Gibson Technical Center Newsletter

It's official! Construction has finally begun on our new facility located next to Reeds Spring High School. While excavation work started earlier in the month, the official groundbreaking ceremony took place on Friday, January 27th in front of approximately 200 supporters and another 100 or more Reeds Spring students who were able to attend. We also announced at the ceremony that we will be changing our name to Table Rock Career Center. This change will coincide with moving into the new building which is planned for the 2024-2025 school year. We are also excited to announce that we will be naming our Lecture Hall after Mr. Omar Gibson who was the namesake of our current building. Mr. Gibson was instrumental in starting Career and Technical Education in the region, and we wanted to commemorate his work with this honor. Be sure to keep up with construction updates on our Facebook and Twitter accounts as well as our school website.

Brian Moler

Co-Director- Gibson Tech

In the 2019-2020 school year staff, students, parents, administrators, and community stakeholders began the process of putting together the Vision 2025 Strategic Plan for the Reeds Spring School District. Superintendent Dr. Cody Hirschi called the Strategic Plan, "The most important work that we will do in the district." This monumental plan focused on the following areas: Early Childhood Education, Academic Excellence, Student Well-Being, High-Quality Employees, Community Awareness and Engagement, College and Career Readiness, and Funding.

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To realize the vision of the College and Career Readiness portion of the strategic plan was the proposed construction of a new career center. Thanks to the voters for approving a no-tax-increase bond issue last year, this vision is now becoming a reality with the official ground breaking of the Table Rock Career Center located next door to Reeds Spring High School. TRCC will be larger than our current facility and will allow more students to participate and additional programs added to our current 11 programs of study.

“This school will be a beacon of hope for students in our region, providing them with a pathway to a brighter future,” said Reeds Spring Schools Superintendent Dr. Cody Hirschi. “It will also be a vital resource for businesses and industries in our area, helping to ensure that they have a skilled workforce.”

“We are very excited about the opportunities this new facility will present for both our students and staff. Career and Technical Education has a direct and immediate impact on our students and communities. This building will help make those opportunities available to even more students.” said Table Rock Career Center Director Brian Moler.

In the Early Childhood Careers Program students study topics including developmental milestones, educational and behavioral theorists that have contributed to education, how to create safe and healthy learning environments, and how to plan and implement lesson plans for newborn children through 4th grade.

Students learn instructional strategies for guiding students through learning centers such as art, block building, sensory, music, and academic areas including math, handwriting, reading, and science. Students also learn how to apply the program’s curriculum in a real classroom setting. Students in this program get hands-on experience working alongside teachers from the Reeds Spring Early Education Center, Primary and Elementary Schools.

Upon completion of this two year program, students will have the opportunity to gain nine articulated college credit hours through Ozark Technical Community College, become certified in Early Childhood through the American Association of Family and Consumer Science, and an opportunity to take the Missouri Paraprofessional Test to become a certified paraprofessional. This program is a great stepping stone for anyone interested in the childcare or education field!

The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has a great program to assist families with costs associated with the CTE programs their students are enrolled in at GTC. The "Parent Reimbursement Grant" funded through the "Governor Parson's Emergency Education Relief Fund" has allocated a set amount of funds to every school district in the state to reimburse families who purchased industry specific items for their child. These items may include, but are not limited to: Program specific special dress, tools, personal protective, or other specialized equipment.

To seek reimbursement, parents need to contact their sending high school administration team. When doing so, please request reimbursement through the "GEER II Parent Reimbursement Program." In the meantime, make sure and keep all itemized receipts for any purchases that are potentially eligible for reimbursement. If you have any questions, please give the office a call.

Gibson Technical Center is proud to spotlight our Construction instructor, Sonny Young. Mr. Young has been preparing GTC students for career and life for the last 15 years. His story is like so many other GTC staff members. Mr. Young is from Marshfield, Missouri and earned a degree in Forestry from the University of Missouri. His passion for the outdoors brought him to Alaska after he graduated. The fly fishing and backpacking brought him to the last frontier, but working in the construction industry supported his passion for the great outdoors.

The long Alaska winters made it difficult to work in the construction industry, so to supplement his income he began working as a substitute teacher in Anchorage. With his background in construction the school district was in need for a long-term substitute for the construction instructor at King Career Center. He jumped at this opportunity and has never looked back. He was eventually hired full-time and after six years of leading the construction program at KCC he moved back to Missouri to lead the construction program at GTC.

Mr. Young runs his class and labs as if it were an actual jobsite. Well, it actually is. He and his students have built multiple homes in Reeds Spring. Building houses is a way for students to learn what it means to work in the construction field while learning many aspects of the construction industry. From carpentry, plumbing, electrical, roofing, heating and air, students have many opportunities to find one of the many career threads to pursue after completing this popular GTC program. Mr. Young knows what employers are expecting out of employees and he makes students in this program exceed these industry expectations. If a student decides not to pursue a career in construction, they will always have the skills learned in this program for the rest of his/her life.

