The Greater Altoona Career and Technical Center received a $50,000 grant that will enable the school to upgrade its dental assistant and welding programs.

The award was announced Tuesday by the Pennsylvania Department of Education as a part of its Career and Technical Education Equipment Grant program.

In total, the PDE awarded about $1.5 million to 39 career and technical centers and three school districts across the commonwealth, according to a press release.

The GACTC plans on using its grant money to purchase new equipment, said CTE Coordinator Nicole Zernick.

The dental assistant program will get a DXTTR, a dental X-ray trainer that will allow students to practice taking X-rays using a dummy head that has real human teeth embedded into it. The trainer will help students with their radiology certification, Zernick said.

“Instead of them practicing on people, they can have a realistic substitute,” Zernick said.

The welding program will get a four-pack welder, which will provide more hands-on skill application as well as more efficient energy consumption in the classroom.

The program will also receive a heavy-duty hydraulic bandsaw.

Meanwhile, the Greater Johnstown CTC — which is also receiving $50,000 — is dedicating the award toward the creation of a hybrid vehicle training program, according to administrative director John Augustine. He said the school will purchase a hybrid vehicle, specialty hand tools needed to work on hybrid vehicles and install a charging station.

The center’s plan is to offer senior students in its automotive mechanics, collision repair and diesel mechanic programs the opportunity to specialize in electric vehicle technology.

“By laser-focusing the funds, we plan on building the most robust program we can,” Augustine said. “We’re not piecemealing it, we’re going all in.”

After much research, Augustine said the center decided against purchasing the ever-popular Tesla, as it contains specialized technology that is proprietary to the company. He said the center will instead be looking for a vehicle that is more common in the region, with the goal being a dual hybrid-electric vehicle.

“It’s the newest thing,” Augustine said. “Dealerships are looking for highly trained technicians. The jobs are there.”

Augustine believes that the program will be unique to the area and said he is excited to get it off the ground.

In deciding how to allocate the grant money, both Augustine and Zernick consulted with their respective center’s occupational advisory committees. According to the PDE, an OAC makes recommendations for program improvements and provides technical assistance to assure the most up-to-date curriculum content and appropriate applications of technology.

One requirement to receive the grant money was that each state dollar had to be matched with a local dollar, meaning the Greater Altoona and Johnstown CTCs each put a matching $50,000 into their programs. To make sure they can meet this requirement, the schools budget the needed funds in hopes of winning the grant, Augustine said.

The Admiral Peary Area Vocational Technical school in Ebensburg also received grant money, but only in the amount of $3,424.

School administrators did not return a request for comment on how the award would be used.

Since 2015, the number of career and technical education students earning industry-recognized credentials has increased by 38.7% and the number of credentials earned by students enrolled in career and technical education programs has grown by 33.6%, according figures stated in a state news release.

Mirror Staff Writer Rachel Foor is at 814-946-7458.