Jan 24, 2018 | Article
Traditional educational approaches often focus on theory as opposed to practical application, which does not define STEM CTE programs, according to Frank Xydias, engineering instructor at Milford High School & Applied Technology Center in Milford.
“Many of the problems we solve in STEM classes are open-ended and grounded in solving real-world problems,” he said.
Such real-world problems often involve the needs of real people, which was precisely the case with Morgan Peterson, a 11-year-old middle school student, who last year presented Xydias and his students with a unique opportunity.
“I met Morgan’s mom at one of our STEAM nights, and she told me about her daughter’s issues with riding a bike,” he said. “Morgan has a prosthetic arm and her bike adaptor made riding her bike in comfort just about impossible.”
In approaching Xydias about the possibility his students could solve her daughter’s problem, Meg Peterson, who works in the district as a Title 1 Coordinator at the elementary level, said she was excited at the prospect.
“My husband and I had talked about it, and I began to wonder if Frank and the kids could work on building her an adaptor for her bike,” she said. “He floated the idea to the students and they were very enthusiastic about it.”
No one, however, was more enthusiastic than Morgan herself provided Xydias and the students satisfied her one condition.
“My first reaction was that I wanted to work with them,” she said.
She did work with them, according to her mom, who said it was “pretty amazing” to see her daughter work and interact with high school students.
“It was great to see her just walking around with those high school students—it was like a think tank thing,” she said.
According to Meg, the students and her daughter designed solutions that were consequently printed via a 3D printer. Noting the team produced several iterations up the adaptor before the final version, Meg said the entire process was “incredible” and serves to bolster her belief in the power of STEM and STEAM in general.
“Those STEAM events bring out the most diverse amount of students—and it’s not just robotics or certain kind of students,” she said. STEAM is for everyone…It’s great to see kids finding their niche early, solving problems and stretching themselves in new and different ways. It’s wonderful to see kids find their passion in this area.”
Citing her own interest in pursuing CTE in either manufacturing or the culinary arts when she is in high school, Morgan said the best thing about her collaboration with Xydias’ team is that she loves to ride her bike.
“It works great,” she said. “I can ride it as long as I want—it never hurt my shoulder.”
As for what advice she might give other students her age who might be thinking about their respective futures, Morgan said CTE taught her something very important.
“It doesn’t matter who you are or what you do, you can always find a way to solve the problem,” she said.
Jan 17, 2018 | Culinary Arts, Hospitality, Lodging Management, Restaurant, Culinary & Catering Management/Manager, Tid Bits
The New Hampshire Lodging and Restaurant Association announces the first annual Hospitality “Month”with events April 2nd – April 20th. The goal of New Hampshire Hospitality Month is to generate interest about careers in the industry. What is a day in the life of a hospitality employee like? What opportunities are available in this industry? What paths can students take to get to their career goals? Let’s excite this next generation of restaurateurs, chefs, sales directors, and operation managers about this great industry!
Middle and high school students will be invited to tour local properties across the state. Opportunities include hotels, restaurants, and tourist attractions. During these visits, students will have the opportunity to get a behind the scenes look at day-to-day operations, interact with employees to hear about their career pathways, and learn about being a cook or front office manager as well as broaden their scope of what other career opportunities the industry has to offer including: web design, social media marketing, accounting, landscaping, event management, and more!
For more information contact Amie Pariseau at apariseau@nhlra.com or 603.228.9585. Registration Information
Jan 17, 2018 | Automotive, Tid Bits
After weeks of competitive testing across New Hampshire’s various Career Technical Education Centers, the New Hampshire Automobile Dealer’s Association has named the top four winning teams that have earned scholarships in the written phase. Ten schools in total will move on to the practical phase of the NHADA Auto Tech State Championship. Salem’s David Jacobs and Garrett Houle will be the team to beat in the next round. They each earned a $2,000 scholarship. Read More
Jan 17, 2018 | Article
One of the biggest challenges facing employers today is how to connect with today’s students to create a working employment pipeline. This challenge may have been ameliorated recently with a U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division ruling on January 5, which provides less stringent guidelines regarding internships.
According to Doug Cullen of Pinkerton Academy, the most notable change is the elimination of the statement, “The employer that provides the training derives no immediate advantage from the activities of the intern.”
“That statement has historically been a big hurdle for many employers apprehensive to bring on unpaid interns,” he said. “It’s a big win for employers across New Hampshire and the nation.”
While noting that employer-provided work experiences need to maintain their educational focus, Cullen noted that the current mandates should provide employers with many new opportunities.
“I think they are going to be able to look at schools with a much more creative eye and much less fear of crossing into illegal territory,” he said.
To learn more about the ruling and internship programs under current law, visit https://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs71.pdf.
Other recent developments in the state include a new website by the NH Manufacturing Extension Partnership (NH MEP), which was designed to help streamline the process by which students connect-to-industry. The rationale for the site is as follows:
“NH MEP has always been committed to helping build the future manufacturing workforce in New Hampshire. But we know high school, middle school and community college students in New Hampshire, who are looking for a career in or learning about manufacturing, are finding it difficult to find those jobs and internships. This has led NH MEP to create a new web portal to help you and your students search for manufacturing jobs and internships. The portal can also help you schedule a visit with a New Hampshire manufacturer.”
On the site, students can search for jobs and internships from qualified New Hampshire manufacturers. For more information, visit www.nhmepworksource.com.
Jan 8, 2018 | CTSO, Tid Bits, Uncategorized
At the recent National FFA Convention in Indianapolis, Debbi Cox was awarded the Honorary American Degree for her volunteer work on the state level. Not only is she the President of the NH FFA Foundation, she spends time on with the state alumni group, the advisory council and organizing the FFA state convention. Debbi also spends time helping with SkillsUSA NH and is the State Coordinator for Agriculture in the Classroom.
