Indian Trails Career Cooperative receives $100,000 grant

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Published: Friday, 12 February 2016 20:39

MONTICELLO - Indian Trails Career Cooperative has been awarded a $100,000 grant from the Indiana Department of Education.  

The focus of the grant is to develop, improve, and expand career and technical education (CTE) programs in the recruitment and retention of non-traditional students.

Non-traditional students are defined as either males or females who are underrepresented in the workforce. Girls are non-traditional in welding, while boys are non-traditional in health careers.

The CTE teachers in any of the 11 schools belonging to Indian Trails may submit a proposal to Jim Stradling, director of Indian Trails.

Indian Trails serves Carroll, Delphi, Frontier, Kankakee Valley, North Newton, North White, Rensselaer Central, South Newton, Tri-County, Twin Lakes, and West Central.

Stradling said, “I am thrilled that Indian Trails was named a recipient for this grant. The grant is competitive and we were awarded one last year, so I really thought our odds of being selected again were pretty slim. This year we are asking the CTE teachers to write a proposal of what activity they want to do that will help recruit and retain nontraditional students. Schools are planning a wide variety of activities. Schools are offering summer workshops in welding, STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), graphics, and health science. Some schools are offering a one-day tour of a manufacturing facility and a trip to Purdue to meet with the Women in Engineering members.”

The goal is eliminate gender bias. Indian Trails wants any student to feel free to enroll in whatever CTE course they wish.

"We have some stereotypes that need to be knocked down, Stradling continued. "Labor market projections show 60% of the jobs in the next 10 years will require more than a high school diploma but, less than a four-year college degree. CTE students are the future workforce that will fill those projected jobs."