The American Indian proverb, "Never criticize a man until you've walked a mile in his moccasins" is a classic play on the importance of empathy. Until you truly feel what others are feeling, it's difficult to relate to them on a meaningful level. For Pattie Mandula, supervisor of the Nursing School at Cuyahoga Valley Career Center, the journey to a higher level of empathy began as a means of better interacting with her mother, who suffered from Alzheimer's disease.

By the year 2030 there will be 72 million Americans over the age of 65, more than twice their number in 2000, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. With a spike in aging population, the demand for qualified caregivers is also on the rise. Regina Health Center is one of 10 clinical sites throughout the Cleveland area that partners with nursing students from Cuyahoga Valley Career Center.

Each and every structure, building, and freeway you pass by or drive on during your daily commute goes through various stages of planning, all the way from the foundation in the ground up to the roof on the tip top.

Over the past 16 years, I've had the pleasure of working with students from Cuyahoga Valley Career Center - and the relationship has always been a symbiotic one. (Click "Read More" to view Dr. John White's blog in its entirety.)

Since 1998, we have welcomed interns from Cuyahoga Valley Career Center to work directly with our designers, entry-level engineers, and architects on live projects. GPD Group is a firm of more than 500 employees that has doubled in size over the last three years. Many promising students from CVCC have joined our ranks after interning here.

An affinity for your career and chosen path in life is an admirable quality, and something every working person hopes to accomplish in his or her lifetime. For salon owner and ThermaFuse international artistic director Abigail Brown, her learning experience, thriving career, and life in cosmetology are an absolute passion - a dream come true.

Mirroring the exponential growth of the restaurant and hospitality industry in Ohio, the culinary arts program at Cuyahoga Valley Career Center has expanded and developed over the past several years -- and now has a waiting list for admission.

For all the kids who grew up racing, collecting, and generally obsessing about Hot Wheels cars, the latest advances in airbrush finishing are a dream come true.

The restaurant and hospitality industry has gained in popularity, thanks to the likes of reality shows such as Top Chef, The Chew, Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives, and Cupcake Wars. Erin Holter has experienced firsthand the trials and tribulations of food service management as depicted on television, and she has risen to the occasion and truly made a name for herself.

Someone once told Jerry Koenig that he had oil instead of blood coursing through his veins. And the gregarious power equipment instructor wouldn't disagree with that a bit.

Bernie Van Tilburg brings a colorful breadth of experience to CVCC's Media Arts program. With a degree in radio and television production and a master's in education (both from Kent State University), along with six years in the field as a floor director at Channel 3 TV and a producer at WTAM and WKNR radio, he is a seasoned veteran who likes to fully immerse students in the industry.

Not too many instructors can comfortably list "Singer of Jingles" on their Curriculum Vitae. But for Dental Assisting Instructor Lisa Ann Theodore, C.D.A., R.D.A, noted performer of little ditties such as "Drill, Fill & Bill" - it's just another part of the job.