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Utica Shale Academy starts third year

SALINEVILLE — The Utica Shale Academy has entered its third year of helping high school students get on track and into the energy field.

Director Eric Sampson said 56 students are enrolled for the 2016-17 school year at the main location at Southern Local High School in Salineville and the satellite site at Columbiana High School at Columbiana, but he anticipated the number to grow.

“We have 37 students at Southern Local and 19 at Columbiana. I expect the number to increase during the first week of school.”

Sponsored by the Jefferson County Educational Service Center, the academy offers flexible scheduling to students in grades 9-12 who live across Ohio. The academy offers all of the courses required by the Ohio Department of Education, as well as PetroEd industry certification courses. Sampson said this year’s program will continue to provide learning opportunities through guest speakers and field trips to area oil and gas sites, as well as chances to obtain certification that are advantageous when entering the workforce.

“I believe we’ve found our way and the kids understand the expectations,” Sampson added. “We’re looking at different certification programs and (we already have) OSHA-10 certifications that can be used in any field. If they have certification, they are already very marketable.”

He said the program will continue to educate students, and officials have gained input from oil and gas representatives in the quest to prepare potential workers for the future.

“We had an advisory committee meeting in April and they helped guide us on what the industry is looking for,” he continued. “We’ve also been able to build a relationship where their people can be visiting speakers and we can visit their sites. Brian Logue of Express Energy also has been planning site visits and speaking engagements.”

The word has gotten out about academy and companies are taking notice, officials say.

“We’re here and each year we have students coming out that are employable. They can work in the field after graduation or attend a four-year institution of higher learning.”

For information, contact Sampson at (330) 420-5353 or visit uticashaleschool.com.

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