| Announcements: October 8, 2004 - November 29, 2004 | |||||
Tech Prep Tuesday Central Texas Tech Prep Consortium Transition and Transfer November 2, 2004 Career Pathways: The Next Generation of Tech Prep “Tech Prep and Career Pathways: Strategies for Student Success” was the theme for the National Tech Prep Network 2004 Conference held last month in Minneapolis. In a special conference issue of Connections, Dan M. Hull, CEO of CORD discussed the role of Tech Prep as a change agent for Career and Technology Education. He believes that Career Pathways will be the vehicle for a major new initiative of continuous program improvement. A Career Pathway is a coherent, articulated sequence of rigorous academic and career/technical courses, commencing in the ninth grade and leading to an associate degree, baccalaureate degree and beyond, an industry recognized certificate, and/or licensure. The Career Pathway is developed, implemented, and maintained in partnership among secondary and postsecondary education, business, and employers. Career Pathways are available to all students, including adult learners, and lead to rewarding careers. This definition of Career Pathways was jointly developed by CORD and the College and Career Transitions Initiative (The League for Innovation in the Community College) and approved by the Office of Vocational and Adult Education (U.S. Department of Education). A career cluster is a grouping of occupations according to common knowledge and skills for the purpose of organizing educational programs and curricula. (Please see http://www.careerclusters.org/16clusters.htm for a listing of the 16 career clusters identified by the U.S. Department of Education.) Each career cluster encompasses many Career Pathways. Visit the CORD website (http://www.cord.org) for additional information on this subject. Articulation Meetings Eight area high school teachers and administrators met on October 20 with Don Donaldson and Zhan Aljoe of Central Texas College to add and update articulation agreements in the Industrial and Agriculture areas. Central Texas Tech Prep Consortium is in the process of scheduling additional articulation meetings next semester in areas such as Business, Criminal Justice, GIS, Family & Consumer Sciences and others with member high schools and colleges. It would be helpful as dates are scheduled to have input from high school teachers and college faculty members. Please email or call Sherry Hollinger (shollin@templejc.edu 254-298-8482) with suggested dates and/or dates to avoid for February and March. Tech Prep Tuesday Tech Prep Tuesday is an e-newsletter published most Tuesdays of the school year. Back issues of Tech Prep Tuesday are available on the Consortium website at www.centraltexastechprep.com. Click on the red “News” button to access the newsletters. ============
Tech Prep Tuesday Central Texas Tech Prep Consortium Transition and Transfer October 26, 2004 2005 Seamless Transitions State Conference Scheduled The 2005 Seamless Transitions State Conference is scheduled for March 28-30 at the Austin Convention Center. The meeting will be during a legislative session and dovetail with the spring TACTE conference (March 30-April 1). Negotiations for a room block are underway with the downtown Hilton. A conference website will be developed that will include registration information and forms, the call for presentations and presentation proposal forms as well as the program review, final conference program and all other conference related information. Tech Prep Ambassador Program Fourteen area high school students along with peer managers from each school participated in a workshop today at Temple College. Dr. Karén Clos-Bleeker, Vice President of Educational Services and Chief Academic Officer at the college, welcomed the students to the campus. Jody Askins, Central Texas Tech Prep Consortium Board Member and Manager of Training and Development for Wilsonart International, served as trainer for the group. Following lunch, the group toured the Health Sciences Center at the college with Neil Coker, Director of the S.T.A.R. Programs. The Tech Prep Ambassadors promote Career and Technology Education and Tech Prep among their peers and in their communities. Schools participating this year are Copperas Cove HS, Ellison HS, Harker Heights HS, Killeen HS, Marble Falls HS, Shoemaker HS and Star HS. The program is in its second year. Central Texas College provided funding for t-shirts for the students. Outstanding seniors from the group will have the opportunity to compete for $500 scholarships at Central Texas College and Temple College. ============
