Vo-tech is cool.
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wrote on 3 Mar 2025, 02:12 last edited by jon-nyc 3 Mar 2025, 02:31
Curious how many shop classes people here took.
I remember three. Woodworking, small engine repair, and auto mechanics. I always knew I’d go to college for stem (though we didn’t call it that at the time) but I just found shop interesting.
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wrote on 3 Mar 2025, 03:31 last edited by
@jon-nyc I badly wanted to take shop in junior high, but girls weren’t allowed. So I said, okay, I’ll take home economics, but mom didn’t allow me that saying, oh you can learn to sew here at home. It seemed everything school wise was geared toward gaining university entrance, not real life. I’m sure, given the choice, my brother would’ve done something in the trades too. He was a policy writer, planner, manager with our city, … but his garage in his own home, turned into a welding shop.
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wrote on 3 Mar 2025, 03:35 last edited by
Woodworking and metal shop. You got to play with welders and stuff and we had great money card games in the metal room.
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wrote on 3 Mar 2025, 04:08 last edited by
Belt sander races ...
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wrote on 3 Mar 2025, 12:22 last edited by
Woodworking, metal working, and 1 basic electronics class.
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wrote on 3 Mar 2025, 12:45 last edited by Doctor Phibes 3 Mar 2025, 12:46
Does electronics count as workshop? It was kind of obligatory if you did electronic engineering, so I guess I've got that.
Nobody in their right mind would let me anywhere a band saw. In fact, just letting me into a building containing a workshop would be pretty risky. If I wander into the little machine shop we have in the lab today I typically see the technicians quietly preparing their escape route.
No, I didn't do any.
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wrote on 3 Mar 2025, 12:45 last edited by Jolly 3 Mar 2025, 12:49
Because of desegregation, a magnet school was established at one high school in town. That necessitated closing my high school's industrial arts program.
The magnet school worked a bit for students in town, but the country schools got screwed. What 16 year-old is driving a 60 miles a day to take a shop class? We finally were given a Vo-Ag program and it was very successful. Our teacher was young, energetic, resourceful and a former county agent. My grandmother let him use four acres on her place for a truck farm. He used the leftover shop and welding equipment for farm-level instruction in basic welding, carpentry and some wiring. He established a robust FFA program, and we had a large livestock program (show competition and judging). We were so successful as a club, we bought a GMC van with fund-raising and truck farm profits.
Yet, as wonderful as that was at giving students a smattering of skills, it was never a job-worthy program. The rural students who would have benefited the most from a high school program in carpentry/woodworking, auto mechanics, welding, etc., didn't have the opportunity.
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Because of desegregation, a magnet school was established at one high school in town. That necessitated closing my high school's industrial arts program.
The magnet school worked a bit for students in town, but the country schools got screwed. What 16 year-old is driving a 60 miles a day to take a shop class? We finally were given a Vo-Ag program and it was very successful. Our teacher was young, energetic, resourceful and a former county agent. My grandmother let him use four acres on her place for a truck farm. He used the leftover shop and welding equipment for farm-level instruction in basic welding, carpentry and some wiring. He established a robust FFA program, and we had a large livestock program (show competition and judging). We were so successful as a club, we bought a GMC van with fund-raising and truck farm profits.
Yet, as wonderful as that was at giving students a smattering of skills, it was never a job-worthy program. The rural students who would have benefited the most from a high school program in carpentry/woodworking, auto mechanics, welding, etc., didn't have the opportunity.
wrote on 3 Mar 2025, 13:07 last edited by@Jolly said in Vo-tech is cool.:
Because of desegregation, a magnet school was established at one high school in town. That necessitated closing my high school's industrial arts program.
