From left: Andre Emmons, LHS Principal; Jose Vazquez, Texans Barber School Owner; Maria Vazquez, Texan’s Barber School Owner, Gaby Murphy, LHS Director of Counseling; Stephen Rhoades, LHS CTE Director and Stephen Jackson, past Texan’s Barber School student
Lufkin High School students who want to pursue a career as a barber have the opportunity to both graduate with a high school diploma and a barber’s certification thanks to a partnership with Texan’s Barber School. The school is located in the Lufkin Mall and is owned by Jose and Maria Vazquez. The two have owned the school since 2016. At the time, their school was the only one in the area with the closest one being in Tyler.
“I wanted to share my skills in this area,” said Mr. Vazquez who will be teaching the classes. He is a barber and his wife Maria is in the process of getting her certification.
Students will take 1,000 credit hours from haircutting styling to facials and related theory. After completing the hours, the student will be required to take an exam for certification. The process will take two years. The student will begin the day at Lufkin High School and leave for the last two periods of the day to learn the skills needed to become at barber.
Students receive hands-on experience at the Texan’s Barber School.
“It’s a hands-on experience. Customers know when they come in that a student will be performing the services,” said Mrs. Vazquez.
“We want to help students, to give them the opportunity to get a degree and a barber certification to become employable,” she said.
“We are excited to announce our partnership with Texan’s Barber College,” said Dr. Andre Emmons, Lufkin High School principal.
“We realize that not all of our students at LHS have a desire to go to college after high school, as a district we are committed to ensuring these students are equipped with the necessary skills and certifications they need to be successful and productive citizens,” said Dr. Emmons.
At Lufkin High School, students can receive numerous certifications from courses taken from the Career Technical Education department. The barber certification will give students even more choices when looking for a future career path.
“This is a great opportunity for a student to receive specialized training and be ready for an exciting career upon graduating from Lufkin High School,” said Stephen Rhoades, CTE Director.
The school also serves as a shop for everyday services.