We are featuring 2020 Branson High School graduate and Systems Contracting Corporation welder Matt Miles as our alumni spotlight. Matt moved to Branson from Neville, Louisiana his junior year of high school. While at Neville High School he was introduced to welding and when it came time to register for classes at Branson, he made it perfectly clear he wanted to pursue a career in welding and wanted to study at GTC.

Mr. Lewallen’s GTC Welding program did a great job of preparing Matt for life after high school. Matt appreciates how students in the Welding program are treated like employees. Mr. Lewallen set high expectations for Matt and made sure he was accountable for meeting and exceeding these expectations. Matt excelled in all aspects of the welding program. He appreciates how the embedded math prepared him to accurately read and interpret blueprints from the concept to completion. Additionally, he recognized the importance of the soft and employability skills learned from the embedded English portion of the welding curriculum. Mastering all of the aspects of the Welding Program helped Matt standout when he left GTC in pursuit of a career in welding. He will always have great respect for Gibson Tech. “GTC is the best because they do not focus on the numbers of students the career center has, they focus on making sure all students are ready for life in the real world.”

After graduation, Matt was a highly decorated student at the Missouri Welding Institute. He choose MWI because their graduates are the most prepared to be successful in careers in the welding industry. After completing the welding program, he enthusiastically began his career in welding and has not looked back. “I am addicted to welding pipe and the freedom it has given me to work wherever I want.” Matt still calls Branson home, but it is a home he has only seen 45 days during the last year. Matt cherishes the relationships he built with his classmates and staff at GTC and will never forget how GTC prepared him for career and life.

December was a month filled with great news as it relates to the Culinary Arts program and SkillsUSA receiving grants from area organizations committed to meeting the needs of students. On December 1 SkillsUSA received a $1,000 Power Up Grant from White River Electric. Many White River Electric customers volunteer to round up their electric bills to the next dollar to help fund the Power UP Grant. SkillsUSA will use the funds to purchase new competition attire for students who will be competing this winter and spring.

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On December 9 Jennifer Noriega, our Culinary Arts instructor, received a $375 grant from the Reeds Spring School Foundation. Each year this great organization provides classroom mini-grants to staff members who need help funding student enrichment projects and unique classroom experiences. Mrs. Noriega will use the grant to purchase color-coded measuring cups and spoons.

On December 14 SkillsUSA received a $500 grant from AutoZone and on January 3 received another $500 grant from O'Reilly Auto Parts. These generous donations will help fund SkillsUSA scholarships for seniors to help offset expenses for students going to college, additional industry specific training, or expenses graduating students may have when they enter the workforce.

There are not enough words to communicate how thankful we are to have so many industry and community partners who generously support GTC programs and organizations.

In September 2021 the Construction Program began construction on a new house on Craig Street in Reeds Spring, Missouri. This will be the fourth house Mr. Young and his students have built in his time at Gibson Technical Center. Students this year will be installing siding, a deck, windows, and completing all of the work on the interior of the house. Mr. Young, proudly explains, "We're off to a great start to the new school year. The second year students have been positive role models for the first year students who are doing a great job learning new skills they will be able to use for the rest of their lives." The home should be ready to put on the market by the end of the current school year. This is one more example of how GTC is preparing students for the jobs of tomorrow. We will keep you up-to-date on the progress of the students as they mark their legacy at GTC. Click on the video link above to see the progress the students made during the 2021-2022 school year.

Gibson Technical Center is proud to announce our Spring 2023 Community Adult Education Schedule. Course offerings include the following: Water & Boat Safety, Fishing, Microsoft Office, Welding, Light Marine Repair, Fitness, and Photography. To complete the enrollment form go to the following website: https://www.rs-wolves.com/o/gtc/article/954080 or call (417) 272-3271 for more information.

The Missouri economy is experiencing a skills gap…

53% of jobs in Missouri require skills training— more education than high school but less than a four-year degree.

46% of Missouri workers are trained at this level.

Career and technical education (CTE) programs can fill these gaps, particularly in Missouri's key industries, like:

• Advanced Manufacturing
• Health Sciences and Services
• Information Technology
• Automotive Suppliers

Source: https://www.acteonline.org/Missouri/

386 West State Highway 76

Reeds Spring, Missouri 65737

Email: nthieman@wolves.k12.mo.us
Website: https://gt.rs-wolves.com/
Phone: (417) 272-3271
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gibsontechnicalcenter
Twitter: @gibson_tech