For Dr. Joe Harrington, Superintendent of Hurst-Euless-Bedford (HEB) ISD, the societal importance of Tarrant County’s 17 public school districts is clear. “We’re here as the greatest equalizer there is,” says Dr. Harrington. “These kids come in from all different levels,” he added while standing in HEB’s Gene A. Buinger Career & Technical Education Academy. “We’re going to take all those kids and make great Americans out of them.”
With the perpetual need for an educated and skilled labor force to support businesses and families across our region, Tarrant County independent school districts are enhancing and expanding their career and technical education (CTE) programs to increase students’ readiness for the work at hand. CTE programs – which enable hands-on training in fields such as health science, agriculture, public safety, and manufacturing – allow students to gain immediately employable skills. In HEB ISD, students earned over 8,800 industry-recognized professional certifications in the 2023-2024 academic year. Many of those certifications qualify students to walk straight from their high school graduation stage into high-wage, high-demand careers.
CTE students who choose to continue into higher education are empowered as well. CTE graduates are more likely to enroll in college than their peers: 35 percent of high school graduates who participated in CTE programs are enrolled in Texas public colleges, compared to 29 percent of non-CTE participants.
Debra Harvey, Principal at HEB’s Buinger CTE Academy, affirmed that participation in CTE programs gives students an opportunity to experience different careers and determine what is right for them. “We have a lot of kids in healthcare, in the health science [CTE program] that want to be doctors or nurses,” said Ms. Harvey. “They want to help people.
“When they do clinical rotations at the hospital, and they see blood and faint,” Ms. Harvey explained with an understanding smile, “they realize, without spending all the money for medical school, that maybe medicine is not for them, and they’ll help people a different way.”
For HEB ISD student, Anna, one unforgettable clinical rotation organized by her CTE teacher solidified her goal to become a pediatric nurse. “It was a normal day, and I was in the E.R. and this little kid came in, and he was just having a hard day,” recalled Anna. “He had an infection.”
Anna went through the routine procedures she had mastered by that time in her CTE program: she went to the child patient in the trauma bay, engaged him in conversation, took his vitals, and assisted as he received antibiotics. Reflecting on it, Anna thought, “I did the smallest things.”
A few moments later, Anna experienced firsthand how small things done well can make a big difference in the life of someone going through a hard time.
“He came up to me afterwards and he was like, ‘Can I give you a hug? You really helped me feel better today,’” remembered Anna. “That seriously was so empowering,” she adds. “It was such a little thing, but I was like… ‘Oh my gosh, I have to help kids.’ It feels so rewarding to help them.”
Moments like these – that empower students, futures, and communities – are happening throughout Tarrant County school districts. And there is more to come as districts collaborate to share and promote initiatives that lead to student success.
“We have great public schools,” declared Dr. Harrington, “and we are here to take care of your kids. We can do that better when we’re all together.”
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