In 2025, the number of students enrolled at Sinclair Community College from either a career technical center or a CTC program at a high school totaled 748 students, according to the college.
I knew a handful of fellow students while in high school who attended career tech programs, but 12 years ago, high schools were much more focused on getting students to go to college, which was my path.
“I think that everybody’s gotten a lot better about career awareness and letting students get to know more than just what their parents do, what a teacher is, and what a firefighter and police officer do,” said Brett Doudican, curriculum supervisor at the Greene County Career Center.
Career tech isn’t an automatic pathway to community college, as many career tech students pick a four-year degree. But career tech education centers around what education students need to get the kind of job they want, and community college degrees can lead to those jobs.
The state of Ohio has also been promoting jobs like nursing and welding, both of which are commonly offered in career tech education, as some of the “in-demand” jobs that are desirable to both companies looking to invest in Ohio and workers who would be paid more in those roles.
The difference is that there’s now an increasing number of students who are attending community college based on their career tech experience, with the goal of getting a “living wage” job, or a job that can support a family.
According to the living wage calculator from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the living wage for an adult with one child in 2025 in Montgomery County is about $36.72 per hour. A single, childless adult in Dayton would need to earn around $19.14 per hour to support themselves.
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
“Career technical education is no longer a fallback like I think it once was,” said Rena Sebor, senior vice president and provost at Sinclair Community College.
Instead, it’s a strategic pathway, she said, especially since more employers will pay for a college degree.
“It typically leads to upward mobility, economic mobility, and it gives them an opportunity for some continued education because they’ve been successful in technical education,” she said.
There’s always been a connection between career tech school and community college, but Sebor said she thinks part of the increase in Sinclair’s enrollment – about 6% higher this fall than last fall – is due to several factors, including college credit plus, career technical programs, and a prison education program.
Sebor said the popularity of career tech and community college may also be due to the rising cost of a four-year degree and the jobs that are available for students coming from career tech.
“I do believe we have more family decisions and family discussions around the dinner table now about can we afford for you to go to college?” Sebor said.
Doudican said there’s also been significant state support for career tech pathways, such as a way to earn a licensed practical nursing (LPN) degree while in high school and continue that pathway into nursing at Sinclair or Clark State College, located in Greene County.
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
“That collaborative nature really allowed us to just design pathways that are super helpful for students and just maintain those relationships,” Doudican said.
Sebor said she thinks the change toward including career tech students in their own high school has also made a difference to get students interested in attending.
“I also think the big change from back when I was in school – which was a long time ago – is career tech education has done a really good job of making sure that the high school student in career tech ed still feels very much a part of their home high school,” Sebor said.
Eileen McClory is a Dayton Daily News education reporter.