Featured Business for                                                               September 2006                                                         High-Tech Institute                                               9738 Lincoln Village Drive, Suite 100                                                     Rancho Cordova, CA 95827                                                         Phone 800-322-4128                                              website: www.hightechinstitute.edu Looks like a medical clinic, but its not Those of us who live in Lincoln Village, or those who often cruise along that section of Lincoln Village Drive near Bradshaw Road, have gotten very use to sight of young men and women in blue and green “hospital scrubs” going in and out of the building at 9738 Lincoln Village Drive, which was long the facility used by the Sacramento County Office of Education. In fact so many “nurses” are seen entering and leaving that building now, walking to and from the nearby 7-Eleven, or waiting at the bus stop for a #72 to take them to the light rail station, that many folks have just assumed that there is now a big medical clinic located inside the glassy structure. The truth is, this is not a clinic or even a laboratory, but it has become a place of higher learning. It is home to High- Tech Institute. After the county relocated its Office of Education to Mather Field early in this decade, the structure underwent a nearly year long remodeling program. High-Tech Institute, which had been opened in the Sacramento region since 1992, was attracted by the size of the Rancho Cordova facility, the terms of the lease, and its “US-50 close” location. The school moved into most of the building about three years ago. (They have since been joined by a state agency using a smaller part of the building’s eastern end.) Health Care and Technology programs The local High-Tech Institute is actually one of ten national campuses, although it is their only campus in California. All locations offer accredited post-high school education and hands-on training. Students select from day or evening classes in programs of instruction that can lead to either a certified diploma or an associate degree. Nationally there are Visual Arts, Criminal Justice, Veterinary Technician, Health Care, Technology, and Management programs offered. At the Rancho Cordova facility they currently have some students in Technology programs (Computer Networking & Security, and Electronic Technology). The overwhelming majority of the students attending the school in Lincoln Village, however, are in one of their six Health Care programs. These are Dental Assistant, Massage Therapy, Medical Assistant, Medical Billing & Coding, Pharmacy Technician, and Surgical Technologist. Program length can go from 32 weeks up to two years, depending on the program selected. All High-Tech Institute program include a lot of homework for the classroom segment of education. The teaching also includes work experience, putting theory into real world practice. Various internships with local firms are key part of High-Tech Institute programs. The High-Tech Institute programs are accredited by ACCSCT. The Medical Assistant program also has undergone review and been approved by ABHES. (There is a long list of other approving agencies and professional association memberships noted on the local page of High-Tech Institute’ s website.) A busy parking lot Beyond the couple of dozen full time and part time teachers at the school, there is a local staff of nearly two dozen to help students through the enrollment process, assist them if they need to find financial aid, and even help them find local housing. There is also a graduate placement service staff on the campus. The first students arrive at the school’s parking lot early in the weekday mornings and the last them don’t clear out until late into the evenings. One sure sign of how well the school is doing is the growth of cars in their parking lot. When High-Tech first relocated to this neighborhood the lot was rarely a quarter full. Now it seems that it is also half or two-thirds full. The Lincoln Village Neighborhood Association is happy and proud to note that our neighborhood includes, High-Tech Institute.