CTE Connection December 2024

This newsletter's primary purpose is to communicate happenings within Johnson City School's middle school CTE programs and to inform of programs, activities, and other opportunities available to our students.

Taleah Rogers, Indian Trail's Digital Media teacher, attended the Tennessee Educational Technology Association's Conference, which took place from December 4-6, 2024, in Chattanooga, Tennessee. While there, she supported her colleague, Stephanie Elliott, LBMS's Digital Media teacher, as she presented on using Google Earth in the classroom to create virtual field trips. Attending this conference provided an excellent opportunity to network with other technology educators throughout the state and to gain awareness of state-of-the-art programs, platforms, and strategies for use in our classrooms.

November brought the exciting announcement that both Taleah Rogers, Digital Media teacher, and Brandie Sanchez, Careers teacher, had their Johnson City Public Schools Foundation Grant applications funded! Ms. Rogers will utilize her grant to purchase a second PodTrack P8 machine, so that two groups can record on the same equipment when producing audiobooks and podcasts. She will also purchase microphone cords that will allow classroom microphones to connect directly into students' Chromebooks, allowing her to expand instruction on audio recording to the 6th graders.

Brandie Sanchez will use the JCPS Foundation Grant funds to purchase additional materials to use during her students' career exploration projects. These materials will help in an Architecture and Construction project of developing a mini-golf course. Students will use actual brick and mortar products as well as carving wood for obstacles.

We are excited to announce that our own Brandie Sanchez (pictured in the middle), ITMS Careers teacher, has been selected as the Johnson City School's District Middle School Teacher of the Year! It is wonderful to see all of her hard work and efforts to engage students and make her content meaningful and relevant acknowledged. We are honored to have her represent CTE as she proceeds to state-level competition.

ITMS Digital Media students received instruction in photography techniques and best practices from one of the best, T.R. Dunn! He kept the students enthralled with his knowledge and direct instruction, as the students tried out his techniques for themselves.

ITMS Careers students have been busy completing Entrepreneurship Projects, which involved them coming up with a business idea or product, creating a model or prototype, creating a commercial or social media blog, and then designing an online Canva Presentation. Some of the businesses considered were custom T-shirt designs, babysitting services, pet accessories, a food truck, a cosmetology product, content creator, fashion designer, interior designer, or custom phone cases. The students' finished products are a tribute to their hard work!

As a culminating project in the Careers classes, students have been mapping out how they currently see their futures. In the 6th grade, students created a "See Yourself as Your Future" presentation of themselves in a future career. In the 8th grade, following a unit on high school planning within Major Clarity and the possibilities before them, students then created a Pathway to Success, noting clubs and extracurricular activities in which they plan to participate, high school courses and CTE foci that would benefit them, and early postsecondary opportunities including Dual Enrollment, AP courses, and Apprenticeships, Internships, or Work-based Learning, in which they are interested. These projects helped to tie up all the students have learned throughout the 9 weeks and provided direction moving forward.

Major Clarity is a career exploration platform provided for our students that offers highly-personalized, student-driven academic and career planning tools. After students complete the Personality Assessment, a 48-question inventory that takes about 5 minutes to complete, they can go to the Career Exploration tab on the side-bar menu to find their top-ranked careers to explore further.

Students can also begin to explore various postsecondary programs through the Postsecondary Exploration option on the side-bar menu. They can then filter their search through location/state, type of institution, and type of degrees/certificates. One can then click on the "star" at the top of the screen to place the institution on a list of your favorites, simplifying revisiting in the future. All favorited/starred institutions are saved and listed on the My Portfolio tab for ease of access.

Under Postsecondary Exploration, students can also utilize the Comparison Tool to create a side-by-side comparison of various favorited institutions to aid in decision-making.

The program has been placed in our SSO Portal, and all teachers and students are automatically rostered, meaning no usernames or passwords are required. Take the time to explore this tool today!

How To Log In To Major Clarity:

1. Go to the SSO Portal

2. Click on the MajorClarity Icon

3. Navigate through the sidebar menu. Feel free to explore...you can't mess up!

To view Tutorial Videos on all the menu options in Major Clarity, go to https://sciencehill.jcschools.org/counselors/major-clarity

Look in this section of the newsletter each month for more info on Major Clarity in the future.

Selecting the blue Comparison Tool button on the Postsecondary Exploration Search page will create a columned-chart, offering a side-by-side comparison of all the institutions the student has favorited/starred.

Once Comparison Tool is selected, a Postsecondary Comparison chart appears, providing a side-by-side comparison of all favorited/starred institutions in various areas.

Major Clarity provides the below presentations to inform our students of the various career paths they can "test drive" in the areas of Agriculture and Transportation. At SHHS, students have the opportunity to explore the Horticulture pathway as well as that of Automotive Mechanics.

Career Paths in Agriculture include Park Naturalists, Natural Sciences Managers, and Marine Engineers within Environmental Science; Landscaping and Groundskeeping, Pesticide Handlers, and First-Line Supervisors in Horticulture; Hunters and Trappers, Graders, and Agricultural Inspectors in Agriculture; and Farmworkers, Fish and Game Wardens, and Veterinary Technologists and Technicians within Veterinary Science.

In Transportation, careers include Automotive Glass Installers, Body and Related Repairers, and Master Mechanics in Automotive Mechanics. In the area of Logistics, there are careers such as Cargo and Freight Agents, Logistics Analysts, and Light Truck or Delivery Drivers.

Email: winigerj@jcschools.org
Location: 718 Morningside Drive
Phone: 423-232-2192
Twitter: @winigerjill