HARRISBURG, Ill. (March 22, 2021) – Southeastern Illinois College has been reinventing how they introduce their Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs to high school students. Starting last October, various departments teamed up to create a video that would take the place of the usual Spotlight Days to introduce high school students to instructors and programs.
Lori Cox, Associate Dean of Workforce and Community Education for SIC, explains, “Since high school students can’t come to us this year because of the pandemic, we had to come up with a way to share the information they would normally learn on visits to the college.”
The video campaign is #CTExplore, and in about 25 minutes, it runs through information about the various CTE programs, basic information about the college admissions process, what the college has to offer, and how to get started. Programs featured include:
- Certified Nursing Assistant
- Cosmetology
- Criminal Justice
- Diesel Technology
- Information Technology
- Nursing
- Outdoor Recreation
- Outfitter Wildlife Management
- Pharmacy Technician
- Phlebotomy
- PowerSports Technology
- Veterinary Assistant
- Welding
The video is also broken down into chapters so students can skip ahead to listen to the instructors whose programs interest them most. The video can be found on the Southeastern Illinois College YouTube channel, as well as the webpage www.sic.edu/cte.
According to the webpage, “Each program has an advisory board with a direct connection to leaders in your specific industry. That means you’ll build a network before you even graduate.”
“At a time when the nation is looking to hire more skilled trades and technical employees, and 4-year degree costs have exploded, it is simply smart to go to a community or technical college, learn the skills you need with a one or two-year certificate or degree, and get to work,” said Cox. “And the best news is that it’s affordable to begin with and about 70 percent of our students receive some form of financial aid or scholarships to prevent them from leaving college with a lot of debt.”
Some unique facts about SIC programs, and key reason SIC is tops in career and technical education include:
- SIC’s Diesel Tech program is the only National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation (NATEF) certified community college program in Illinois. All instructors are NATEF and National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) certified.
- SIC’s Outfitter Wildlife Management program is one of the only programs of its kind in the nation. Upon completion, if they choose hunting guide as their career, students can work with the Illinois Small Business Development Center on campus to start up their own business.
- SIC’s PowerSports Technology program is so rare that industry professionals asked SIC to start up a program to help prepare qualified technicians for open jobs, and it was also asked (and accepted) to become a Polaris University Partner.
- SIC’s Nursing programs are tops in the state with 100% state exam pass rates or close to it on the state exam for many years. Most have jobs lined up at the end of their programs.
- SIC’s Welding program offers American Welding Society certification in one year.
- SIC’s Information Technology Program is one of the first colleges to offer the Google IT Support Professional credential, preparing students for entry level IT jobs with just one class.
- SIC’s Cosmetology program boasts 100% state exam past rates for the past two years.
Additionally, most of SIC’s core CTE programs are taught by full time faculty and/or instructors who have worked in those fields and know what employers expect when those students leave the program. Students get hands-on experience and have an opportunity to meet with employers in the industry.
For more information about SIC’s CTE programs and to view the video, visit www.sic.edu/cte.
