Henrico high-schoolers get a ‘leg up’ in their career at Henrico Schools’ Career Rodeo

Melanie Ochoa, a senior in Henrico Schools’ practical nursing program, was showcasing how to take a patient’s vital signs at the division’s “Career Rodeo” event when she heard an employer walk by and say the magic words: “We’re hiring!”

HCPS’ Workforce and Career Development program held the annual Career Skills Rodeo Challenge on Jan. 23 at the Richmond Raceway complex, hosting 525 high school juniors and seniors from the division’s three Advanced Career Education Centers and 80 local businesses and employers. After having to push the event a day late due to snowy weather, CTE leaders were proud to say that a total of 409 student resumes were given out to employers at the rodeo.

The ACE centers host a total of 68 certification programs that range from welding and carpentry to firefighting and nursing to civil engineering. The programs offer a combined total of more than 4,000 work-based experiences and some programs also provide dual enrollment credits.

Ochoa, who is in the second year of her nursing program at Hermitage High School’s ACE Center, already has earned her certified nursing assistant license and after the next six months, will be able to get her licensed practical nurse license, allowing her to administer medication. She hopes to become a registered nurse after college, and with all of her experience and certifications, she's already off to a good start.

“Just starting off so young, it gives me more of a stepping stone and I feel like I have more time to figure out what it is that I want to do,” Ochoa said. “So I’m already on a higher level than I was before. So when I apply to be an RN, I already have so much experience doing clinicals and talking to people, and that gives me a much bigger advantage.”

Sean Smith, another senior in the nursing program, said his work over the last two years will give him a big boost when applying for college.

“Getting my nursing license straight out of high school is great,” he said. “That will look really good on transcripts and gives you a high probability for you getting into college. It shows that you’re serious about nursing.”

At the rodeo, students from the High Tech Academy at Highland Spring High’s ACE Center – a program focused on engineering – were faced with the task of building a prosthetic leg with only three empty soda cans, two pieces of cardboard, and some duct tape. 

Chibao Nguyen, a senior in High Tech Academy, said that not only do students learn physics, calculus, and several types of engineering through the program, they also receive 26 college credits through dual enrollment, pushing them at least a semester ahead in college.

“It gets you ahead of the game,” Nguyen said. “For me, it’s kind of a no-brainer, because you’re basically getting a semester ahead.”

Christian Taylor, a senior in the carpentry program at Highland Springs’ ACE Center, is set on becoming a carpenter right out of high school. Along with the other carpentry students, he has built two houses during the past two years and has been able to make connections in the industry through his two instructors.

But getting a job can’t be done for you, Taylor said, and putting yourself and your skillset out there – in arenas such as the Career Rodeo – is vital to pursuing a career.

“You’re still going to have to do some leg work yourself, and that’s kind of hard, remembering that you do still have to put yourself out there,” he said. “But having this experience, it does give you the leg-up.”

The ACE Center does give you two important achievements, however, Taylor said: it gives you the experience and the skills for a career, and it also helps you figure out what you like and what you don’t like.

“It’s a good way to kick start moving forward into a career because it kind of cuts out a bunch of middlemen and expedites the process. It gives you that advantage over people coming in without prior experience,” Taylor said. “And if you’re on the fence about doing something, the ACE Center is a great way to kind of know for sure whether or not you want to do it.”

Hayden Fox realized he wanted to be a welder when he was working in the garage with his brother and noticed an old welding machine. He applied to the welding program at the Academy at Virginia Randolph’s ACE Center and is now a senior in the program, ready to get into the industry right out of high school.

“It’s not just bookwork or classwork, you’re actually hands-on doing what you want to do for your career,” Fox said about the program. “It’s a big difference from just your average school education. And getting a high school diploma is great, but having that extra, ‘Oh, you did this! You did this program,’ it makes you stand out.”

The demand for welding in Henrico County is very high, said Fox’s instructor, Carlos Savory. Almost every year, Savory maxes out his welding classes. There is still a need for more than 300,000 welders across the nation, and that need is only growing, he said. 

“If you took every man, woman, and child in Henrico County and made them a welder, we still don’t have enough welders in the United States,” Savory said. “So the demand is there for students to learn welding, there’s a need for welding. And then there’s a general interest for sure, especially in Henrico County.”

Liana Hardy is the Citizen’s Report for America Corps member and education reporter. Her position is dependent upon reader support; make a tax-deductible contribution to the Citizen through RFA here.