Photo taken by Sam Fraley
New Program at the Career and Technical Education Center
Every year, a multitude of students sign up to attend the Career Technical Education Center (CTEC), an external program that prepares students for trade careers. A recent addition to CTEC is their aviation program, located in a hangar on McNary Field off of 25th Street. As CTEC Aviation is in its second year, prospective students may have questions about how they can benefit from taking the program, or if it is even for them.
Jason LeRoy: Instructing in the Air
Jason LeRoy is the Aircraft Maintenance instructor at CTEC, operating out of the largest part of the hangar where tools, aeroplane parts, and other hands-on stations offer students an inside look at the trade.
“This is full immersion. We are at an airport, we can open up that [hangar] door. We can see planes flying around, and we generally do that when the weather is nicer. The district got this hanger, upgraded it to standards to house educational purposes, and all the other things that they added to make it more like a shop,” LeRoy said.
This offers students a closer look at the inner workings of their study, providing them a deeper understanding of what they are learning.
A prospective student may ask themselves if this program is the right decision for them, as the off-campus location, extra time, and higher difficulty of material given to students can leave them with many questions.
“Come in here knowing you want to gain more knowledge about your interest in aviation. What we eventually want them to do is explore career options. There are a lot of kids in here that know they want to be either a pilot, or a mechanic or a drone operator,” LeRoy said.
Benefits of a Place Like CTEC
There are additional benefits to attending programs like CTEC, which have a more refined and professional curve. Students learn professionalism as a component of their education, which applies to all areas of life.
The biggest thing, even if they are just here for exploring, is that part of their grade is professionalism. If they do not go the route of aviation, they will at least have that; and from what I have learned from people hiring anybody is that is the foundation,
LeRoy said.
Students get a hands-on education at CTEC that builds applicable skills and opens career paths. CTEC instructors help students find paths that suit their interests and skills, jump-starting them in their field.
“If you find this is the right career for you, you are interested in it… We will find the right channel for you after this. We are working with Lane Community College down south, and then [Portland Community College] up north, and they have piloting programs and aircraft maintenance programs as well as drone programs,” LeRoy said.
The aviation program at CTEC also welcomes students from a multitude of different backgrounds of experiences, creating a diverse and enticing learning environment.
“We have had kids that have not even been on an aircraft in this program, and we have kids that already have pilot hours, so full spectrum,” LeRoy said.
Exploring Interests and Self-Discovery
CTEC can be an outlet for students to explore their interests further and get a head start on accomplishing in their field.
I have always been interested in aviation… And then there is CTEC, and I am like, wait, I can do aviation stuff and start getting qualifications before college,
Anya Bebe, a student at the CTEC aviation program said.
Students at CTEC come to learn valuable skills in the trade, where they get to learn everyday skills that are applicable to both their career and their life.
“I feel like the main thing from piloting that I feel like I can take anywhere is aeronautical decision-making. It is basically a way of making decisions under high-pressure situations, which is common in aviation, and just in general, it is a really good skill to have,” Bebe said.
High Educational Coverage
CTEC covers multiple fields of study within aviation, such as piloting and aircraft maintenance, as well as core education for high school credit. Students also deal with hands-on work and experiences, allowing them to get ahead from an early age.
“There is a lot of hands-on work here, so no matter what aspect of aviation you are interested in, there is going to be a way to experience it,” Bebe said.
These opportunities offer students an experience that transcends simple paper-based work and allows them to explore the physical aspects of the trade in addition to the conceptual aspects.
“The pay scale for anything aviation is almost double… If you are a welder, you are gonna get paid a lot more as a welder in aviation, right? It is just more specialized,” James Hutches, an instructor at the program, said.
More Than Just Flying
Specializing in the aviation field may offer financial benefits when other skills, often offered at trade schools (such as welding) can be applied.
“You are learning all the knowledge that you have to have a lot of times when people… go out and get their license,” Hutches said.
Getting a head start in any field from a young age can be extremely beneficial, as it gives one more time to refine their skills and enter the workforce with baseline skills that can land them a wider range of opportunities, which is, in effect, the appeal of CTEC’s program.
An additional benefit to CTEC is the cost-saving element. CTEC is free for the student; the only requirement is that student submit their application in a timely manner. This gives a great deal of monetary value to the student, who would otherwise get that part of their education from a paid trade school.
“One of our students who was here for just one year, last year, is about to take his private pilot check right at Lane Community College here in the next week. And he already came back and said this has saved him several thousand just coming through here,” Hutches said.
Exclusive Opportunities
Students in the program may also find exclusive opportunities to explore the wider range of their field and gain a more complete understanding.
“We just went to Alaska Air’s maintenance facility… The opportunities you have here to be able to see and meet people in the industry is just unheard of,
Hutches said.
Benefits run beyond aviation-specific jobs alone; the aviation knowledge can give students a leg up in any field that crosses paths with aviation.
“Knowing how to speak aviation is really important. It gives you a leg up on… a lot of construction jobs at airports too,” said Hutches.
The CTEC Aviation program proves to be an extremely promising program that carries many benefits for prospective students of its respective trade. Students can earn certifications and develop applicable skills in and outside of aviation, leading to exclusive opportunities.
