We appreciate the community wrapping their support around Forsyth County teachers as we finished up the last few months of the school year in a virtual environment! As we officially transition into Summer, we wanted to provide a few updates and celebrate recent successes. From finishing up critical planning with CTAE teachers to managing virtual platforms for CTSO competitions, our teachers have done an amazing job!
Many of you assisted this year through updated strategic efforts around Workforce Forsyth. Due to changes in Perkins V (federal legislation that helps fund career and technical education), our community went through a detailed planning process for career and technical education. Out of that plan and after evaluating all of the data and feedback collected, the district will focus on
program quality, recruitment/retention within CTAE, and employability skills development
for all students over the next several years. We will detail the full plan and action steps at our Fall advisory council meetings and will begin this work with teachers in July!
For more information about career and technical education in Forsyth County, visit
www.forsyth.k12.ga.us/ctae
or email vlowe@forsyth.k12.ga.us. Also, don't forget to follow us on social media for regular updates! #fccollegecareer
Instagram:
Twitter:
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CTAE EXCELLENCE:
We've been amazed with the creative efforts of CTAE virtual learning and end of year CTSO events happening. We wanted to share a few favorites with you!
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Check out our new CTSO videos that will help us market and spread awareness about our nine CTSOs.
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General Information and Opportunities to Get Involved
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By becoming a
Career Development Partner
with Forsyth County Schools, your organization allows students to go beyond the classroom and into the community to consider different career fields, learn basic workplace behavior, and develop specific skills within an industry. Through these experiences, students can apply what they are learning in the classroom as they prepare to transition into post-secondary education and training.
Click on the business and industry involvement guide to learn more!
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Jasmine Solano - Alliance Academy for Innovation
Jasmine Solano is a native Georgian, growing up in Augusta, but she started her teaching career as a middle school math teacher in North Augusta, SC. Later, she moved across the country to Colorado, teaching and leading a middle school math department. This is where her love for incorporating STEM into her classroom developed, leading her to design project-based learning opportunities for her students. Moving back to Georgia opened the CTAE door for Jasmine at DeSana MS, where she advised the founding chapter of FBLA, taught Business and Computer Science, developed student-based Enterprises, and completed the Forsyth County Teacher Leader Endorsement. In her current CTAE role at Alliance Academy for Innovation, she manages the Alliance Print Shop and teaches all levels of graphic design, while also co-advising the SkillsUSA CTSO.
"Ms. Solano has been instrumental in growing our Graphic Design Pathway and putting the
Alliance Academy Design Den
on the map. Her students partner with many FCS schools and businesses to create posters, signs, stationary, apparel, etc. Ms. Solano exemplifies the mission and vision of Alliance Academy for Innovation. Her students will graduate fully prepared for college, career, and life."
-Brandi Cannizzaro, Principal
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Katie Jenkins - Liberty MS
Katie Jenkins is a marketing teacher and DECA advisor at Liberty MS and has been teaching in CTAE for 18 years. She teaches marketing in grades 6-8 where she incorporates real-world projects with a focus on soft skills such as personal branding, communication, presentation skills, and work ethic. Katie has grown her current DECA chapter from 30 students to over 150 students this year. Her DECA students have won numerous awards as well as well as being the first middle school chapter in the United States to receive a Gold Level Certification for their school store. Her students run Liberty Joe Coffee Co., a coffee shop that serves teachers and staff where they learn business skills. Katie was also named Liberty MS's Teacher of the Year! In the past five years, she has received over $7,500 in grants/monetary awards for her classroom or DECA chapter. Her passion is middle school to truly help students find the tools they need to discover their interests, skills, and purpose at a pivotal age.
“Katie is an extraordinary teacher! She has a passion that ignites every learner that she comes into contact with, whether that is in the classroom, DECA club or hanging out at Liberty Joe’s! The inspiration and motivation that Katie delivers are not limited by the four walls of her classroom. She inspires the staff throughout the building through her hard work and caring mentality. She makes us better!!”
