Perry County High School, Tennessee

Please join us in congratulating this month’s NC3 School on the Rise recipient, Perry County High School! 

Perry County High School, located in Linden, Tennessee, is a driving force in their rural community for Career and Technical Education. As a result of unwavering support and dedication, an average of 50-55% of Perry County High School students receive Industry Certifications each year. Through their dual enrollment program with Tennessee College of Applied Technology in Hohenwald, TN, Perry County High School has seen 100% job placement for their students who graduate from their Industrial Maintenance Program! 

The faculty at Perry County High School recognizes the value that industry certifications can bring to their students in Career and Technical Education. Phillip Taylor, Industrial Maintenance Instructor states, 

One thing we’ve found through NC3 is that once our students graduate from our program in high school, they have the ability to not only compete with other applicants, but they’re also able to be above them when these companies are hiring based on their ability to use the equipment and to learn different skills. NC3 certifications give our students more hireability in the job market.

Ginger Cagle, Perry County’s CTE Director, explains other reasons why they chose to partner with NC3. She says, “One reason we’ve chosen Snap-on and NC3 is because all the expense is up front. It’s amazing that once we purchase the equipment, the industry certifications are lifelong. It’s been awesome to send students out of our rural high school with the same certifications that bigger districts can offer.” She continues by adding,

We can honestly look at these employers and say ‘Hey, these kids know how to use your equipment.’ It’s an amazing opportunity for rural kids to be included in this.

Phillip Taylor adds that NC3 Certifications help students keep up with the most current industry standards. He remarks, “NC3 is giving us the ability to stay right at the forefront of what we’re trying to teach. From what I’ve seen, the information that NC3 is providing us to work with is exactly what’s coming into the market. While we’re able to teach the students what we already know today, we’re giving them a leg up so they’re keeping right in time with the changing information and technologies of tomorrow.”

The ability to earn industry certifications on a secondary level has been a huge benefit to the students at Perry County High School. Dawn Taylor, Structural Systems Teacher, explains, “By offering students the opportunity to earn certifications on a secondary level, I’ve had students leave here and go right into the workforce. One of them, for example, earned NC3 Certifications and when he went in for his interview, the hiring manager offered him a higher ranking position with much higher pay! It’s really cool to have that opportunity as an 18 year old.” Ginger adds to that by explaining how industry certifications boost student confidence. She says,

A lot of our kids in technical education are first-generation students going onto post-secondary. When they can do something in high school and they achieve it, you can see a light go on that says ‘I can do this, I can make it.’ We’re here to fully support them in that.

Perry County High School has many achievements to be proud of! Ginger remarks on one in particular, “We’re very proud that Perry County High School is a Tennessee Certified Pathway, which means that we seamlessly send students from high school, to post secondary, to the workforce.” She continues, 

We’re proud that 52% of our graduates received certifications last year and we’re averaging anywhere from 50-55% of our graduates receiving industry-recognized certifications each year.

Perry County High School students can earn post-secondary credits and continue right into the Industrial Maintenance Program at TCAT-Hohenwald, which they’ve had a dual enrollment program with for 21 years! 

NC3 is very proud to have Perry County High School as our October 2020 NC3 School on the Rise! Thank you for being an exemplary school within the NC3 Network! We look forward to watching your school’s success grow in the years to come. Congratulations again to you and your students!

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Stay tuned for our next School on the Rise recipient in November 2020!

Questions about NC3’s School on the Rise? Please contact Erika Staackmann, Customer Success Coordinator, 847.533.6985, Erika.Staackmann@nc3.net