In 1929, just months before the stock market crash, my dad got his first job out of college teaching at a brand new high school in Detroit. It was named Wilbur Wright. I suppose as a tribute to the innovation of the Wright brothers, I believe the program there began as a work/study one. The students could get practical experience in the burgeoning auto industry while they took tech related high school classes. My dad ended up teaching there for over 40 years.
Kudos to your father. I went to a vocational school in Pontiac, Michigan. Paid for and funded by General Motors to encourage youth to persue technical careers in manufacturing. That was in the late 1980’s.
Those programs are no more.