PERRYSBURG, Ohio — It's a groundbreaking step into the future for Penta Career Center in Perrysburg.
The career center broke ground on its new E-mobility lab on Monday.
Ohio's lieutenant governor, Jon Husted, was on hand to celebrate the achievement and the $2.4 million state grant awarded to Penta to help make it happen.
"This is really about integrating digital technologies into everything from drones to manufacturing facilities to automobiles," Husted said. "It's really the next step of what's going on out there in the private sector."
The grant will help build Penta's new E-mobility lab, which focuses on different types of electric vehicles and drones. There has been a growth in digital technology and a growing interest in learning more about it.
With a little over 1,500 students on campus, Penta Career Center Superintendent Ed Ewers knew the school would need to expand.
"We've experienced an increase in enrollment, really year-over-year for the last five years and that is projected to continue," Ewers said. "We project out what that enrollment is going to continue to be, and we need more space. So, this allows us to continue to provide opportunities for students who want to engage in and it gives us the room to do that."
Career centers like Penta are meant to coach students on future career opportunities. With jobs including digital tech and robotics on the rise, Penta is working to become an outlet for the job market.
"The employers of this region who are doing robotics and all kinds of other digital integrations want this program," Husted said. "They're going to hire the students to come out of it."
The students will be prepared to meet those growing demands.
"If you think about the needs that are for the future, the electrical grid, those who can work on that grid, the installation and maintenance of charging stations, right?" Ewers said. "They're going into residential or commercial spaces that may have EV components and they need to know how to deal with that. "
Because as technology grows day by day, Penta will do the same to keep up.
"It allows us to grow as technology continues to grow," Ewers said. "This is a flexible space that can adapt."