The CTAE Connector

As each school year begins, I look forward to seeing students thrive in our career, technical and adult education programs. They always exceed my expectations and this year is no different. As we approach the end of this quarter, I am reminded of how resilient our community can be. The past two years have been incredibly challenging, yet teachers and students embrace learning and growth opportunities every day. Our department continually supports career-centered learning as we chart the course for success!

As always, we are "Preparing Today for Tomorrow's Workforce" and we appreciate your support of our students and schools!

Please feel free to contact us at 813-794-2204, join us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @PascoCTE!

Stay safe, keep it simple and be well,

Lori Romano, Ph.D.

Director, Office of Career, Technical and Adult Education

Angeline Academy of Innovation is slated to open in August 2023. JoAnne Glenn has been selected to serve as the school's first principal. Mrs. Glenn has lead Pasco eSchool, the county's virtual school, since its inception in 1998. She is excited about the opportunity to create another innovative educational experience for students in our county.

The STEM school will serve grades 6-12, with CTE pathways in Engineering, Biotechnology, and Cybersecurity. Entrepreneurship will be infused throughout all programs and courses.

Congratulations to Abimael Parrilla and Nick Campbell for their fourth-place finish at the in the National Agriscience Fair Research Exposition, on October 27-28 during the 95th National FFA Convention & Expo in Indianapolis. Their project focused on Food Products and Processing Systems. They qualified to compete on the national level, starting back with the submission of an initial project report in May, placing first in their category/division on the state level in June, and being named as a top 10 finalist through preliminary national-level judging over the summer.

They participated in a virtual interview for the national championship, and then participated in the Expo where all finalists were recognized on stage at Nationals. FFA Advisor and Agriculture teacher Audra Skinner is thrilled with this first-ever achievement for the Pine View Middle FFA chapter - and we are, too!

- submitted by Pam Willoughby

The Navy JROTC cadets at Gulf High School are practicing for the upcoming Central High School Iron Bear Challenge in Brooksville, FL. The competition consists of ten athletic events spanning the entire day. Here the cadets are practicing for the Truck Pull and Tug O' War events. The cadets are looking to get back to their winning ways after placing third in 2021. Gulf High won the Iron Bear Challenge three years in a row from 2017-2019. Due to the pandemic, there was no Iron Bear Challenge in 2020.

- submitted by John McGuire

CTAE hosted the first-semester meeting of the district-wide Career Advisory Council in October at Kirkland Ranch Academy of Innovation. Representatives from manufacturing, construction, IT, Healthcare, Pasco Economic Development Council, and Pasco Schools attended. The group discussed existing work-based learning opportunities for students and planned to increase these experiences throughout the county. A special workgroup will be meeting more frequently to examine programs in other districts and states and bring recommendations and ideas to the CTAE Leadership Team.

Further discussion centered around preparing students for postsecondary life. Council members inquired as to the possibility of forming a "Student Advisory Council" to facilitate a dialog between students and industry and business partners. Our partners will examine areas or gaps that exist within the schools they may be able to fill, including curriculum advisement, career exposure, student mentoring and work-based learning opportunities.

- submitted by Jen Batchelor

The development of a Pasco/Hernando Local College Access Network continues to move forward with the development of our Leadership Council. The second meeting will take place Thursday, November 10th at the new Rasmussen University Central Pasco Campus.

The group will continue to set both structural and impact goals for this collective impact initiative. The primary focus of a Local College Access Network is degree and credential access and attainment. The Leadership Council is comprised of leaders in K12 education, postsecondary education, business, philanthropy, government and community organizations.

The Pasco/Hernando LCAN will be joining with 17 other organizations who currently support 32 counties across the state. The growth in Pasco and Hernando counties has only increased the needs of our workforce, making it imperative for community leaders from each sector to coordinate and leverage resources that lower the barriers preventing students from completing their education beyond high school. If you would like more information about this work, please contact Dr. Lori Romano or Program Specialist Jennifer Batchelor in CTAE.

Our counselors and career specialists are continuing to introduce and roll out the Naviance platform to students and staff in our middle and high schools. On-site and virtual assistance has been provided to schools, as well as virtual and in-person trainings from our Naviance trainer. A monthly update, "Naviance News" has been distributed to schools and provides information and links for support and suggested best practices for this initiative.

Another training will be provided to counselors and career specialists at the beginning of December so they can better navigate and use the "Course Planner" portal of Naviance. This program will connect directly to myStudent and assist both the student and the counselors with course selection and planning throughout high school, making sure students are on track for graduation and for matching up to their postsecondary plans, as well. There will be an information table set up at both Pasco Pathways events in November to share Naviance with those parents and students who visit.

- submitted by Jen Batchelor

• Please share information about your program that you would like considered for the CTAE monthly newsletter (photos, awards, events, certifications, etc.).

• Don't forget that you can email Pam Willoughby (pwilloug@pasco.k12.fl.us) with news and photos you want posted on our social media platforms at any time throughout the month.

