Gateway prepares Holmes High School students for careers

Gateway Community & Technical College and Covington Independent Public Schools will sign a memorandum of agreement tonight at the Covington Board of Education Meeting. This educational partnership will provide direct entry into advanced manufacturing programs at Gateway.

The Gateway/Holmes Advanced Manufacturing Program (AMP) provides yet another opportunity for students to complete high school, well on their way to a career, said Gateway President/CEO Dr. Ed Hughes. We are pleased to partner with Holmes High School and Covington Independent Public Schools to provide this pathway to the high-pay, high-demand field of advanced manufacturing.

Holmes students can earn up to 25 college credits and a certificate in welding. The courses completed in this program will be treated as dual credit for both institutions and lead to careers in advanced manufacturing. This program will create a pipeline of highly skilled workers for high paying advanced manufacturing jobs in Northern Kentucky.

This partnership will address many needs, Covington Superintendent Alvin Garrison said. It will prepare our students to get college and career ready, and it will help meet the needs of the business community that seeks highly skilled workers.

Students who complete the program during their junior year will have the choice of continuing to take targeted courses toward the Associate in Applied Science (AAS) degree in welding technology or branch off and start other courses in advanced manufacturing programs such as industrial maintenance technology, manufacturing engineering technology, computerized manufacturing and machining or electrical technologies.

Upon high school graduation, students could have a certificate in tack welding, and the hours invested in the certificate will apply toward an AAS degree. With the tack welding certificate, high school graduates can go to work right away at an entry level welding job.

The Advanced Manufacturing Program (AMP) will help Holmes students kick-start their college career by earning college credits before they even graduate from high school, said Shelby Krentz, Director of Early College Initiatives at Gateway. This will save students time and money because they will graduate from Holmes with up to half of the credits they need to earn their Associate degree. Most importantly, they will have training and experience in this high-demand field and will have built confidence in their ability to succeed.