The Texas Workforce Commission has awarded a $131,530 dual credit grant to Hale Center Independent School District to support career and technical education, the agency announced in an Aug. 5 news release.
The award targets a practical need: hands-on training equipment. Through the grant, Hale Center ISD will purchase professional-grade kitchen equipment to enhance its culinary arts program, giving students training aimed at high-demand occupations such as customer service representatives, food service managers and first-line supervisors of food preparation and serving workers, according to the release.
“The Texas Workforce Commission is proud to support Hale Center ISD with this grant to enhance their culinary arts program,” said TWC Chairman Joe Esparza. “By providing students with access to hands-on training with professional-grade equipment, we are building a skilled workforce that can keep the Texas economy thriving.”
Esparza presented the award at a ceremony at the Hale Center High School library attended by state and local officials and school staff, the agency said.
The grant comes through TWC’s dual credit program, which partners with colleges, independent school districts and open-enrollment charter schools to grow dual credit and career and technical education offerings. The programs are designed to help fill the need for skilled technical workers in local, in-demand industries by letting high school students take college or technical courses and earn credits toward a degree or certification, according to the commission.
For the Panhandle-area district, the new equipment is expected to put professional tools in students’ hands before graduation, part of the state’s broader push to connect classroom learning with workforce demand.