A shave and a haircut will run you more than two bits at the local barber college — but, with a price list that includes a haircut for just $5, it won’t be a whole lot more.
The deep discounts that patron can find at the Toledo Barber Academy, the only site in the region where prospective barbers can rack up the 1,800 hours of theoretical and practical instruction they need before sitting for a licensing exam, benefit both the barbers-in-training and their patrons.
For the students, the rates bring in a steady stream of heads on which they can build experience with shampoos, trims and shaves, as well as dyes, perms and relaxers. For those heads, the patrons, it’s a bargain that accounts for plenty of regulars who settle into the chairs in a converted classroom at the former DeVilbiss High School every week.
Or more than once a week, as is the case for many of the schoolchildren who account for a daily uptick in business during the late afternoons. At just a dollar for a haircut for students and veterans, they can afford to keep their line ups, or edged hairlines, looking sharp.
“A lot of kids come twice a week,” Instructor Dana Wilson said. “It’s only a dollar.”
The Toledo Barber Academy, which operates under the umbrella of Toledo Public Schools Adult Education and can accommodate up to 34 students, has been training barbers of all adult ages since it opened in 2002. Its 1,800 hours of instruction translate to a roughly 13-month program, in which student barbers learn the trade through both textbooks and hands-on experience.
The textbook aspect covers anatomy and biology, according to Mr. Wilson, who’s been instructing students since the college launched. It accounts for a comparatively shorter part of the day than the experiential aspect, which students spend in an often bustling classroom shop, learning new skills and perfecting those, like handling a pair of clippers for a basic men’s haircut, in which they might have years of amateur experience on family or friends.
“They polish the student’s techniques, show them the proper way to hold the clippers, the shears,” said Larry Warniment, director of adult and continuing education. “They all think, ‘Oh, yeah, I can cut hair. Well, they can cut hair, but they can’t do it the correct way.’”
Marcos Ramirez, 25, of Wauseon, is among the current crop of students. He said he started practicing on his nephews shortly before he decided to enroll in the barber college.
For Mr. Ramirez, the prospect of a career where he could see flexible hours, good money and opportunities to spend time with family, friends and patrons drew him to the profession. He’s set to wrap up in October, and said he hasn’t yet decided if he’ll return to Wauseon or remain in Toledo to work.
While prospective customers at the barber college should realize that their barbers are still learning – and consequently shouldn’t rule out the possibility of an “oops” moment – Mr. Wilson said the price discount and the watchful eyes under which each student barber works are strong recommendations.
“The best place to get a haircut,” he said, “is the barber college.”
Contact Nicki Gorny at ngorny@theblade.com or 419-724-6133.
First Published April 22, 2018, 12:15 p.m.