LEXINGTON, Ky. — Dental hygiene, Cosmetology students, and others will soon have a new place to learn their skills in Lexington.
What You Need To Know
- The Bluegrass Community and Technical College broke ground on a new multi-million dollar project
- Students, staff, and community leaders are commending the new building
- Among other things, the new building helps prevent challenges and provides more space for dental and cosmetology students
Shovels hit the ground Tuesday morning at the Bluegrass Community College and Technical Institute’s Newtown campus with the help of students like Madissen Alexis Bailey.
At one point, she was a business management student at a four-year school. Now studying cosmetology at BCTC, Bailey became emotional as she shared the experiences that led her to attend the school.
“There weren’t a lot of salons that offered services for my hair,” Bailey said. “My natural, my curly, my thick hair. I and my mom would have to drive to other places we would have to go far.”
What is currently a construction zone with machines and mounds of dirt will soon house BCTC’s dental hygiene and cosmetology programs and an assessment center.
BCTC president doctor Koffi Akakpo started the project nearly three years ago to help students avoid commuting from multiple campuses.
President of Kentucky Community and Technical College Systems Dr. Paul Czarapata joined by other BCTC staffers, students, Lexington mayor Linda Gorton and council-members at the event.
Councilman James Brown says the building provides a space for students to grow into the workforce.
“Accessible health care opportunities and workforce opportunities of additional educational opportunities in this part of the city is going to be tremendous,” Czarapata said. “Especially as we rebound from the pandemic and going forward, those are going to be crucial services that we can benefit from.”
Bailey and dental hygiene student Bryce Rivera have both shared encouraging words about BCTC’s academic efforts in their lives. Bailey says a host of opportunities are available at Kentucky’s technical schools.
“We don’t get put in the face of BCTC or JCTC or of places like that and they offer so much more for such less,” Bailey explained. “Like you get the one on one I didn’t get one on one at western. You’re in a class with, like, hundreds of people. Here, I have a class full of 30 girls.”
Eager for the changes at the Newtown campus, she says she is looking forward to what it may mean for her future.
“I want to open up a shop in Richmond and I want to come back and teach,” she said. “I want to teach other parents, white parents, white households with different hair, with different textured hair children”
Teaching a new generation of Kentuckians to reach for their dreams is what she’s looking for from BCTC.
The groundbreaking took place at the building site located off Newtown Pike, beside the Lexington-Fayette county health department.
Leaders praised the city for its efforts to help fund over $2 million towards the brand new structure.