Congratulations to Zephyrhills High School, which chartered its first Junior FFA chapter this year, reaching a milestone set by previous Senior FFA officers. Teachers LeAnne John and Taylor Snedecker are excited about all that the students have accomplished during the first quarter of the school year, and the plans they have for the remainder of the year. The Agriculture students have been busy attending leadership training with Pine View Middle FFA, working with new steers, learning Veterinary Assisting skills, and updating their barns. They collaborated with art students to add a large FFA logo to their classroom wall. They even hosted a petting zoo at October's Scarecrow Festival at the Pioneer Museum in Dade City!

Former J.W. Mitchell High School Accounting student, Emily Lawrence, is graduating from the University of South Florida Lynn Pippenger School of Accountancy. She returned to JWMHS as a guest speaker in Mrs. Glaves' Accounting classes. Students were so excited to have her share her experiences as an accounting major in college who has studied here and abroad. She discussed topics such as campus life, college courses, scholarships, networking, internships and accounting careers. She wrapped up her talk with a question and answer session with the students.

- submitted by Aschell Glaves

As Marchman Technical College's Early Childhood Education students continue their education, it's wonderful to see them already making an impact in the community. The photo below is of one of MTC's students working at a local childcare center.

- submitted by Kari Dittman

Ninety Engineering and Robotics students from Cypress Creek High School, Sunlake High School and Wendell Krinn High School attended USF Engineering Day on October 21, 2022. Students were given a tour of the Engineering buildings, participated in 3 different labs with college students and professors, explored the Maker Space lab, and learned about the variety of Engineering student organizations. The students were also provided with examples of curricula from a variety of engineering fields and admissions requirements.

- submitted by Emily Lamb

Students in the Biomedical program at Wendell Krinn Technical High School leverage various diagnostic techniques to determine the cause of disease and trace an outbreak! Second year students performed an ELISA, to look for an antigen of Neisseria meningitidis (simulated with whey protein). They used this data to trace an outbreak and determine the appropriate course of treatment. Third year students learned to streak for isolation and then gram-stained their plates as a quality control check. All of these skills will help them earn the Biotechnician Assistant Credentialing Exam (BACE).

- submitted by Sarah Kumar

We have hit the ground running here at the Academy of Culinary Arts at LOLHS. We are offering the "Brew 4 You Cafe" which gives our Juniors and Seniors an opportunity to come up with cafe style goodies (sweet and savory) along with practicing their beverage skills with lattes, hot coffee and hot tea.

We hosted a local Girl Scout group recently. They were learning about Healthy Foods in their troop, so we made our own granola and built our own acai bowls!

Our "Catch You on the Flip Side" tee shirts have arrived and we have them available for sale. If you would like one, please send an email to jblythe@pasco.k12.fl.us with your quantity and size preference.

- submitted by Jeremy Blythe

The Cyber Security teams at Wendell Krinn Technical High School are entering their fifth year of competition in Cyberpatriots. Watch the video below to learn more about this program.

They have reached the semifinals (top 12%) in all previous years of competition. Last year there were more than 4,300 teams competing worldwide!

This year KTECH's strongest team is an all-women team that reached the semifinals last year. They expect big things from the team this year!

- submitted by Scott Tumelty

On November 1st, Pasco Adult Education at Marchman Technical College hosted an information night for Adult General Education for Adults with Disabilities

Families who attended learned from the following organizations and agencies:

• Pasco County Special Olympics
• Disability Achievement Center
• Happy Feet Dances/Adapted Dance
• Vocational Rehabilitation
• Family Network on Disabilities
• GoPasco
• Florida Center for Inclusive Communities/USF
• Disability Rights Florida

- submitted by Thomas Brochu

The Adult ESOL classes at Wesley Chapel are off and running at an accelerated pace with adult students from 13 different countries. In August, all of the students participated in various activities to learn more about their classmates, such as family presentations and Venn diagrams. The day and evening classes read engaging, non-fiction stories and even created original drama presentations as an extension of learning. Everyone enjoyed the multi-faceted games to practice English in a fun environment.

In September, three individuals - one from each class - were recognized as "Student of the Month". Senior Supervisor Thomas Brochu had the honor of attending the presentations. The following students were awarded with this outstanding award: Cristiane Arantes (morning), Carlos Oliveira (afternoon), and Aurora del Carro (evening). Congratulations to these amazing students who lit up the classroom with their enthusiasm and passion.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

November 17th - Job Fair

November 18th - Picnic with Guest Speakers

December 16th - Holiday Spectacular

- submitted by Rebecca Sandy

Email: lmromano@pasco.k12.fl.us
Website: http://www.pasco.k12.fl.us/cte/
Location: 7227 Land O' Lakes Boulevard, Land O Lakes, FL, USA
Phone: 813-794-2011
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pascoschools/
Twitter: @PascoCTE