By BECKY KISER
Hays Post
Enrollment at NCK Tech College in Hays has grown steadily since 2012. A new partnership program between the two-year school, which also has a Beloit campus, and the Dane G. Hansen Foundation in Logan is attracting more students, particularly those who need the most support.
The Hansen Career Enhancement Scholarship is an integral part of the program designed to help non-traditional students upgrade their skill sets.
“We’re so fortunate in northwest Kansas to have the Hansen Foundation,” said NCK Tech President Eric Burks, Beloit. “Everywhere you look, in all communities, they’re really making a difference.”
“We started a program last year. We were granted $100,000 by Hansen and they liked what we did. So they gave us another $100,000 to continue with the pilot program.”
He gave the Hays city commission an example of someone who might best benefit from the program.
“Say somebody is working at a convenience store or as a CNA (Certified Nursing Assistant). They’re working at a job that doesn’t have much upward mobility. They have the capability but for whatever reason, they’ve just been stuck in the rut of life.
“This is designed to help pay for not just books, tuition and all that, but also to help them with daycare expenses, any living expenses they have that would be a barrier for getting access to education,” he explained.
The program has worked well, according to Burks, who called it “a humbling experience for me.”
“It’s amazing what some of our students go through to gain access to education. We have five students we’ve been able to really help out.”
Burks wants to spread the word about the Career Enhancement scholarship and attract more eligible students.
“If you know somebody like this who could really use a hand-up, we’re very interested in helping and talking to them.”
The 10 largest programs at NCK Tech, including the Beloit campus, are nursing, diesel, automotive technology, heavy equipment, welding, business management, electrical technology, plumbing, heating and air conditioning, and agriculture equipment technology.
The largest growth programs last year were diesel, heavy equipment, business management, PHAC and ag equipment tech. Burks said the heavy equipment program is “basically the only one in the state that does bulldozers, excavators and scrapers.”
For more information, contact NCK Tech in Hays at (785) 625-2437.