Career Connection

Career Technical and Agricultural Education (CTAE) prepares Georgia students for their next steps after high school, whether that be college, a career, a registered apprenticeship, the military or a blended journey of these options. Georgia's CTAE career clusters and career pathways use course instruction and student technical organizations along with leveraged partnerships with local businesses, industries, and institutes of higher learning to ensure high school students have the ability to explore their options, while learning and applying skills they will need to thrive in the workforce.

I am Bethany Gilliam, the new CTAE Director for Bulloch County Schools. Before becoming CTAE Director, I worked as a CTAE teacher, educating students in three pathways in two school systems in Georgia. I firmly believe that CTAE is crucial to Bulloch County as we educate our future workforce, help students become enrolled, enlisted, and employed through a high-quality CTAE education. I have been involved in CTAE from a young age. Therefore, I have experienced CTAE as a student, educator, parent, and director. I also have the great honor of serving as President of the Georgia Association for Career and Technical Education. I look forward to a wonderful year in Bulloch County Schools CTAE.

Katelyn Johnson, a senior honor graduate who just graduated in May, worked at Zaxby's under the Work-Based Learning Program (WBL). She completed both the Accounting and Healthcare Science Pathways and earned the CTAE Honor Cord for both programs. Johnson plans to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Nursing and become a certified registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA) while also continuing to volunteer in the local community and raise awareness about the benefits of donating blood and supporting the Red Cross.

Michael Powell, the Work-Based Learning Coordinator at Southeast Bulloch High School, is grateful for the effort Johnson put forth in pursuit of her career goals. Mr. Powell says,

"When I became the WBL Coordinator last school year, I actively recruited Katelyn for the program. She is exactly the type of student who you can trust to 'do right.' Katelyn received a top score on all her Employer Evaluations and her supervisor at Zaxby’s spoke very highly of her professionalism and work ethic. She did all this while also a multiple-sport varsity athlete, Co-Secretary of our school's Future Business Leaders of America chapter, an active member of Beta Club, and a member of both our Health Occupations Student Association (HOSA) and Family, Career and Community Leaders of America(FCCLA) chapters. Katelyn competed in both HOSA and FBLA events and last year won second-place in the region for Business Communications and thrid-place for Accounting in competitions. She’s even been an Undercover Agent for the Georgia Department of Revenue, Alcohol and Tobacco testing compliance in stores. I have no doubt Katelyn will make all of us proud in the future as she pursues her nursing career."

Katelyn had to write a letter to be entered into the region selection process for student of the year. Here is an excerpt from her submission letter:

"My WBL experience working at Zaxby’s has been challenging yet rewarding. I typically work between 15 to 30 hours per week while also dual enrolled in college and involved in extracurricular activities (clubs, sports). It has been tough at times to balance everything, and I have missed out on a few fun things. But, I have been rewarded at work for my attendance and the experience gained from working at Zaxby’s will last a lifetime. WBL revealed my strengths and weaknesses and allowed me to develop a plan for improvement. All of this will open numerous doors in the future for better opportunities in the workforce."

Congratulations, Katelyn!

Tazmeria Wilson (Taz), a rising senior at Statesboro High School and her mentor, teacher, and coach, Chad Farrell, partnered to enter the 2021 Hope Givers Film Challenge. Their venture was successful. In June, Hope Givers announced that Taz was first runner-up in the overall contest, and she won the Hope Givers Storytelling Award as part of the competition!

Tamlin Hall, founder and executive producer of the new uplifting documentary series, Hope Givers, that will launch on Georgia Public Broadcasting and National PBS Learning Media in September, visited Statesboro High School on June 28, to meet Taz and Ferrell and to present Taz with a grant for $600. Hall is also a part-time screenwriting faculty member at the University of Georgia and writing instructor at Emory Continuing Education. Taz's film will premiere on September 1.

In her award-winning short film, Taz shares her story of hope. She was born with bilateral tibial hemimelia, a rare bone deficiency, that led to her legs being amputated, just above the knee, before her third birthday. Taz is a member of the Statesboro High Girls Golf Team.

She credits Don Garrick, her former teacher of students with orthopedic impairments, who began working with her in Pre-K, with recommending golf as a sport to her when she was in eighth grade. Garrick and Tina Rigdon, her current school physical therapist, both attendend the presentation.

