Crane adds welding and cosmetology classes

Students in Morgan Hall’s cosmetology class in Crane work on mannequins to learn how to set hair, among other skills. (Ruth Campbell/Odessa American)

CRANE Through a partnership with Odessa College, welding and cosmetology have returned to Crane ISD after long absences.

Twenty-nine students signed up for welding this semester, and 11 enrolled in cosmetology. Welding had not been offered since 2011-2012 and cosmetology had not been available since the 2014-‘15 school year.

When the courses grow, the district will make use of creative scheduling so classes will be staggered.

Magnum Cates is the welding instructor, and Morgan Hall teaches cosmetology. The welding building and the cosmetology room is in the Bethune Building where the Crane Fledgling Learning Center is housed. Both classes are dual credit.

Cates, who is an Odessa College instructor, said the majority of the students are boys, but there are some girls.

Cates worked as a teaching assistant at OC while he was in college and is going back to get his associate degree.

In between, Cates did some tungsten and gas welding.

He added that loves working with people at the college, and the students have turned out to be “awesome.”

He said the students are very into it and always attentive.

“They’re very dedicated, and it’s been a joy so far,” Cates added.

Getting the program re-started was very hectic at the beginning.

“(It) started out where we didn’t have some of the materials right away, so we had to come up with different projects that weren’t necessarily mainstream just because we didn’t have some of the cutting torches and some of the other things. We pushed more toward the welding side because we already had the welders in and we already had some of the materials for them to be able to work on,” he said.

The building cleanup to make it safe took the longest. There was equipment in the building, but a lot of repairs had to be made. Cates said he had a couple of instructors from the college help fix things that first week so students could get going.

They didn’t have a cutting table, but they had what was left of a trailer so they made a cutting table out of it.

They had some welding jackets, but they were pretty dirty and some of them were tattered. Odessa College had a grant so they were able to replenish the supply quickly.

There were already safety hoods and glasses available.

“Really all we had to get was the stuff that is directly to the students, like they had to get their jeans and their boots and their welding caps because they’re all different sizes and you just can’t carry enough sizes for all of them,” Cates said.

New gas bottles were needed so the students could start cutting.

“But as far the curriculum side, Odessa College makes it very easy. We’ve got a pretty set standard, so just moving from college to high school, all we did is split it up into five days instead of two days,” Cates said.

This means a little less time per day, but overall they get an extra 30 minutes compared to the college students.

Kiara Lozano, a 15-year-old-sophomore, and Addisen Hawkins, a 16-year-old junior, were part of one of Cates’ classes Sept. 26.

Lozano said she decided to take the class because her dad welds and it inspired her to do it.

“I really like. … I like it because it makes you feel at ease … It calms me down a bit,” Lozano said.

She added that she would like to pursue welding professionally.

“That’s my goal,” Lozano said.

Hawkins said she went for welding because she wanted the skills it would give her. She’s not sure if she wants to pursue welding after high school.

“That’s why I wanted to take it because I don’t really know what I want to do, so if I liked this I think I would proceed further. I want to get my certificate for sure, though,” Hawkins said.

Hawkins said she likes the class for the results it can yield.

Hall has six seniors and five juniors in cosmetology.

“As we get started, we are going through TDLR, which is Texas license and regulation. They have to complete 1,000 hours of assessments — whether it’s wet sets, perms, foils, back combing …,” Hall said.

They also learn the basics of makeup and manicures.

There is a list of things that the students have to complete in a certain amount of time because when they take the state boards, those are also timed.

She noted that cosmetology students can get hands-on experience, express their creativity and make some money within less than a year.

When they finish the courses, they will get a student permit license and once they log the 1,000 hours, they will get an official cosmetology license.

It is a dual-credit course through Odessa College that runs on an eight-week schedule. Cheree Shepardson, a cosmetology instructor at the college, and Hall work together on the course.

Hall said the Cosmetology II course will start Oct. 17. If students want to move on afterward, they can go to Odessa or Midland College.

Esmeralda Mendoza, a 16-year-old junior, and Idalis Rivera, a 17-year-old senior, are glad the program is in Crane.

“I signed up for the program because I’ve always wanted to do hair. I’ve always had a passion for doing hair and just making people feel good about themselves. That’s why I decided to sign up, and I figured it would be a good opportunity to get ahead and graduate earlier,” Rivera said.

Mendoza said she enjoys talking to people.

“Doing cosmetology, you get a connection with your clients,” she said.

Mendoza said she has always been interested in cosmetology, especially in makeup and eyelashes.

Crane ISD Superintendent Stephanie Howard said the district conducted some interest surveys working with OC. The surveys were distributed to high school students to see what was of interest to them.

“Those two were of the highest interest, and then also looking at those two facilities and they’re sitting there not being used. Those are areas that are definitely in high-demand and high-interest areas,” Howard said. “When we started looking at what it would take to bring them back, it didn’t take that much, so it was a matter of just working with Odessa College and partnering with them on the dual credit and the credentialing.”

The district had a relationship with OC, but then there was a period of time where they didn’t.

“All the dual credit had started running through Angelo State, and so we utilize Angelo State for courses, but we also have expanded offerings with Odessa College to allow students opportunities and options,” Howard said.

Several years ago, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board allowed school districts to work with more than just their local community college, so it’s not unheard of for a district to use more than one provider.

“And that’s kind of what we’re looking at: who can provide what, and what are the areas of interest for students,” she said.