Officials from two of Southwest Ohio's three major career technical schools will begin meeting next month.

Both schools have approved a study examining combining Butler Tech in Fairfield Township and the Warren County Career Center (WCCC) just north of Lebanon.

The possible merger would initially involve only combining educational programs, not creating a single common campus. A merger would move Butler Tech and WCCC closer to the enrollment size of Ohio's largest vocational school, the Great Oaks Institute of Technology and Career Development in Hamilton County.

There are 49 career technical schools in Ohio's 88 counties.

CAREER CENTER

• Butler Tech serves more than 6,800 high school students in nine Butler County school districts and more than 8,000 full- and part-time adult students. Butler Tech offers 108 high school career-education programs and 19 for adults. Its main campus is at 3603 Hamilton-Middletown Road. • Warren County Career Center serves more than 1,018 Warren County high school students in six Warren County school districts and more than 7,000 full- and part-time adult students. WCCC offers 26 high school career education programs and 17 for adults. Its main campus is at 3525 N. Ohio 48. • More information about the schools is available online: www.butlertech.org and www.wccareercenter.com

"This is huge because any time you put two school districts together, it's significant," said Robert Sommers, Butler Tech chief executive officer. "It looks promising, and we think there would be great synergy between the two."

A merger would allow the two schools to reduce administrative costs and expand the diversity of programs to better serve residents and the growing business communities in Butler and Warren counties, Sommers said. Moreover, he said, combining schools would allow the two to "command a better presence in obtaining federal and state grants."

Sommers said the merger study will be completed within six months, and that if Butler Tech and WCCC officials agree to proceed, some of both schools' technical programs could begin merging in 2005, with other high school and adult career-education programs merging in the following two to five years.

Combining resources from two schools would mean high school and adult students in both counties would have more educational options through expanded academic and career curricula funding by savings through elimination of duplicate programs. Students also would have a choice of at least two locations to attend, and possibly more, because some classes are held in each county's high schools.

Maggie Hess, superintendent of the WCCC, said her career technical school, which serves six of Warren County's eight school districts, is interested in exploring a possible merger with Butler Tech. "We always need to look at what is best for our students," said Hess.

Robin White, president and chief executive officer of Great Oaks, which serves about 8,000 high school students and more than 60,000 adults a year in part-time, workforce development classes, said Ohio career technical schools do not compete with one another, and she would welcome the merger. "We get along well with both institutions ... and it should not have any effect on Great Oaks or the services we provide," said White, whose Great Oaks system, with six campuses, serves 36 school districts in 12 Southwest Ohio counties.

E-mail mclark@enquirer.com