Tech Prep Tuesday Central Texas Tech Prep Consortium Transition and Transfer October 19, 2004 Tech Prep Subgrants Focus on CATEMA Implementation Applications for this year’s ISD subgrants have been mailed to district contacts. The focus for this year will be the CATEMA System (Career and Technology Education Management Application) for managing Tech Prep information. The subgrants will NOT be awarded on a competitive basis as has been the custom in prior years. Instead, money will be offered to high school campuses for start-up costs associated with the CATEMA System, using a formula based on total number of students and total number of CATE students at the campus. The CATEMA system will help collect student Tech Prep enrollment figures. Because of the impending reauthorization of the Carl Perkins Law, it is imperative that Texas has accurate Tech Prep career and technology data. CATEMA enables area and state colleges to better track and access student Tech Prep records via the Internet. This data collection system also provides the consortium documentation to help students receive college credit for their articulated courses. Applications are due back November 12. A total of $40,000 will be offered consortium-wide. ============
Tech Prep Tuesday Central Texas Tech Prep Consortium Transition and Transfer October 12, 2004 Local Articulation Agreement Opportunity One of the Consortium goals for this year is to assist partner schools in updating/adding local articulation agreements. The first opportunity has been scheduled for next week. Area school districts interested in updating or adding local articulation agreements with Central Texas College in the Agriculture and Industrial program areas are invited to attend a meeting at the college on Wednesday, October 20, 2004, beginning at 9:00 AM. The Industrial areas include Auto, Welding, Diesel, Building Trades, Graphics & Printing, Auto Collision and HVAC. Don Donaldson will meet with those interested in one of the Industrial areas beginning at 9:00 AM. Zhan Aljoe will be available for Ag beginning at 10:15 AM. Both meetings will take place in Room 25 (Air Conditioning Lab) of Building 118 at Central Texas College. High School teachers should bring a list of current courses – course numbers (TEKS), titles and descriptions. Those interested in Ag should also bring an outline of course objectives. A four/six year plan would be very helpful for Tech Prep articulations. Please contact a Central Texas Tech Prep Consortium staff member if you plan to attend on October 20 or if you need further information. Chuck McCarter – 254-298-8481 Sherry Hollinger – 254-298-8482 Misty Harrell – 254-298-8483 Trish Goodman – 254-298-8480 Counselors’ Network Workshop Scheduled for November 17, 2004 The Central Texas Counselors’ Network Workshop is scheduled for Wednesday, November 17, 2004, from 9:30 AM until 2:00 PM at Temple College. The workshop will be in the Leopard Room of the Arnold Student Union. Speakers include: Linda McDonough, THECB, Texas Success Initiative – First Year Summary Robyn Crawford - National Technical Honor Society Becky Howard – GO Center Update Attendees will have the opportunity to tour the Health Science Center at Temple College. Cost for the workshop is $15 and includes lunch. You may register through the Consortium website at http://www.centraltexastechprep.com. Go to Teacher Training, Register Online, complete the form and click the “Sign me up!” button. Checks may be mailed to the Consortium office. Flyers for the workshop will be mailed in the next few days and will include a registration form if you prefer to register by mail. Deadline for registration is November 10, 2004. ============
Tech Prep Tuesday Central Texas Tech Prep Consortium Transition and Transfer October 5, 2004 Advanced Technology Middle College for East Bell County In 1998, the Temple Chamber of Commerce Education Committee identified the need for an advanced technology center in east Bell County. The following year, Belton ISD, Temple College, and Temple ISD began a partnership to work on such a center. In 2000, a committee of these three institutions along with Tech Prep and Workforce Development began to identify opportunities and challenges. The different ISD daily schedules were identified as a major impediment to the project, so in 2002, the schedules were more closely aligned. Tech Prep commissioned a study to identify cost and strategies for the next step of the project in 2003. During the summer of 2004, an inter-local agreement between Temple College and Belton and Temple Independent Schools Districts was signed and a Project Champion determined. Additional information about the history, goals and vision of the Advanced Technology Middle College for East Bell County is available on the Central Texas Tech Prep Consortium website at www.centraltexastechprep.com or you may link directly to the section at http://www.centraltexastechprep.com/atc/index.html. An online survey is available on the site for parents, students, faculty & administrators, workforce and business partners from the east Bell County area. ============ |
