The first thing visitors might notice when meeting students from Butler Tech is their professionalism. At this trades high school in Butler County, Ohio, students make eye contact, extend a firm handshake and give their full attention when leading tours of their campus.
A group of Spokane business and industry partners, alongside representatives from Spokane Public Schools (SPS) and Spokane Community College (SCC), experienced this warm reception firsthand during a recent visit. Butler Tech serves as a Career and Technical Education (CTE) best practices model that will be used to inform the development of a a four-year trades high school in Spokane.
Like Butler Tech, which collaborates with nearby Miami University to support Ohio workforce development, SPS will partner with SCC to ensure students are prepared to enter Spokane’s workforce or pursue future degrees and certifications.
What’s next?
SPS and SCC will use a phased approach for the trades high school, with the initial cohort slated to begin in fall 2027 with a small group of eligible juniors attending SCC’s manufacturing program through a Running Start model.
This prototype program will use existing SCC facilities and faculty. In the fall of 2028, an additional class of 11th grade manufacturing students will join the 2nd-year seniors.
The intention is that, in the fall of 2029, the SPS Trades High School will grow to include its inaugural freshmen class while maintaining its junior and senior manufacturing cohorts. In 2030, those freshmen will become sophomores and welcome another class of freshman as the school celebrates its first year in serving grades 9-12 as a full high school
Will the Trades High School have its own building?
Yes. Plans are underway to construct a facility on the SCC campus to accommodate a 4-year trades high school to accommodate growth of enrollment and programs. The facility is tentatively slated to open in time for the fall 2029 cohort. See the concept, which is subject to change, atop this article.
What program pathways are planned for the SPS Trades High School?
These are the pathway programs currently planned, in no particular order:
Health Care
Construction
Manufacturing
Each is being co-developed with business and industry partners in alignment with industry outcomes, so students will graduate with specific skills local employers need. Forming the industry partnerships, planning curriculum, determining admissions processes, and other behind-the-scenes work will take time. SPS expects to develop more clarity on the pathway programs in early 2027.
What have SPS and SCC done to prepare for the Trades High School?
SPS and SCC have worked side by side with business and industry partners throughout the planning process, even before Spokane voters approved the Together Spokane initiative, which included developing a public trades high school.
Over several years, staff and business and industry partners have researched and toured other established trades high school programs across the country. Learning more about these programs has provided valuable insight into starting a trades high school, what pitfalls to avoid, and how crucial partnerships are to success.
Leaders at these schools shared that student outcomes must remain the main goal.
Punctuality, a firm handshake and eye contact are taught at Butler Tech starting on day one, and the skills needed in various trades professions come immediately after. Ensuring students have the professional and industry skills to succeed after high school—often with well-paying jobs and no debt—is the priority of trades schools across America, including here in Spokane.