-Cheryl Riddle, Liberty MS Principal
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Student Internship Spotlights
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Kylie Hernandez
North Forsyth HS
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Kylie Hernandez, a senior at North Forsyth HS, completed the Sports Medicine pathway last year. For her internship this year, she decided to explore occupational therapy. Kylie has had an amazing experience as an intern at Building Bridges Therapy in Cumming where she has been able to work with both occupational and speech therapists. She has now decided to major in Communication Disorders at Valdosta State University and become a speech therapist in a school setting. Kylie’s supervisor and Assistant Clinical Director at Building Bridges, Jorri Sanders-Marchi, has been very impressed with Kylie’s professionalism and willingness to step up and help wherever needed. Jorri states “Kylie has built strong relationships with the children, and has even worked one-on-one with several clients. She is a pleasure to have as an intern. I want a clone of Kylie as an intern next year!” According to Kylie, “Building Bridges has played a huge role in my future.” Kylie also regards Jorri has a mentor who has influenced both her education and career plans. Since Jorri obtained her undergraduate and graduate degrees from Valdosta State, Kylie is following in her footsteps.
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Rohan Jani
South Forsyth HS
Rohan, a senior at South Forsyth HS, is a mentorship student job-shadowing this year at The Hamilton Law Firm. Some of the key tasks he does includes assisting attorneys with criminal cases, scanning/storing old files, and learning about various aspects of the law with his mentor, Frank Hamilton. The experience he has enjoyed most has been establishing amazing relationships with people who are taking time out of their busy schedules to help guide him in his hopeful future career of pursuing law.
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For more information on the Internship or Mentorship Programs, visit these links:
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Staff Spotlight - Retirements
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Debra Moore - Forsyth County CTAE Office
Debra Moore has been an educator in Forsyth County for 27 years where she spent 23 years as a Marketing teacher/DECA advisor. During her career, she was selected as Georgia’s Marketing Education Teacher of the Year, named as Forsyth County’s High School Teacher of the Year, and awarded the Fountain Award of Excellence by Georgia’s Superintendent of Schools. In addition, she has served as a presenter at numerous state and national ACTE conferences. As a former high school marketing student and DECA member, she thoroughly enjoyed teaching marketing classes and is most proud of the many real-world business projects her students completed in class, ranging from advertising campaigns to marketing research projects, for more than 75 businesses and organizations. One of her proudest accomplishments is leading South Forsyth HS DECA to become the World’s Largest DECA Chapter for seven consecutive years with 1300+ members. She most recently served as a Career Development Coordinator where she enjoyed coordinating the Internship/Mentorship programs as well as working directly with many pathway teachers.
In retirement, she plans to slow down and enjoy life to its fullest, including spending quality time with her grandson. She is looking forward to continuing her involvement with DECA as a competition mentor for students. She will also continue to attend competitions as a chaperone with her daughter, Chasady Shadburn, who serves as a marketing teacher and DECA advisor at South Forsyth HS.
"Debra has been a driving force behind CTAE in Forsyth County throughout her entire career. I do not know a more respected DECA advisor or marketing teacher in the country who has accomplished all that she has in marketing education. The lives she has impacted has left her mark, and we can only hope to continue to grow the programs she has touched. We look forward to her staying involved as a volunteer and mentor to us all!"
-Valery Lowe, Director of College & Career Development
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Jeff Whiting- Riverwatch MS
Jeff Whiting has been a teacher for 29 years and will be retiring this year. He has taught at the elementary and middle school levels in a variety of subject areas. Twelve years ago, while working at Riverwatch MS, he was offered an opportunity to apply his skills in CTAE as an engineering and technology instructor. He quickly realized that this was where he wanted to spend the rest of his career. The diversity of the subject, combined with a computer lab, machine shop, robotics, and three different grade levels would make every day an exciting challenge. He has been involved with TSA, First LEGO League, VEX Robotics, and collaborated with his fellow CTAE marketing instructor at Riverwatch MS. Jeff feels there is no better reward as a teacher than having a student discover an unknown skill or being thrilled to see their design concept come to life.
