Marion County Public Schools
Winter 2014 Newsletter
Leading Off
Deborah A. Jenkins
Director
A Note from the Director
Lynn Nobles
There are so many exciting things happening in the CTE world recently! We are pleased to have our voting community show their support by passing the millage tax. Leaders are working hard to plan for our programs’ growth, bringing great benefits to our existing vocational programs, while helping us develop new programs as well. We have always known the importance of hands‐on learning that occurs in our CTE programs, but it’s encouraging to see the wave of awareness beginning to spread to others. We can’t let that momentum slow! We need to continue to preach the importance of career and technical education. CTE is college prep! It is career prep and it is rigorous education that benefits each and every student. I am proud of what you do each and every day. Keep up the great work! Coordinator
Sara LeFils
Career Pathways ISP
Velvea Brown
Instructional Support
Kathy McLain
Instructional Support
Kathy Otte
Instructional Support
Loretta Young
Instructional Support
Tammy Humphrey
Confidential Secretary
Diane Lorino
Data Entry Clerk
Congratulations to our Teachers of the Year!
Darin Nine, BHS Sonja Christmas, NMHS Mike Carter, LMS John Conway, MTI Congratulations Rookie Teachers of the Year!
Hollie Cunningham, WPHS Sara Hurst, OMS New CTE Teachers!
Welcome to the family!
Erin Oullette – BHS Business Patrick Briar ‐ BHS Digital Video Stephanie Pruitt – BHS Health Science Brian Skipper – BMS Agriscience Nichole Harris – DHS Allied Health Austin Skipper – DHS Agritechnology Brendon Ehlers – FHS Business Beth Collins – FHS Teacher Assisting Matthew Albritton – FKMS Technology Ronnie Risby – FKMS Business Christina Cupstid – HMS Business Kelley James – LMS Business Steven Roberts – LMS Technology Nicole Alberts – LWMS Agriscience Sheila Gadson – LWMS Business Mason Natalino – LWHS Comm. Technology Ryn Sapp – MTI Legal Admin Scott Spangler – NMMS Business Neil Schulman – VHS Criminal Justice Keith McLain – VHS Digital Design Darla Self – VHS Digital Video Dominic Cwiklinski– WPHS Teacher Assisting Bryan Morgan – WPHS Digital Video DID YOU KNOW?
In 2011‐12,  92% of CTE high school students graduated  88% met performance goals for mathematics skills  69% of CTE postsecondary students remained enrolled or transferred to another institution In a Gates Foundation report, 81% of students who dropped out said that "more real world learning" may have influenced them to stay in school. Students at schools with highly integrated rigorous academic & CTE programs have significantly higher student achievement in reading, math and science than do students at schools with less integrated programs, as reported by the Southern Regional Education Board. CTE Success!
