The first meeting of the newly created CTE Advisory Board was called to order on January 14, 2010 at 6:30 p.m. at BCHS. Jackie Stephenson began the meeting with a welcome to members. Eddie Ryder was the only member unable to attend, as he was at a called school board meeting.
Information given concerning happenings within the CTE classes was as follows:
- The Auto classroom had several visitors including speakers from the National Auto Diesel College and The Virginia State Police.
- The Industrial Maintenance and Carpentry Classes constructed toys and other wooden items for the Christmas Mother Program.
- Hospitality students and FCCLA members provided necessity bags to the Springs Nursing Center to the elderly and infirmed. The Culinary Arts students provided meals for the School Board/Supervisors meeting and the Christmas Mother and her helpers, as well as provided refreshments for the Junior Class Ring Ceremony. The FCCLA has competitions scheduled in April in Virginia Beach in the STAR Events and State Competition. Speakers from The Culinary Institute of America and The Culinary Institute of Virginia (Virginia Beach) are scheduled to address the Culinary Classes in February and March and visits are planned to The Homestead.
- The FBLA club contributed to the Fuel Fund supported by The Christmas Mother Program. The club has 29 students scheduled to compete at the FBLA convention with past years successes including a first place State level winner. The Design and Multimedia classes provide three newsletters per year which are available on the Bath County Schools website and provide the opportunity for the students to do interviews and write articles. The students also create layouts and do various jobs as requested from the community.
The meeting moved next to the election and appointment of a Vice President – Cara Major and Secretary – Katie Keyser. Cara, who works closely with Brenda Hite, the Homestead’s Human Resourses Manager and the acting President of the CTE Advisory Board, will be an asset to the board’s potential to provide exposure of our students to the working world within The Homestead.
Although quarterly meetings are planned, suggestions were made to create a collaborative webpage to keep the group updated monthly on what is happening in CTE. Our goal is to get information out to the public to bring ultimate exposure to our CTE programs.
Much of the meeting was used to discuss the new requirements of the VDOE regarding Completer Credentialing Testing. The requirement is now that 33% of all completers must be tested each school year. Of those 33% tested, 50% must pass. Discussion continued concerning choosing or identifying the tests to use for the required testing criteria and to meet the requirements or expectations of prospective employers. The goal is the chosen tests best prepare our students to enter the workforce.
Cara Major and Brenda Hite introduced the proposal of a new club offered by The Homestead. The hopes are to expose students to the options available in the workforce in an effort to encourage employment and/or the pursuit of additional education to achieve job positions in the community. The club would meet at the high school with regularly scheduled club meetings with special events planned such as “Homestead Day”, inviting Homestead employee department representatives to give insight into the many aspects of employment opportunities available at The Homestead. Plans have begun for a meeting with The Homestead and administrators, teachers, and Achievement Booster Club officers for promoting student achievement and employability through collaboration.
The meeting adjourned at 8:40.