Ferrell is her varsity golf coach and Statesboro High's Audio, Video, Technology & Film teacher.

Congratulations to the following Statesboro High School students who participated in Georgia's annual SkillsUSA State Skills competition. The top two students from each region advance to the State Leadership and Skills Conference. In the Teamworks category, it's the top-10 statewide.

• Justin Doyle and Eli Rosado earned a first-place gold medal in the School Project contest that highlighted their overall trade skills and the chapter's work on a mobile classroom.
  
• Isaiah Budgett earned a third-place bronze medal in the Action Skills contest where he demonstrated his basic plumbing skills.
• Alex Nunez placed ninth overall in the state for his carpentry project.
• Daniel Gerguis, Luke Gerguis, Patrick Mock and Nathan Wallace earned a third-place bronze medal in the Teamworks contest where they demonstrated their skills in all four of the major trades.

Statesboro High School's Construction teacher, Josh Hall, and his students are continually refining their knowledge and their abilities to put that knowledge to meaningful use beyond the confines of a classroom. Their efforts and hard work can be seen through their participation in the SkillsUSA Chapter Excellence Program. Under Hall's guidance, students have excelled. They have earned the Gold Chapter of Distinction award from SkillsUSA. This award recognizes the school chapter’s efforts and intentionality around ensuring that students receive framework skill development.

Portal High School students received generous donations of FFA jackets from the National FFA Organizations' Gift of Blue program. The school nominated Portal FFA chapter members Jaycee Sanchez, Adrienne Lane, Jordan Kirkland, and Delaney Davis for the program and presented them their jackets at their January FFA Meeting.

In January 2021, Portal High School participated in three agricultural-related competitions. Land Evaluation was the first event. Students were challenged with determining the slope and topsoil characteristics to classify the land and recommend treatment practices. The PMHS junior team, composed of Hunter Stewart, Liam Fordham, Taylor Burns and Kasen Evans, placed third with Stewart placing fourth individually. The senior team composed of Charles Haynes, James Saunders, Daniela Hernandez, and Alfonso Gonzalez, placed fourth overall.

The second competition was Lawn Mower Driving, where Walker Bowen demonstrated his skills on a course, took an exam and completed problem-solving situations.

The final January competition was Meats Evaluation where students identified retail cuts of meat and placed classes. The PHS senior team was made up of Katie Fondren, Elaina Parker, Maggie NeSmith, and Lainey Hendrix. They placed second and moved on to the state competition in March.

As part of National FFA Week, the Portal chapter provided a chili lunch to all of the school's faculty and staff as a thank you for all they do for students. The week also included dress-up days like Tropical Tuesday and Western Wednesday and a Cornhole Tournament fundraiser. Congratulations to this year's champions Reid Thompson and Chandler Sheffield.

Katielyn Yates, representing Portal FFA, exhibited her show pig, Dolly, at the State Livestock Show in Perry, Feb. 17 - 20.

Southeast Bulloch Middle School has a National FFA Organization chapter. Its members are learning leadership skills that will help them as they advance to the high school chapter. They've learned how to properly conduct and lead opening and closing ceremonies, the roles and responsibilities of chapter officers, and they chose Supervised Agricultural Experience projects.

Southeast Bulloch Middle School FFA students were hard at work for Effingham County's 3rd Annual Samuel Zemurray Classic Cattle Show held at the Honey Ridge Agricenter in Guyton on January 9, 2021. Participating in the Intermediate Showmanship event, sixth- through eighth- grade livestock judgers practiced evaluating cattle. Team members at this event included: Caden Coffey, Lexi Morton, Aubrey Williams and Carson Cobb.

In addition to evaluating cattle, Lexi Morton exhibited her show cow, Belle, during the Cattle show. Congratulations to Lexi! She won Reserve Grand Champion Commercial Heifer.

Kate Anna Newman, also a member of the livestock judging team, spent the weekend in Perry, Georgia, where she exhibited her swine projects in the Winter Pig Classic. Her barrow, Tank, won Progress Reserve Champion.

Gracie Anderson, a seventh-grade student at Southeast Bulloch Middle School represented her FFA chapter in the Virtual Floral Design Career Development Event (CDE) Qualifier on Feb. 11. The purpose of this CDE is to stimulate career interest, encourage proficiency development and recognize excellence in students of floral design through the agriculture education curriculum.