The magnet school worked a bit for students in town, but the country schools got screwed. What 16 year-old is driving a 60 miles a day to take a shop class? We finally were given a Vo-Ag program and it was very successful. Our teacher was young, energetic, resourceful and a former county agent. My grandmother let him use four acres on her place for a truck farm. He used the leftover shop and welding equipment for farm-level instruction in basic welding, carpentry and some wiring. He established a robust FFA program, and we had a large livestock program (show competition and judging). We were so successful as a club, we bought a GMC van with fund-raising and truck farm profits.
Yet, as wonderful as that was at giving students a smattering of skills, it was never a job-worthy program. The rural students who would have benefited the most from a high school program in carpentry/woodworking, auto mechanics, welding, etc., didn't have the opportunity.
I will say it again, I would love for Pell Grants to be restricted to trade schools and community colleges for the first two years out of HS. You want to help families escape poverty? Don’t convince the brightest kids that they need to to have a college degree to escape and send them to a state school where they graduate 4 years later with a communications degree and $120K in student loans that are capitalizing interest…
A Pell Grant will cover a trade school education in full and the kids can find a decent paying job. If they want to, they can likely find a job that will also provide a tuition reimbursement if they decide to pursue a college degree.
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@Jolly said in Vo-tech is cool.:
Because of desegregation, a magnet school was established at one high school in town. That necessitated closing my high school's industrial arts program.
The magnet school worked a bit for students in town, but the country schools got screwed. What 16 year-old is driving a 60 miles a day to take a shop class? We finally were given a Vo-Ag program and it was very successful. Our teacher was young, energetic, resourceful and a former county agent. My grandmother let him use four acres on her place for a truck farm. He used the leftover shop and welding equipment for farm-level instruction in basic welding, carpentry and some wiring. He established a robust FFA program, and we had a large livestock program (show competition and judging). We were so successful as a club, we bought a GMC van with fund-raising and truck farm profits.
Yet, as wonderful as that was at giving students a smattering of skills, it was never a job-worthy program. The rural students who would have benefited the most from a high school program in carpentry/woodworking, auto mechanics, welding, etc., didn't have the opportunity.
I will say it again, I would love for Pell Grants to be restricted to trade schools and community colleges for the first two years out of HS. You want to help families escape poverty? Don’t convince the brightest kids that they need to to have a college degree to escape and send them to a state school where they graduate 4 years later with a communications degree and $120K in student loans that are capitalizing interest…
A Pell Grant will cover a trade school education in full and the kids can find a decent paying job. If they want to, they can likely find a job that will also provide a tuition reimbursement if they decide to pursue a college degree.
wrote on 3 Mar 2025, 13:32 last edited by@LuFins-Dad said in Vo-tech is cool.:
@Jolly said in Vo-tech is cool.:
Because of desegregation, a magnet school was established at one high school in town. That necessitated closing my high school's industrial arts program.
The magnet school worked a bit for students in town, but the country schools got screwed. What 16 year-old is driving a 60 miles a day to take a shop class? We finally were given a Vo-Ag program and it was very successful. Our teacher was young, energetic, resourceful and a former county agent. My grandmother let him use four acres on her place for a truck farm. He used the leftover shop and welding equipment for farm-level instruction in basic welding, carpentry and some wiring. He established a robust FFA program, and we had a large livestock program (show competition and judging). We were so successful as a club, we bought a GMC van with fund-raising and truck farm profits.
Yet, as wonderful as that was at giving students a smattering of skills, it was never a job-worthy program. The rural students who would have benefited the most from a high school program in carpentry/woodworking, auto mechanics, welding, etc., didn't have the opportunity.
I will say it again, I would love for Pell Grants to be restricted to trade schools and community colleges for the first two years out of HS. You want to help families escape poverty? Don’t convince the brightest kids that they need to to have a college degree to escape and send them to a state school where they graduate 4 years later with a communications degree and $120K in student loans that are capitalizing interest…
A Pell Grant will cover a trade school education in full and the kids can find a decent paying job. If they want to, they can likely find a job that will also provide a tuition reimbursement if they decide to pursue a college degree.
Maybe.
