Students in home-school programs interested in participating in the recruitment week can call the CTE office to arrange a day for attending.
“Thursday would be a great day for them,” said Kolbus. “There are 73 students signed up for Thursday.”
The tours will run in 20-minute rotations, said Kolbus. Students touring the facility in the morning will tour each of the programs at the CTE building and then will tour the remote sites after lunch, while those touring the remote sites before lunch will then spend the afternoon at the Quincy St. building.
“We split up the kids,” explained Kolbus. “Half come to the CTE building and we rotate between the programs in 20-minute increments. The other half of the kids jump on buses and they got to the CNA portion at Canal View and Finlandia’s Jutila Center, where graphic design is located. Actually a quarter of the students go there. The other quarter jump on another bus and go to Michigan Tech and tour mechatronics.’
“So while these kids are rotating here, those kids are rotating there, then they’re going to switch. And when they’re done, they come back here for lunch.”
After lunch, the kids that were at the CTE building then tour the other sites.
Home-schooled students can call Shannon at the CTE office at 906-487-9044 Ext. 300, to schedule a tour.