Fairfield County and South Carolina students can now earn barbering licenses while still in high school. This opportunity opens many doors for students, giving them a head start on their careers and allowing them to begin their professional journey early.
WINNSBORO – Fairfield Career and Technology Center’s longtime barbering instructor, Marwin McKnight, not only started the very first high school barbering program in South Carolina, but last month successfully lobbied the South Carolina Board of Barbering to allow students in high school barbering programs across the state to be allowed to test for their barbering license while still in the high school program.
“We’ve had a lot of students go through our barbering program at the technology center here at Fairfield Central High School,” said Dr. Tony Hemingway, Superintendent of Fairfield County School District, “but not many of them have pursued their license after they graduated. That’s because while they were taking the course in high school – where they had the equipment, the support, and skills set they needed to take the exam – they were only allowed to earn hours toward their board license. They weren’t allowed by the state to take the exam for their barbering license until after they graduated. And their high school hours don’t transfer to a private barbering school.”
Hemingway said most of the school’s barbering students rarely went on to take their test. Waiting until they graduated, and without the school’s support system, he said, they usually enrolled in a private barbering school where they had to start all over at a great cost of time and money.
“When I learned this, I felt we should be able to administer that license exam before our students leave high school,” Hemingway said. “Here, they have the training, the hours, everything they need to get their license. It’s all fresh in their minds then. If they don’t pass it the first time, they still have the support from the teacher so they can focus on what they need to learn to pass the second time they take the exam. The high school program provides an extra layer of support for success.
“We want kids – when they leave high school – to be prepared for the work force, so they can become entrepreneurs right away,” Hemingway said.
Ironically, the state requires students in the cosmetology program to take their cosmetology exam before they leave high school.
“So, Mr. McKnight, Dr. Grover Pilot, and I went down to the barbering board in Columbia to make our case for our students,” Hemingway said. “We explained to them that we want to have early testing for our barber students. They could take the test while they have the support of their teachers, parents and counselors who can help them get through the program. If they pass the test, it can set them up for success for life,” he said.
“The board listened to us and said they would get back to us in a month or so with an answer,” Hemingway said. “To our surprise, they called Mr. McKnight later that same day to say our request was approved – not only for Fairfield students, but for all high school barber students across the state. That was huge,” he said, “for our students and for students across the state.”
“I had tried and tried to get this approved for years,” McKnight said. “Going before the board and them telling me ‘no’ again and again, my reaction to the news was estatic, because now I can get my kids licensed before they leave the program.”
Hemingway said it was especially rewarding to think that McNight and Fairfield Schools made this possible for all South Carolina schools.
“We knew we had to do something different if we were to have a different outcome,” Hemingway said. “Mr. McKnight had been wanting this for a long time, and I’m especially proud of him for being so dedicated to make this a reality for our students.”
And Fairfield Central barber students see what taking the exam early can do for their future.
“Getting my license while I’m in high school gives me the opportunity when I go to college to start cutting hair right away and on a daily basis,” said Wayne Johnson. It will help me pay for my schooling.”
Jared Dixon agrees.
“Taking my barbering exam while I’m still in school lets me get a little more experience and improve my craft before I leave here,” Dixon said.
Kimberly Dixon says she’s delighted that her son will be able to now take the barbering exam prior to leaving high school.
“”My son will be an influence in the community, and he’ll be able to start a career in barbering early,” she said.
Hemingway said the students will have to have a certain number of hours before they can take the exam, and – when they pass – they will receive their license after they graduate high school.
“It’s not a foreign concept, to be licensed before you’re a practitioner,” Hemingway said. “This licensing procedure has long been in place for our cosmetology students, why not for our barber students. It just makes good sense.”
