Laquita Bell, a returning student at MATC who is majoring in business, has been a patron of the school’s salon services since 1995.What brought her into the salon, which is located in M126 at the Milwaukee Campus, on a particularly rainy Tuesday, was a wash and press (straightening the hair with a flat iron). When it comes to services like this, she had a very simple thought, “I think it’s a great idea,” she said, “It’s convenient to be a student and to be able to come in for services [like this]. The prices are reasonable and this helps the students with their grades and their experience. It really saves time and money as well.”
Julie Stubenrauch, the salon’s instructor agreed with Bell when it comes to the extent of experience that the students are given. “I think it’s necessary – it’s the only way the students are going to get the hands-on experience for the real world.”
The general consensus, the common bond between the instructors and students when it comes to what they enjoy most about the 1800-hour, three semester Barber and Cosmetology program for full time students (which includes mini-spa, hair and nail tech training) is the hands-on experience that the students gain from working with each other, which was the case in both Linda Zizzo’s Nail Tech class and Kara Netterville’s Mini-Spa class, or working with the general public. It is because of these experiences, that students like Gijeila Rivera are studying in the program. “I wouldn’t be able to sit down and just read. I need to do something with my hands and express my creativity.”
Some of the students, like Kelly Carmony, have come into MATC for a career change while others like Lasondra Bryant entered the program to improve her skills as well as to cater to customers. Bryant said, “I like to help people relieve stress with the skills I’m learning.”
Carmony, who is in Stubenrauch’s salon services class, has her favorite quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson at her workstation: Every artist was first an amateur. To explain why the particular quote is her favorite, Carmony stated, “It’s [the salon services] an artistic field and we work with people and their lifestyles…I love working with the public and this gave me the opportunity to work people and make them feel great, as well as look great.”
Sunny Benson, another of Stubenrauch’s students, believes that the services provide another kind of education to the students – diversity. “There are so many different hair types and so many different skin tones. I think the diversity is very good for students who come in and out of the school for future reference. They’ll know how to work their way up and get better in their craft.”
While the full history of the Barber and Cosmetology program is somewhat of a mystery, Mary Ann Denor was helpful when describing how the program was merged. “Prior to 1988, there was a separate barber program and a separate cosmetology department, with different requirements and different licenses. After 1988, the program merged and there is now only one license.”
According to Zizzo, Salon Services began in 1989 and since then, MATC has been working towards making them accessible to the general public. For instance, the Mini-Spa services have only been open for a little more than a year and provide services such as facials and upper neck and back massages. When asked about the school allowing these services to be provided, Netterville commented, “I think it’s a terrific opportunity for people to come and get high demand services for a good price.”
Netterville’s student, Simone Payton, concurs with her teacher. “It’s a good opportunity for people to be open spa treatments.”
In the Nail Salon, Hair Salon and Mini-Spa, the students perform the services on their respective customers while the instructors observe. It is this method of training that has the students praising their teachers in every class, which was emphasized by Cierra Burks as she said, “I really like the teachers here. They really want the students to succeed.”
Jameika Lemon, a student in Denor’s class agrees wholeheartedly. “The teachers really enjoy everything they do and teach everything with an iron fist.”
Safety is something that Zizzo prides her class on, as she mentioned the subject when asked about the services that her students provide. “I love that my students have the opportunity to provide their nail tech skills on clients in a safe and positive environment.”
The future for the Barber and Cosmetology department includes a planned renovation to update some of the classrooms and a plan to add natural hair care, extensions and braiding to the curriculum. Judy Brown, a fellow instructor in the Barber and Cosmetology program announced, “These services are part of a growing trend and MATC is poised to be the first cosmetology school (public or private) in the state to offer courses in these areas.”
Barber and Cosmetology is indeed a growing specialty and a growing industry, one that already has a prospective student, returning customer Lathan Isaac, who is currently in the G.E.D program. “I think it’s a very good program for people who enjoy doing hair. I’m considering going into the program myself.”
As previously stated, the nail, hair and mini-spa services are available for the general public as well as students and faculty of MATC. Mini-Spa and Salon Services run until October 20 and Nail Tech services begin this month and end in December. To make an appointment for the Mini-Spa or the Salon services, call 414-297-6819. A list of available hours, services and prices is as followed.
