MARTINSBURG – Berkeley County Schools officially opened its new cosmetology training center Wednesday, launching a career and technical education program that aims to give students a direct pathway into a high-demand profession while eliminating a significant financial barrier.
“I would have just been head over heels had something like this been available to me when I was their age,” said Catherine Wysocki, one of the two instructors at the new beauty school.
Wysocki, who has worked in cosmetology for 21 years and owned her own business for more than two decades, said she knew as early as middle school that she wanted to pursue the profession. Instead, she didn’t attend cosmetology school until she was about 22 years old.
Now, she’ll help teach the district’s inaugural class of 28 students – 19 juniors in a two-year hairstylist program and nine seniors in a one-year nail technician program – as they work toward state licensure while still in high school.
“They have the opportunity to do this completely cost free,” Wysocki said. “You’re graduating high school ready to take a state board exam for a career that you can keep for the rest of your life.”
Private cosmetology schools often cost between $20,000 and $25,000, while Berkeley County students can complete the program at no cost before graduating from high school.
The district originally intended to house cosmetology instruction in its future Center for Advanced Learning and Careers at the former Kmart property. However, Superintendent Dr. Ryan Saxe said those plans accelerated after the International Beauty School unexpectedly closed earlier this year.
Rather than waiting several years for the new career center to open, district officials worked with the property’s owners to convert the existing cosmetology school into a Berkeley County Schools facility, allowing students to begin training this fall.
Saxe said the program fulfills a longstanding goal of expanding career technical education opportunities while giving students another pathway to employment after graduation.
“Today is much more than just opening a building,” Saxe said. “It’s about opening doors for our students.”
Students from Hedgesville, Martinsburg, Musselman and Spring Mills high schools will be eligible to earn industry certifications while completing their diplomas. The district will provide transportation to the center and has embedded senior English coursework into the curriculum so participants remain on track to graduate.
Career Technical Education Director Ken Pack said the district built the program in just a few months after Saxe challenged staff to respond to the beauty school’s closure, working to hire instructors, meet state licensing requirements and recruit interested students.
Students in the hairstylist program will complete approximately 1,000 instructional hours each year, while nail technician students will complete the hours required to qualify for state licensing exams. In addition to technical training, the program emphasizes customer service, professionalism and hands-on experience in a simulated salon environment.
Although the cosmetology center is expected to eventually relocate to the future Center for Advanced Learning and Careers, Saxe said the inaugural students and instructors will help shape that permanent program.
BY TOM MARKLAND tmarkland@journal-news.net
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