"Jeff Whiting will certainly be missed at Riverwatch! His dedication to his students has been admirable and leaves large shoes to fill. His love of all things Prince has made him a fantastic co-worker, ready for some fun at a moment’s notice. We wish him all the best in future endeavors, but are really looking forward to visits when he comes back to check in."
-Beth Loedding, Assistant Principal
"When I think of Jeff Whiting, the word that comes to mind is dependable. Over the years that I have known Jeff he is always willing to jump in to help. He has welcomed kids into our building at buses on a daily basis, he has provided support to colleagues in need, and he has always been willing to give constructive feedback to help our school grow and improve. His leadership and willingness to serve our school and community will be missed by all those who worked with him."
- Ward Prather, Assistant Administrator
"When I began at Riverwatch MS in 2017, Jeff was one of the first teachers I met. He holds the history of Riverwatch MS and has always exhibited a pride in all that has been accomplished here over the years. Jeff has been an impactful voice for our CTAE pathways courses and the students it serves. Jeff is passionate about providing students with an engaging experience in his classroom to open their eyes to possibilities for the future. Jeff begins his retirement having built a legacy that will continue to positively impact the lives of the children of Forsyth County for many years to come."
-Pam Bibik, Principal
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Congratulations
to the Forsyth Central HS Automotive Technology Pathway, Marlo Miranda and Andrew Graham, on leading their program through industry re-certification this school year!
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Automotive -
Forsyth Central HS
The Forsyth Central HS Automotive Technology Pathway has a lot to celebrate this year. They have accomplished:
- Re-purposed seven vehicles for donation through the Place of Forsyth
- Engine Team State Champions 2019
- Skills USA Region 2 Champion Automotive Technology
- Skills USA State Runner Up-Automotive Brakes
- Skills USA State Champion-Automotive Electrical
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Congratulations Joshua Abraham on being elected a SkillsUSA Georgia State Officer!
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SkillsUSA - West Forsyth HS
Congratulations to Josh Crosby and his A/V students for a 1st place win for "Georgia Music Video". Click here:
Music Video
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Forsyth Central HS's Cosmetology program officially opened Salon Central to the public. After many years of being closed, they had a successful re-opening which allowed students to work on clients to earn hours toward taking their Georgia State Board of Cosmetology exam.
We had a great year competing through our SkillsUSA CTSO and the following groups won 1
st
place!
- Esthetics Display Group Members: Karis Parker, Elena De Valle, and Mirian Rivera
- Nail Design Display Group Members: Karla Perez and Faith Daniel
- Hair Design Display Group Members: Reese Disharoon, Sawyer Thomas, and Elliana (Ellie) Wooten
- SkillsUSA FCHS Cosmetology: Chapter of Excellence Program - Gold Chapter of Distinction
Also, Forsyth Central HS's SkillsUSA chapter won the LARGEST membership increase in Georgia!
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DECA - Lambert HS
Lambert DECA was named the 3
rd
largest chapter in the world this year and DECA president, Kate Winters, won a national DECA scholarship! Parth Gandhi will also serve as Vice President of Career Development for Georgia DECA. Congratulations!
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Family & Consumer Science - Otwell MS
Students from Otwell MS Family & Consumer Science and Media Arts classes enjoyed an online learning lesson with food and art. They did a combined STEAM lesson teaching about art sculptures, food sculptures, cutting tricks, nutrition, and visual presentation. After completing the lesson students created a “Food Sculpture”. In the picture, student London Cooley used granola, blueberries, cucumbers and cheese to make this beach scene food sculpture.
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FCCLA -
South Forsyth HS
FCCLA members from South Forsyth HS, Taylor Fries and Anna Schukowski, planned and organized their Focus on Children STAR events project around mindfulness and self-regulation in order to help developing children and improve their community. Their project, “Bee in Control”, was presented to 50 Pre-K through 1st grade students at Brookwood Elementary School over the course of a school week. The project included activities like reading a book that Anna and Taylor wrote, making stress balls, putting together mindfulness glitter jars, creating positivity sunglasses, and learning anger and stress management techniques. All activities were used to put mindfulness, positive self-esteem, and self-regulation tactics in action for children to learn and use in the future.
