CCTEC cosmetology students return to manicure veterans home in Vineland

Veterans in Vineland got more than polished nails when Cumberland County Technical Education Center cosmetology students stepped into the New Jersey Veterans Memorial Home last month. The visit turned a simple manicure session into a practical exchange: residents received personal attention at 524 North West Boulevard, and students practiced skills that can lead directly into cosmetology and other service careers in Cumberland County.

The event is set to return this month, with high participation expected again at the state-run home, where routines already include recreational programming, therapy and around-the-clock care. For residents at the 300-bed facility, the student visit fit naturally into a campus that already includes a full-service beauty salon and barber shop, along with common spaces designed to support daily life and social connection.

The Vineland home is the state’s oldest continually operating veterans home, first opening in 1899 before a replacement facility opened in 2005. It is one of three long-term care nursing homes operated by the New Jersey Department of Veterans Affairs, and state officials say the homes are regularly visited by volunteers and organizations that provide companionship and recreational activities. In a setting like that, a manicure appointment is not a novelty. It is part of the broader effort to keep residents engaged and cared for in a place built for long-term living.

For CCTEC, the visit reflects the school’s mission as a career and technical high school serving Cumberland County students. The Vineland school offers cosmetology as one of its hands-on programs, and its broader curriculum is built around career-based learning meant to prepare students for meaningful work after graduation. A student who learns sanitation, customer service and grooming techniques in a veterans home is seeing those skills applied in a real community setting, not just a classroom.

That matters locally because workforce training in Cumberland County is most valuable when it connects to actual demand. Cosmetology can open a path into salons, barber shops and other personal-care work, while the same service mindset also translates to senior care, hospitality and other roles that depend on trust and consistency. At the veterans home, that connection is visible in real time: residents get a service that improves quality of life, and students leave with experience that can help shape a career.