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Flint Hills Technical College outlines workforce, new programs and regional partnerships
Summary
College president Karen Daugherty presented the school’s placement rates, new precision-agriculture program, workforce training expansion and partnership plans for Chase County and the seven-county service area.
Karen Daugherty, president of Flint Hills Technical College, briefed the Chase County commissioners April 30 on the college’s programs, workforce training and regional engagement.
Daugherty said the college’s annual job-placement report shows placement rates around 97–98% for recent cohorts and that 87% of graduates work in the college’s seven-county service area. She highlighted high-paying applied programs — citing average graduate wages posted in the packet, including dental hygiene graduates reporting roughly $70,000 in annual wages and power-plant-technology graduates reporting roughly $65,000 — and said the college measures placement six months after graduation.
The college is starting a precision agriculture program in the fall with both a technical certificate and an associate of applied science degree; the curriculum includes geospatial positioning, drone applications in agriculture, data analytics and soil/crop sciences. Daugherty said KBOR (Kansas Board of Regents) created a new program category for the course because the state did not previously have an exact match.
Daugherty also described the college’s business-and-industry (noncredit) division for short-term customized training, which now includes a CDL program in its first year with two power units and a simulator expected in August, and a mobile welder. She described use cases where customized short trainings helped local manufacturers and logistics providers re-employ displaced workers.
Daugherty said the college’s Carnegie reclassification reflects higher access and outcomes and that the institution is preparing a capital campaign to expand industry lab space, consolidate off-campus power-plant training into the main campus and expand health-care and automotive programming. She asked for continued engagement with county leadership on workforce and economic-development initiatives; commissioners expressed support and asked to be included when the college seeks partners and grant opportunities.
Daugherty provided several printed materials to commissioners, including the five-year placement report, the new precision-agriculture curriculum and an economic-impact summary showing the college’s annual regional income impact and return on investment figures.
