DAN HARTMAN

WINTERSVILLE — The Indian Creek Local School District is expanding its horizons when it comes to career-technical education and has a familiar face spearheading the program.

Cross Creek Elementary Principal Dan Hartman has been named career-tech education coordinator under an amended administrative contract that began July 1. His new responsibilities include overseeing the career pathways offered and ensuring that they remain in compliance with state standards. Hartman served as supervisor and principal at the Jefferson County Joint Vocational School for four years prior to joining CCE and said his background gives him an advantage with his new post.

“My job is to support the career-tech programs that are at Indian Creek and to ensure things are done,” he explained. “They have great courses established and I will have conversations with Principal Louie Retton and Superintendent T.C. Chappelear to understand the labor markets and interest levels.”

Hartman said the area had plenty of industrial, blue-collar opportunities and he was involved in beginning the heavy equipment operation program at the JVS before his departure, plus he sees a need in the realm of health care, dental care and sports medicine.

“I’m glad to support it and do whatever I can to make Indian Creek as successful as possible,” Hartman said.

For its part, ICHS offers pre-engineering, interactive media, business administration, natural resources, drama and theater and family consumer sciences with new offerings added this year. Retton added that officials were building pathways in the traditional high school setting and courses were at or near capacity.

“We are going to have classes in animation, computer software programming, stagecraft and stage design,” Retton said. “We stated a class last year in engineering called reading plans where you read blueprints and we have agricultural foods and natural resources. We are moving in as many career-tech pathways as we can. It’s another way to give students and families options.”

Retton noted that teacher Dave Moffat rotates courses, which doubles the number of offerings from four to eight for more choices.

In addition, all of the business courses from business management and social media marketing to strategic entrepreneurship are full while others, including programming, are nearly filled.

“We started a theater program this year and the freshman classes are now filled. There were 20 students last year and 38 this year, and we nearly filled the acting and script analysis courses (for sophomores to seniors) and that was doubled since last year. We’re also getting growing numbers in the stagecraft and stage design classes and all of the pathways are basically taking off.”

He continued that students will have to take at least four classes to be a completer and it gives them a different pathway to choose.

“We’re finding that high school is not one size fits all and it’s our responsibility to provide as many opportunities as we can. This is all a continuum of services to provide more opportunities every day.”