Wayne/Pike Technical Center presses on with $3 million grant
WAYNE and PIKE COUNTIES, PA — The Wallenpaupack Area School District (WASD) celebrated the receipt of $3 million in federal funding for the Wayne/Pike Career and Technical Center (CTC) on February 26. Officials pointed to the funding both as a financial boon and as a sign of belief in the program’s aims.
“The check being presented today represents resources, but more importantly it represents belief—belief in all of our students, belief in our educators, belief in our workforce and belief in the future of this very region,” said Keith Gunuskey, WASD superintendent.
The Wayne/Pike CTC, a new building currently under development, will provide a regional hub for the career and technical education programs at Wayne and Pike county high schools. While schools in the region do currently have programs for career and technical education, Wayne and Pike counties are the only two in Pennsylvania without access to a dedicated CTC, a separate facility specially designed for the needs of career and technical education courses.
After years of development, area school districts are moving ahead with plans to construct the CTC, which will be centrally located near the WASD campus. Previous project presentations have estimated that the building could see its first students as early as August 2027.
The Wayne/Pike CTC recently received $3 million in federal funding. PA-08 Rep. Rob Bresnahan visited the Wallenpaupack High School on February 26 to present a check for the amount.
The funding reflects “a powerful affirmative that our students, our workforce and our future matter,” said Gunuskey.
Bresnahan said that, during a visit with Wallenpaupack’s career and technical education programs early in his tenure, he had been struck by the energy and the passion of the people involved.
“You think about cost effective pathways to the trades, and the fact that we don’t have a dedicated CTC facility—you’re bursting at the seams,” Bresnahan said. “This new dedicated facility [is] thinking about the future workforce, the jobs that are never going to be replaced by artificial intelligence, the idea that you get to earn while you learn, and at the end of it, never work a day in your life, because you’re passionate about what you do, and you care; you’re making a difference in the community.”
Taking to the skies
Students representing Wallenpaupack’s career and technical education programs spoke at the presentation.
Reagan Anderson, a sophomore with Wallenpaupack’s aviation program, said that she’s currently receiving flight instruction from a former student of the program. Anderson said she’s working toward a path to join a charter aviation company, thanks to a field trip she was recently able to take through the program.
Joseph Pettinato, another student with the program, said he got his private pilot license over the summer. The program helps build up students’ networks, giving them a clear runway into the aviation industry before they even leave high school, he said.
Jule Dickerman, a student with Wallenpaupack’s child care career and technical education program, said that the program has been “one of the most meaningful opportunities of my life.” The program helped her discover her career path and gain hands-on skills, she said.
“Every day in the classroom, I get to work directly with children, helping them learn, express themselves and grow in confidence,” Dickerman said. “Watching those meaningful moments of progress, even in small ways, reminds me why I love this field so much.”