Harry Hill has offered career classes such as graphic design, auto body, EMT, and health sciences for over 20 years, but due to a district decision over finances most of these classes were either closed down or moved at the beginning of this school year.

Harry Hill was once a high school, but was converted into a vocational school back in the 1980’s. The school offered more than 20 career programs, but this year only four of those programs remain. They are emergency medical technician (EMT), visual imaging (graphic design), health science (pre-nursing) and health technology (dental assistant).

The reason those four programs were kept was because of the large investments in the equipment used and also the amount of student interest.

“My class was kept,” said graphic and printing technology teacher Dennis Harrington, “mainly because of the investment in all the equipment we use. If the program (would not have survived) most of the equipment would have been sold on auction.”

These programs were all moved out of Hill, and are being taught at other high schools. Sexton now offers the EMT class, pre-nursing and the dental assisting class. Everett now offers the visual imaging class.

According to guidance counselor Raymond Rubio, Michigan’s economic status has gotten so bad that they have had to cut back even on education, so the Hill programs were closed to save money.

“In order to save money,” said Rubio, “the school board had to limit the number of courses that students could take.”

There is still a chance that these classes could be closed down if there is not enough student interest.

“Any class in Lansing has that possibility,” said EMT instructor Debbie Farnsworth “It is all done by the numbers.”

The Hill facility is still in use. It houses programs such as a print shop, the alternative school program, the district’s technology support and some adult education classes.

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