We used to more like that here. You still went to high school, but if you wanted to work in a trade, after freshman year you spent mornings at high school doing core subjects (math, language, history), then you took a bus to the county trade school. After 3 years you’d be certified in a trade or set up toward that, depending, and apprentices out to a job. Again, depending. Sometimes you had to find your own skilled job.

They started phasing that out in preference to offering a standard or advanced diploma right before I started high school. When those jobs dry up, there’s no need for trade school.