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Culinary Arts -
South Forsyth HS
South Forsyth HS hosted the Night to Shine Banquet for our special needs superstars in February. There were 1,000 in attendance - four hundred guests and their buddies plus volunteers. It is such an awesome experience to see different schools, community leaders/groups, and together for the greater good. Members of the culinary advisory committee provided large food donations from Jim 'N Nicks BBQ, Tams’s Backstage, Chick Fil A, and numerous other restaurants. The Culinary Arts programs (and their FCCLA students) from South Forsyth HS, West Forsyth HS, and Nutrition and Wellness staff from North Forsyth HS helped prepare and feed 1,000 attendees.
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FCCLA -
South
Forsyth HS
The following students won in their respective categories at the state level and will advance to the Virtual National Leadership Conference in July. Congratulations!
Kira Young
Chapter Service Project Display, Level 2, "Bags of Love"
Chelsey Choe
Job Interview, Level 2
Laura Kelley
Teach and Train, Level 3, Escape Room Lesson Plan
Margaret Kelly
Job Interview, Level 3
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FCCLA -
No
rth Forsyth HS
North Forsyth HS student, Emma Williams, placed first at the FCCLA state competition in Online testing in Teaching as a Profession.
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FCCLA - Forsyth Central HS
Congratulations to the following students for placing at the FCCLA state competition:
- Susie Thompson won 1st place at STATE in the Nutrition and Food Science Online Proficiency Test.
- Hollan Rabensdorf and Brooke Albertson won 1st place at STATE for their Nutrition and Wellness project.
- Emma Humprhries won 1st place at STATE for her Professional Presentation Project over Gifted Education.
- Isabella Lidalen and Saylor Duff won 2nd place at STATE for their Food Innovations Project.
- Michela Campe won 2nd place at STATE for her Sports Nutrition Project.
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DECA -
Alliance Academy for Innovation
In December, Alliance Academy for Innovation hosted its first Community Breakfast.
The breakfast was in support of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, which was DECA’s Community Service Project this year. The breakfast was supported by local businesses as well as the community and was intended to bring in the local community together to hear guest speakers that supported our mission of raising funds and getting a glimpse as to what is going on with the area in which we live. This year’s keynote speaker was Lieutenant Governor Geoff Duncan.
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FFA -
Otwell MS
Ashlea Newsom, current 8th grade student at Otwell MS, placed 5th in Finals for Prepared Public Speaking Jr. CDE
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FFA -
Otwell MS
The chapter is very exctied that Will Logan, current 8th grade student at Otwell MS, placed 9th in State the Lawnmower Operations & Maintenance CDE. Congratulations!
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FFA -
Otwell MS
Anna Grace Lowe, current 8th grade student at Otwell MS, was recently awarded Gold for Supervised Agricultural Experience Project (SAE) for Power Structures & Technical Systems by building a rabbit show table!
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TSA -
South Forsyth HS
Prabhanjan Nayak will be Georgia's TSA 2020-2021 Secretary. Way to represent Forsyth CTAE!
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FBLA -
South Forsyth HS
Tharini Ramakrishnan Kavitha will be Georgia's FBLA Vice President for the 2020-2021 school year. Congratulations!
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FBLA -
South Forsyth HS
South Forsyth FBLA recently completed their annual March of Dimes fundraiser. In this photo, VPs of community service explain to students how to set up online collection sites to support our FBLA national partner.
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Landscape Management Systems - South Forsyth HS
The Landscape Management Systems pathway had a feature article written about their program in the national publication of Golfdom Magazine. Check out the article linked below
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Teaching as a Profession -
North Forsyth HS
Students in the Examining the Teaching Profession pathway course recently wrote and designed children’s books. What a fun project!
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Congratulations to Lisa Cline, North Forsyth HS Marketing, for being named
Georgia Marketing Education Association's Teacher of the Year!
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