Daviess County Public Schools is taking early steps toward exploring the feasibility of creating a vocational or trade center designed to expand career training opportunities for students.
Superintendent Charles Broughton said discussions remain in the preliminary stages, but recent board conversations reflect growing interest in evaluating what such a facility could look like and how it might serve both students and the local workforce.
“Yes, it’s still early, but [Tuesday’s] meeting showcased the board’s desire to delve deeper into exploring and evaluating the feasibility of establishing a vocational/trade center facility for DCPS students,” Broughton said. “This initiative, if implemented, would undoubtedly have a positive impact on various job sectors within our community and give students an opportunity to get training while in high school for a financially family-sustaining career.”
As part of those early discussions, district leaders are considering the possible use of existing space already owned by DCPS behind the Central Office at 4801 Frederica Street.
Board Chair Tom Payne said the district has been researching the concept for some time, including internal conversations about available facilities.
“I called Amanda Jerome last week and just really asked Amanda point-blank, is there any rock that you have not turned over — investigating, researching?” Payne said. “And she said, ‘No, not to my knowledge.’ And she said, as far as we can determine, there is a need in our community, perhaps even beyond that, especially with the vocational areas, the trades in particular.”
While the building behind the Central Office has been part of the conversation, several board members stressed the importance of long-term planning rather than focusing solely on one location.
“My encouragement for us would be to find the right thing to do and not necessarily be limited by only that building behind the new Central Office,” Board Member Trey Pippin said. “I think that this is a need for our students. I think it’s a need for our community, but I don’t want to do just something to say that we did something if it’s not adequate to what we actually need in the long term.”
Board Member James Morgan agreed, noting that identifying specific needs should be the first step.
“I think that we first need to look and see exactly what the needs are and what we need to offer,” Morgan said. “It can’t just be limited to that building.”
Broughton said district leaders have already gathered information by observing similar programs in other communities.
“Over the course of the last school year, some of our board members and I visited Hardin County’s Early College and Career Center at various times, which serves approximately 1,900 students, to learn more about their partnerships with community businesses and observe the programs that are providing students with a jump-start out of high school,” Broughton said. “Our College and Career district coordinator has also visited as an information-gathering piece.”
He added that local industry leaders have expressed support for the initiative.
“The Home Builders Association has expressed its support of this initiative as an outcome to bolster the workforce in the community as they see the challenges of finding trained and qualified applicants on a daily basis,” Broughton said.
Board member Frank Riney said exposure to other vocational centers has helped illustrate the potential scope of such a program.
“The potential to one day be something like that would be tremendous,” Riney said. “There are just so many different areas that could benefit students.”
Pippin also urged the district to move forward with urgency while grounding decisions in measurable data.
“I would just express urgency in this, because we’re already, frankly, behind in this area,” Pippin said. “But I want to see real data that shows where the need is. I don’t want our decisions to be based only on what someone thinks.”
Morgan recommended that district leadership formally begin a needs assessment process.
“I’d like to recommend that Mr. Broughton get with Ms. Jerome and her team and first identify the needs,” Morgan said. “That’s the first thing we’ve got to do.”
District officials said no decisions have been made regarding a facility, program offerings, or timeline, but discussions are expected to continue as additional research and data are presented to the board.
