News
Career & TECHNICAL Education
Whether you hear them called trades courses, vocational courses or career and technologies courses, the courses offered in the CTE Department at Luna Community College all lead to the same goal: A JOB! Some high school students have interests that are beyond traditional courses like reading, writing and arithmetic. Some adults decide that they don’t want a “9 to 5” desk job. The certificate courses in CTE are foundational to adult education and are available for people who like to work with their hands and their heads. Let’s be clear; today’s certificate courses are not for dummies. Most involve using high-tech equipment.
The courses we offer now may not be the same courses we offer tomorrow. Once you become a life-long learner, you prepare yourself for the opportunities in a changing job-market. Some courses like Automotive Technology, Automotive Collision Repair, Barbering and Cosmetology, Building Technologies, Culinary Arts, and Welding prepare a student to go to work in a good-paying job almost anywhere. Add to these certificate programs the courses leading to an Associate of Applied Science degree, and you may be adding the skills you need to be your own boss and own your own business.
We are always looking for cutting-edge programs that could be beneficial to the individual student as well as the community. A certificate in Sustainable Resource Development could lead to a job in wind or solar energy. Soon we may adding courses related to electric cars. No one says an artist can’t take a welding course and become a metal sculptor. And most cosmetologists consider themselves to be artists.
CTE students can begin learning their skills as Dual Credit students in high school and continue down new career pathways. Veterans can get certified in new skills that will take them on new adventures. Retirees can come back to school to develop the skills they have always wanted to become skilled hobbyists. But you have to be prepared to do the work and past the tests.
How a CTE program fits your life goals and personal interests is obviously up to you. Luna Community College has been placed in this community in this part of Northern New Mexico to serve the citizens here. But there may be certificate courses here that aren’t available where you live. And sometimes one of these certificate courses might lead to a job opportunity away from here. We are here to help you clarify your life goals and to develop the skills necessary to turn those personal interests into something other than just dreams. We are here to discuss your needs and wants. And if we can’t find a solution today, we will still be here tomorrow.
— Dr. John Thompson, Career & Technical Education