Here’s a perfect example! Nick Porcelli graduated from Forest High School in the Criminal Justice program. He will graduate on December 12th from the Florida Fire College. He says it’s a great career path‐ it is hard, but he is doing well and would love to speak to other students to encourage them on their path to success. Congrats, Nick! FFA is the largest youth organization in the nation with over half a million middle and high school FFA members nationwide. I, Sierra Smith, have been lucky enough to be a part of this amazing organization since I was in 6th grade at Fort King Middle School. Being a member as well as the Vice President of the Forest FFA Chapter, I have been able to further my FFA journey further than I ever dreamed. The 86th Florida FFA State Convention and Expo was held June 30‐ July 4th, 2014 in Orlando, Florida. Over 4,000 FFA members and guests attended State Convention and I was lucky enough to be one of those members. While at convention I was campaigning to be elected to serve as the District 5 secretary. District 5 consists of 45 middle and high school FFA Chapters and four counties including Marion, Lake, Citrus, and Sumter County. With Marion County’s support, I was elected secretary of District 5 for 2014‐15. District office is the highest office an FFA member can hold while in high school. I hope to run for state office my senior year and to serve the state for the 2016‐2017 year. I could not have done everything I’ve done in the FFA without the support here at home. I cannot thank my two FFA Advisors enough, Ms. Lori Albritton and Mr. Dewie Brewton, for teaching me all I know about the FFA. I am so excited to serve Marion County as well as District 5 this year and I would like to thank everyone for all the support. ‐Sierra Smith SOUTHEASTERN YOUTH FAIR KICK‐OFF HAS BEGUN! NMMS FFA at Lamb Pick‐Up NMHS Hog Tagging Ft. King Middle FFA volunteering at Farm City Week on November 16 Congratulations to the North Marion High School Livestock Judging Team! Cory Ketchum, Ryon Springer, Derek Sharp and Patrick Sharp took 3rd place in the Volusia County Fair on November 8th. This was the first time the boys had competed together. Way to go guys! Lake Weir High School claimed two of the state’s 11 first‐place trophies and one second‐place trophy at the 42nd Annual Jim Harbin Student Media Festival in Orlando in October. “Julia’s Journey” was judged the best high school documentary in the state, “Storm Surge” won the state’s top prize in the category of News Show, and “Red Riding Hood” earned runner‐up honors in the category of Book Trailer. Only one other high school in the state—
University School of NOVA (Broward County)—earned two first‐place finishes. Congratulations to Vanguard High also for taking the top prize for News Feature and Forest earning first place in Animation. "Julia's Journey" also won first place at the Marion County Library's 6th Annual CREATE festival. The video was produced by seniors Jessica Miller and Brianna Reid. This was the third straight year that LWHS placed a video at CREATE, having taken second place each of the last two years. During the month of October, Bright House Sports Network Varsity Reporter program celebrates Breast Cancer Awareness month with their “BHSN Goes Pink” campaign. This program focused on what student athletes and schools are doing to raise awareness and funds for breast cancer research and support services. Forest High School students Lexie Smith, Brandon Almeida, Tyler Carr, Randy Cabrera and Paige Ramsey submitted a spotlight news package that received the most online votes. They will be featured on Bright House’s Varsity TV special in December. Forest High School students Alex Martinez, Gary Peeler and Tyler Goring were winners at the recent CREATE film festival put on annually by the Marion County Public Libraries. Gary and Alex’s entry “The Last Night” came in 2nd and Tyler’s animation “Afternoon Skating” came in 3rd place. The FBLA District Rally was held at CTAE on November 14th and was a great success! Students participated in workshops to learn about leadership, communication and teamwork. They built sculptures with marshmallows and pretzels, had to replicate a structure of solo cups and Popsicle sticks, and evolved from “eggs” into “eagles.” SkillsUSA Region 2 officers joined other regional officers for the annual state leadership workshop at Lake Yale Conference Center in Leesburg, Florida October 27th to the 29th. For three days, the officers participated in leadership workshops and training with students from all six regions in Florida. The students will be able to take the skills they learned back to their schools and implement in the school chapters. Region 2 was well represented by the following students from Marion County: Jacklynn Cash (MTI), Andrez Towns (CF), Mathew "Tyler" Chaffin (BHS), Justus Blunt (MTI), Conrad Edwards (MTI), and Tyler Kaestner (FHS‐State Officer). Lake Weir High School students – first time in scrubs! Allied Health students attended orientation at Munroe Regional Medical Center, then toured the College of Central Florida’s numerous health programs. Lake Weir High School at MRMC WPHS students touring CF’s EMT program What dedication! Our students got drenched in a rain storm but continued with the tour anyway! Practicing how