My wife's family was not wealthy. They raised a lot of their own food, but there were plenty of nights where squirrel or rabbit was for supper. Her brother is as redneck as I am and if you met him at a camelia show (his retirement passion) you'd peg him as just another ol' country boy.
But my BIL won the high school advanced math competition in Louisiana. Twice. Back in the days with slide rules. I swear, the guy could do logarithms in his head.
He went to college and graduated with a 4.0 in chemical engineering. The Pell Grant certainly helped him.
I guess I'm saying there are some really bright kids out there who need to go to university on a Pell Grant, not to Vo-Tech.
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@LuFins-Dad said in Vo-tech is cool.:
@Jolly said in Vo-tech is cool.:
Because of desegregation, a magnet school was established at one high school in town. That necessitated closing my high school's industrial arts program.
The magnet school worked a bit for students in town, but the country schools got screwed. What 16 year-old is driving a 60 miles a day to take a shop class? We finally were given a Vo-Ag program and it was very successful. Our teacher was young, energetic, resourceful and a former county agent. My grandmother let him use four acres on her place for a truck farm. He used the leftover shop and welding equipment for farm-level instruction in basic welding, carpentry and some wiring. He established a robust FFA program, and we had a large livestock program (show competition and judging). We were so successful as a club, we bought a GMC van with fund-raising and truck farm profits.
Yet, as wonderful as that was at giving students a smattering of skills, it was never a job-worthy program. The rural students who would have benefited the most from a high school program in carpentry/woodworking, auto mechanics, welding, etc., didn't have the opportunity.
I will say it again, I would love for Pell Grants to be restricted to trade schools and community colleges for the first two years out of HS. You want to help families escape poverty? Don’t convince the brightest kids that they need to to have a college degree to escape and send them to a state school where they graduate 4 years later with a communications degree and $120K in student loans that are capitalizing interest…
A Pell Grant will cover a trade school education in full and the kids can find a decent paying job. If they want to, they can likely find a job that will also provide a tuition reimbursement if they decide to pursue a college degree.
Maybe.
My wife's family was not wealthy. They raised a lot of their own food, but there were plenty of nights where squirrel or rabbit was for supper. Her brother is as redneck as I am and if you met him at a camelia show (his retirement passion) you'd peg him as just another ol' country boy.
But my BIL won the high school advanced math competition in Louisiana. Twice. Back in the days with slide rules. I swear, the guy could do logarithms in his head.
He went to college and graduated with a 4.0 in chemical engineering. The Pell Grant certainly helped him.
I guess I'm saying there are some really bright kids out there who need to go to university on a Pell Grant, not to Vo-Tech.
wrote on 3 Mar 2025, 13:45 last edited by@Jolly said in Vo-tech is cool.:
@LuFins-Dad said in Vo-tech is cool.:
@Jolly said in Vo-tech is cool.:
in his head.He went to college and graduated with a 4.0 in chemical engineering. The Pell Grant certainly helped him.
I guess I'm saying there are some really bright kids out there who need to go to university on a Pell Grant, not to Vo-Tech.
Great, notice I also mentioned Community College for the first 2 years? That Chemical Engineering Degree contained at least 32 credits that could be acquired at a community college for 1/10th the cost of a university. And if you’re maintaining your GPA and studies through the first 2 years, you’re more likely to finish the second 2 years for the degree. I would love to know how much unpaid student loan debt has been racked up by poor kids that get 1-2 years in and drop out… They typically don’t go on to trade schools because they are poor as hell.
And let’s not forget the difference in tuition rates and Pell Grant rates from when your guy went to school vs today. In 1980, Pell Grants covered 75% of the average 4 year college tuition. Today it’s less than 25%, and not including room and board.
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wrote on 3 Mar 2025, 13:56 last edited by
Last year, over $27 Billion was given out in Pell Grants. 45% of those recipients won’t graduate. https://feed.georgetown.edu/access-affordability/where-pell-grant-recipients-are-most-likely-to-succeed/