During its Feb. 11, meeting, members of the Southeast Bulloch Middle School FFA Chapter expressed their collective creativity and designed Valentine's Day cards. Afterwards the cards were delivered to residents of the community's local nursing homes.

Whitley Gatch, a member of the Southeast Bulloch High School FFA Chapter, competed in the Area Discussion Meet on March 30, and secured her spot in the state contest by placing first at the Area competition. Whitley will advance to compete against other FFA members at the state FFA convention.

Statesboro High School's JROTC Blue Devil Battalion hosted its Military Ball on April 3, 2021. The Cadet leadership, Cadet LTC Drew Huthsteiner, Cadet CPT Josh Boyd and many others organized a fantastic evening to celebrate the school's seniors.

On April 29, Statesboro High School celebrated the accomplishments of its cadets for the 2020-2021 school year. Although the school year was anything but normal due to the pandemic, SHS Cadets showed resilience, courage, and selfless service to their program, school, and community. Awards were presented by national organizations such as the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Georgia National Guard, the Daughters of the American Revolution and many others.

HOSA provides students opportunities to develop as a leader and future employee in a health sciences career. Through the HOSA Competitive Events Program, members compete in teams or as individuals in over 55 different events related to all aspects of the healthcare industry. HOSA integrates into the Health Science Technology Education curriculum to develop and recognize smart, dedicated, and passionate future health professionals.

Congratulations to the following Bulloch County students who were HOSA (virtual) Region Competition winners:

• 3rd place CPR & First Aid - Peyton Coulter & Anna Wellman
• 1st place Dental Terminology - Rebecca Dilas
• 1st place Forensic Science - Hannah Kimball & Valerie Perkins
• 1st place Medical Math - Katie Brantley
• 2nd place Medical Reading - Dylan Smith
• 4th place Physical Therapy - Abbee Aviles

These students will advance to the virtual state competitive events.

The Early Childhood Education pathway at Statesboro High School is taught by Kristen Rogers. These are students practicing writing lesson plans and teaching lessons to prekindergarten students who attend the school's pre-kindergarten site. Since pre-K students learn by doing, the lesson plans were centered around an appetizing activity that the pre-K students thoroughly enjoyed: "How to Make Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwiches."

Statesboro High students appreciate that pre-K students have quite a lot of energy and enjoy moving about. In February, the Early Childhood Education students from SHS hosted a Valentines Day Dance party for the school's prekindergarten students. ECE students also coordinated a sing-along on the playground event.

In May, Early Childhood Education pathway students from SHS assisted prekindergarten students as they learned how to responsibly use computers and other technology in the SHS Media Center. The pre-K students were engaged, excited, and happy to be able to visit the Media Center like their high school counterparts.

In April, Portal Elementary School's STEM Lab teacher, Stephanie Hodges, and her second- and third-grade students celebrated their STEM work at the PES Playmakers Expo. Guests from Georgia Southern University came to observe the student projects, interview student teams about their projects and judge team entries. Students conceptualized, prototyped, and constructed components in STEM class using FIRST LEGO League Jr. Projects. The students' design challenge was to build an obstacle course with at least one motorized component using the LEGO WeDo 2.0 core set. LEGO WeDo 2.0 is a hands-on, elementary science and STEM tool kit that develops science practices in the classroom through a robot-based learning system.

YouScience is an online resource that helps students answer some of life’s biggest questions: “Why am I learning this?” and “What do I want to be when I grow up?” In February, Langston Chapel Middle School's eighth-grade students used this powerful online career and personal planning assessment system to help them identify their own potential aptitudes and careers.

Students completed their YouScience assessment and received a list of possible career opportunities. In addition to careers that align with their interests, students also explored the income range and educational preparation needed for each potential career. Afterwards, LCMS Counselor, Ms. Natson and eighth-grade teachers showed students videos about the Career Technical & Agricultural Education and Fine Arts programs at their feeder high school, Statesboro High. The videos were produced by Statesboro High's Audio Visual & Film Career Pathway students. The videos showcased an assortment of CTAE courses that students may take in high school to better prepare them to become enrolled, employed or enlisted.

Career Connection, Spring/Summer 2020

Preparing students for success and enhancing community value

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Email: webster@bullochschools.org
Website: www.bullochschools.org
Location: 150 Williams Road, Suite A, Statesboro, GA 30458
Phone: 912-212-8500
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Twitter: @bullochschools