to put on and take off our scrubs the proper way at Lake Weir High School The FHS HOSA Club entered a photo contest called the 7th Annual University of Florida Pediatric Endocrinology World Diabetes Day “Blue Circle” Photo Contest. It’s a chance to be creative and promote diabetes awareness. Blue circles are the global symbol associated with diabetes. FHS HOSA received an Honorable Mention for their photos (below). Criminal Justice students at North Marion High School are working on a mock crime scene. This crime scene is a drug deal gone terribly wrong. The story also has a twist! If the detectives and officers don’t ask the right questions of the victims, witnesses and suspects, they will miss finding a second body. After the detectives are done gathering information from the crime scene, they have to process the footprints, fingerprints, DNA evidence and blood splatter patterns. They then have to write the report and arrest the suspect. After they have solved the case, they will go through a mock trial and defend their murder case. The Wolf Pack Biomedical Sciences Program: Empowering Students — Broadening Dreams! Anna Garcia Is Dead It was a hot, 92°F summer morning. The emergency call came in at 9:45 am. A man contacted the police to report that he was worried about his next door neighbor, a woman named Anna Garcia. He decided to call the police this morning because Anna’s dog had been barking excitedly for the last two hours. He tried to call Anna on the telephone, but no one answered. Next he tried ringing her doorbell, but again there was no answer. Both the police and the EMT arrived at the scene at 9:56 am. Upon entering the house, they found Anna lying face down in the entry hallway. The EMT determined that Anna was dead. The police immediately notified the WPHS team of crime scene investigators and medical examiners, both of whom were dispatched to the house. Has a crime been committed? The mystery begins! It is the job of West Port High School’s Biomedical Science students to put together as many pieces of information as they can find. The biomedical sciences are involved in many facets of our day to day lives, including but not limited to research, medicine, health care, pharmacology, medical technology, and forensics. Throughout the year, they will explore many of these areas and also experience some of these fields first hand as they play the role of biomedical science professionals. To begin their work, the students find themselves in the middle of a mystery. A woman has died, and as biomedical professionals, they will examine the crime scene and Anna, from her illnesses to her autopsy, to uncover the clues that will lead them to determine how Anna Garcia died. Opportunity is calling at West Port High School! According to the U.S. Dept. of Labor ‐ 11 of the top 25 and 4 of the top 5 fastest growing occupations through the next decade will be in the medical field. Students that step across a WPHS Biomedical Science classroom threshold will secure an opportunity to become a medical professional and experience an approach to learning that fuels imaginative thinking, creative problem solving and innovative solutions. Just the kinds of skills that will help young minds be successful in their education and beyond. October was National Manufacturing Month and approximately 300 students from all high schools attended tours, along with students from the College of Central Florida and Community Technical Adult Education (CTAE). Participating businesses included SPX, ClosetMaid, Winco, Custom Windows, Hale Products, A&N, Sibex, Townley Manufacturing, Krausz Industries, Golden Flake, Kmart Distribution, and Marion Metal Works. The event addresses common misperceptions about manufacturing by giving manufacturers an opportunity to open their doors to showcase and define, in a coordinated effort, what manufacturing is and isn’t. The tours provided an opportunity to inspire a new generation of manufacturers, dispel outdated myths and connect with their community’s future. Dr. Marilyn Barger, executive director of FLATE, said the goal of the event is to “express the necessity of building a strong, high‐tech manufacturing workforce throughout Florida, and showcase the breadth of Florida manufacturing.” Pathways 2 Prosperity (“P‐squared” for short) is off to a great start this year, expanding to three high schools: Belleview, Dunnellon and Lake Weir High Schools. These groups of junior CTE students are learning about job opportunities in our community. They participated in Manufacturing Day tours, agriculture and culinary days and explored the medical fields so far. In the new year, the students will continue to explore these industries and will also learn about and tour the College of Central Florida and CTAE. Their last event will include mock job interviews and a financial literacy workshop which will occur in March. To learn more about this program, like our Facebook page: Pathways 2 Prosperity. BHS students reviewing skin cancer photos with Dermatologist LWHS students with hair nets and free chips at Golden Flake DHS students learning about culinary and hospitality at The Mojo Grill
Do you have news to share in our CTE newsletter? Please send complete stories (as you’d like them written) and pictures to Sara LeFils at [email protected]