Seems pretty odd to me. Then again, I live in the midwest where coyotes are everywhere, and I've been calling dogs for over 20yrs, so I take some of the things I know off the cuff for granted when thinking about new callers.
But for the sake of arguement, if I were in your shoes....
If I had the money laying around, then yeah, I'd probaby be interested, if even just for being curious. If I had the money laying around, and that guy had ONE trick that I didn't already know, then yeah, $175 isn't bad. If I had the money laying around, I'd probably enjoy a 2day class/discussion with ANYBODY about coyote hunting, so it'd be worth a lot just for entertainment value....
But that's again, IF I HAD THE MONEY LAYING AROUND...
If I were laid off, I probably wouldn't "waste" the money.
I honestly don't believe that this guy is going to be the coyote hunting guru so you'll walk in hopeless and walk out a predator-master.
Yes, there might be something simple that you're missing that is blowing your hunts that he would elucidate, but frankly, I don't believe there is any way a "class" could take you from zero to hero. It might improve the odds of a rookie, or it might teach an old dog that one new trick, but it won't take you from seeing NOTHING to having 3 dog nights on a regular basis.
There are plenty of resources to learn about coyote calling and hunting for free, so if I were in your shoes, I wouldn't necessarily believe that this class would offer anything that I couldn't find for free. You said you're laid off, so you should have plenty of time to ask questions online, like this one, and do some reading.
Coyote calling is about concealment more than anything else. It doesn't matter how accurate your rifle is, how well you call, or how lifelike your decoy is, if a coyote hears, sees, or smells you, you're done. Playing the wind is absolutely critical, you need a good line of sight down wind in case they circle around, but you generally hope (and pray) that they come in from upwind. E-callers and decoys help with this a lot. You can move yourself to the side (relative to the wind) from your call, so even if the dogs come in from downwind, you have a shot (as long as they don't pass downwind of YOU to get downwind of your call). Decoys help distract and entice a wary coyote. An audible cue is great, but an audible cue AND a visual cue is better.
Even crappy electronic callers or unnatural sounds (Verminator Syco Tweety anyone? Name that sound? But it dang sure brings them in!) can lure in songdogs, as long as it sounds like it's dying. In my area, howlers are only good for locating, especially at night, but won't do you much good for actually calling them in. They MIGHT come investigate another coyote, but they WILL come investigate a free meal.
Snaring coyotes, in my experience, is pretty easy. Just be logical about how you hang your snares. I don't bait my snares (usually), but I just find coyote paths (i.e. heavier/wider game trails that are clearly too short for deer), like paths under fences, or under brush. Then I hang the snare a few inches off the ground, that way shorter animals like skunks, oppossums, raccoons, etc will pass under the snare, but bobcats, fox, and coyotes will run their head through it. Hanging it a few inches off the ground also helps prevent the coyote (or especially bobcat) from putting one of their front feet through the snare as they walk through it. I use bobby pins to hang my snares, and I generally like to use spring-locked snares, not just friction locks (less apt to freeze "unlocked").
So personally, I'd keep doing what you're doing (reading and asking questions) and save your money. You can always take the class later, but you can't get your money back if you don't learn anything that helps you.