Tech School Tour

by Devorah Jakubowsky, CAE

Two weeks ago, TACCA President Nick Watkins and I had the opportunity to meet with U.S. Congressman Roger Williams and tour a few of the colleges with HVAC programs in North Texas as part of a small group facilitated by Stephen Pape, Dean of Continuing Education at Hill College, and Chris Czarnecki, Government Relations Manager for Air Conditioning Contractors of America. The first stop was Hill College in Cleburne, which enrolls approximately 20 students in the HVAC program each year. This small but well-equipped HVAC program is overseen by Hill College Dean of Instruction, Business and Industry Pathways Brian Bennett and Allen Dillman, HVAC Program Instructor/Program Coordinator, who led a short tour of the facility.

Dr. Pam Boehm, President of Hill College, welcomed Congressman Williams for a small roundtable discussion about workforce development. Congressman Williams discussed several federal bills that he has introduced regarding career and technical education (CTE) – HR 3366 to include requirements relating to graduates of career and technical education programs and HR 3365 to inform students and parents about career and technical education during the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) application. Several business representatives, including Steve Lauten with Total Air & Heat in Plano, shared stories about workforce issues and the need for more skilled workers to fill open positions. As a Texas business owner himself, Congressman Williams was sympathetic to the concerns of the workforce shortage and also the more recent difficulty in getting supplies.

Our next stop was Texas State Technical College (TSTC) in Red Oak where we met with Marcus Balch who serves as provost for the campus in North Texas. We were joined by Doug McCuen, instructor for the Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Program and the tour included the HVAC and welding spaces. We learned that during COVID, although HVAC students came back to in-person classes last summer, several programs such as Computer Networking and Systems Administration and Drafting and Design transitioned so well to virtual, they will continue online for the foreseeable future. This fall TSTC is shifting to performance-based learning, which will allow more entry and exit points in the HVAC program. It also provides an avenue for fast-tracking the program by quickly demonstrating competencies.

Collin College in Allen was our final destination. This $160M+ facility opened in August 2020. And contains four buildings with space for a fifth in the future. The Collin College Technical Campus offers programs related to automotive, construction, electronics, HVAC, health care, welding, and more, and each HVAC class has space for 85 students, with a maximum of 250 in the program at capacity. It’s hard not to be impressed with this facility and the equipment provided for the HVAC program. Program Director Brian Sanders led our group through an entire wing dedicated to HVAC learning with rooms equipped for heat pumps, commercial air conditioning, brazing, and more.

Coming from an industry outside the trades, it was impressive to see the college facilities devoted to training the HVAC/R workforce. With workforce training and development a high priority for the industry, we need to do everything we can to promote high school students and adults seeking a career change to choose HVAC/R as a career.