WAUSAU, Wis. (WSAU) — New funding from the state will be helping expand program choices at Northcentral Technical College.
Governor Walker has been touting an expansion of the Wisconsin Fast Forward program which will spend an additional $3 million dollars to expand dual enrollment programs across Wisconsin.
NTC president Lori Weyers says the increased funding will allow them to create new career tracks for the dual enrollment programs that allow them to offer college level courses in high school. “Right now we do manufacturing, health, digital marketing, and this will allow us to move forward with a culinary academy. It will allow us to expand what we’re doing with manufacturing, and it will also allow us to open more doors in information technology.” Dual enrollment programs helped save students and parents $1.2 million in tuition last year.
The college has been tracking what sorts of jobs are needed through the enrollment programs, and Weyers says area business leaders have been calling for more culinary training in the region. “We did a needs assessment in our district and there was overwhelming need for more professionals as a chef, also in hospitality management.” She says that northern Wisconsin’s strong tourism industry needs those people to provide a strong base to help run businesses and act as managers.
State officials invested $35.4 million in the Wisconsin Fast Forward program in 2014, and the program has already funded 75 projects and trained over 2,000 students through workforce training programs.