While other students buckle down to chemistry homework as another school year starts, the pupils at Arvada’s College of International Esthetics are studying facial chemical peels.
“I think they are a little intimidated in the beginning,” said Arlene Malay, the third-generation cosmetologist who owns the school. “But the way we have it set up, they learn in a gradual sequence, and most of the class is hands-on — it has to be — and then they get excited.”
The school is at 7330 W. 52nd Ave., just off Wadsworth Boulevard in Arvada. Its campus is contained in a tidy white building within walking distance of a Sam’s Club, a Costco and other suburban stalwarts. A new class of students began a six-week course earlier this month.
Their studies focus on facials and makeovers, including eyebrow and eyelash tinting, collagen anti-aging treatments and other subjects. Classes typically start with a lecture, often PowerPoint-illustrated, and move to hands-on research. Textbooks are not involved.
Exams are in the form of supervised salon procedures that are offered at a steep discount to the public. A 30-minute mini-facial here costs $15. Microdermabrasion costs $36. Waxing starts at $7 (upper lip) and goes up to $36 (back).
Homework? Very little, Malay says. She sees an influx of students (“We get a lot of people from layoffs”) turning to skin care as a second career.
— Claire Martin, The Denver Post
