High School Students Explore Careers at Honolulu Community College

February is Career and Technical Education Month

High school getting hands-on.

Students made tool boxes in Sheet Metal and Plastics.

On February 20^th, over 300 high school Juniors and Seniors and 40 teachers from across O‘ahu flooded the Honolulu Community College campus for a day of college exploration.

In celebration of National Career and Technical Education (CTE) month, I Love CTE Day, is the College’s annual high school recruitment event. Students were broken into 15 break-out sessions based on their career interest filled with lots of hands-on activities for the students.

At noon, Honolulu’s renowned Fashion Technology program produced a memorable fashion show spectacular in the cafeteria featuring the hottest student designs. 

12 public high schools participated in today's event:  Campbell, Castle, Farrington, Hawai‘i School for the Deaf and Blind, Kailua, McKinley, Nanakuli, Olomana, Pearl City, Radford, Roosevelt and Waialua.

“In partnership with Gear Up Hawai'i, we wanted to expose students to the wide variety of CTE and Liberal Arts programs we have to offer," explains Michael Barros, Director of Secondary Programs.  "Some of these programs are exclusive to Honolulu CC. Students experienced campus life, asked faculty questions, and even had an opportunity to apply for the Fall 2015 semester.” 

February is Career and Technical Education month—a great opportunity to acknowledge the important contribution CTE is making to individual citizens, our economy, and our nation. 

“Our theme is Building a Community of Heroes. Within every community is the demand for technical professionals who are able to provide needed services. At the community colleges, we are preparing individuals to have successful careers in their area of interest while making a livable wage,” Barros continues.

The University of Hawai‘i’s Hawai‘i Graduation Initiative is about creating opportunities and transforming lives for students and their families through higher education by increasing adult degree holders in Hawaiʻi to 55 percent of the population by 2025. I Love CTE Day is an opportunity to make a lasting impression on high school students who are deciding on a career path for their future.

View the photo gallery https://flic.kr/s/aHsk8ERqsR