The mission of Columbus Technical Colleges’ Special Populations Program is to assist all students with removing and/or overcoming academic, career, and economic barriers. The program assures Special Population Students equal access to recruitment, enrollment, job placement activities and the full range of technical education programs and activities. Columbus Technical College provides support services to special population students in an effort to alleviate barriers that hinder successful completion of courses and employment.
Special Populations are:
SINGLE PARENTS
Individuals who have primary or joint custody for a dependent child, divorced, widowed, legally separated, or never married. Also Single and pregnant.
OUT OF WORK-FORCE INDIVIDUALS
Individuals who have cared for a home and family without pay; who have been financially supported by another family member in the past; who is unemployed or under employed and having difficulty in obtaining and upgrading employment or who has custody of a child with less than two years remaining to receive assistance from Title IV of the Social Security Act
INDIVIDUALS FROM ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED FAMILIES, INCLUDING LOW INCOME YOUTH AND ADULTS
Individuals from economically disadvantaged families, including foster children. (Eligible for Pell Grant, or receiving federal assistance such as Food Stamps, TANF and/or Medicaid)
LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENCY
Individuals whose native language is other than English
FREE English Language Acquisition (ELA) or English as a second Language (ESL) classes
CAPACIDADES LIMITADAS EN INGLES Las personas cuya lengua materna no sea el Inglés
Adquiera clases GRATIS del Idioma Inglés (ELL) o Inglés como Segundo Idioma (ESL)
DISABILITIES
According to ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act), “Disability” is defined as:
(1) a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities of the individual;
(2) a record of a substantially limiting impairment or;
(3) being regarded as having a substantially limiting impairment.
INDIVIDUALS PREPARING FOR NONTRADITIONAL FIELDS
The term ‘Non-traditional” means occupations or fields of work for which individuals from one gender comprise less than 25 percent of the individuals employed in each such occupation or field of work. (Perkins IV definitions)
NEW POPULATIONS RECENTLY ADDED
- homeless youth;
- youth who are in, or have aged out of, the foster care system; and
- youth with a parent who is on active duty in the armed forces.
Columbus Technical College provides support services to special population students in an effort to alleviate barriers that hinder successful completion of courses and employment.
Opportunities in Non-traditional Fields
High-Wage, High-Demand and High-Skilled career opportunities opens doors for all individuals! Working in a non-traditional field brings diversity to the workforce, as well as provides YOU an opportunity to earn a higher wage and create greater job satisfaction. Just some of the programs offered are women in technology ex. (Welding, Machine Tool and Automotive) and men in any of the numerous health occupations ex. (Respiratory Care, Surgical Technology and Dental Hygiene).
The term ‘Non-traditional” means occupations or fields of work for which individuals from one gender comprise less than 25 percent of the individuals employed in each such occupation or field of work. (Perkins IV definitions)
Males in the U.S. represent less than 25% of the occupations listed here:
https://www.dol.gov/wb/stats/TraditionalOccupations.pdf
Females in the U.S. represent less than 25% of the occupations listed here:
https://www.dol.gov/wb/stats/Nontraditional%20Occupations.pdf
Columbus Technical College offers a wide variety of programs for students interested
in non-traditional careers!
https://columbustech.edu/academics/programs-of-study/
Available Services
- Personal, Career and Admissions Guidance
- Workshops including Academic and Life Skills Seminars
- Community Resource Referrals
- Guidance to locating Columbus Technical College resources
Learn More/How to Participate
Students may complete the SELF-IDENTIFICATION Form at any time to declare their special population status, or scan the QR code below. For questions please call Dawn Evans 706-649-7514 8 am – 6 pm Monday – Thursday emailing devans@columbustech.edu.
Community Resources
We offer a listing of community resources that we are happy to provide to any student, staff, faculty member or anyone who has an interest. You can find resources for healthcare, counseling, services for childcare, food banks, employment services, crisis hotlines, substance abuse services, housing, emergency shelter, transportation and much more!
*As defined by the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Improvement Act of 2006 (Perkins Act).
