[0:04] Well, hi everyone. Welcome to the next [0:05] episode of the Inside Wisetta podcast. [0:07] I'm Zach Nelson. I'm the host. And today [0:10] we are talking career and technical [0:13] education, CTE, with some very special [0:16] guests from the high school. We have [0:18] Scott Torter, who is the career and [0:20] technical education coordinator at the [0:21] high school. And we have Noah and Ree [0:24] who are seniors at the high school. and [0:27] they're going to talk about their [0:28] experience with career and technical [0:31] education CTE. So, thank you for joining [0:33] me. I'm excited. [0:35] >> Thank you for the opportunity. [0:36] >> Thanks for having us. [0:37] >> Okay. What is career and technical [0:40] education? What What is it? [0:42] >> It's probably that's a question that we [0:45] hear often from our community and the [0:48] students we serve. And I think it's [0:50] noteworthy to maybe go back in time [0:52] three to five years when we were really [0:54] strategic around the concept of taking [0:56] what is now health science business [0:59] technology technology education [1:02] partnered with information technology [1:04] and putting those departments [1:06] collectively together to live under the [1:09] umbrella called career and technical [1:11] education. partnered with that. We [1:14] wanted to be very strategic about how we [1:15] paired courses to serve the needs of our [1:18] students best and we chose chose the [1:21] language after some community [1:23] interaction and conversations and called [1:25] them career spheres. And what that looks [1:28] like from a student perspective is if [1:30] for example Ree was very interested in [1:32] health sciences, we took those courses [1:35] and grouped them together into a career [1:37] or pathway to allow our students to take [1:40] an introduction level course, take an [1:42] intermediate course and then also take a [1:44] capstone experience. And I would say [1:46] that from an outsider perspective, [1:48] career and technical education is really [1:51] a group of courses. We offer over 80 now [1:53] here at the high school that allows [1:55] students to take their academic content, [1:58] technical skills, and then weave that [2:01] into social emotional learning to really [2:05] engage and educate the entire student so [2:07] they can be successful outside of the [2:10] walls of this great big building. [2:11] >> Yeah. So from my perspective, like when [2:13] I was in school, you know, back in the [2:15] day, um it was we had like took like a [2:19] woodworking class or I took like a there [2:22] was uh family and consumer education [2:25] classes when we're cooking things. And [2:28] so it sounds like this is a very [2:30] strategic way to organize classes like [2:32] that and then some into like one [2:35] strategic plan and academic [2:37] opportunities for students. Is that a [2:39] fair way to kind of analyze all of it? [2:41] >> Yeah, I think s simply put our goal is [2:44] really to give students access to [2:46] courses that they can deploy their [2:49] technical skills also academic content [2:52] and really see the relevancy of that. So [2:55] you and I have in common that we sat in [2:57] a classroom and wondered why am I [2:59] learning this and where picnic table [3:02] [laughter] [3:02] >> right right where am I ever going to use [3:03] this and we've surveyed our staff inside [3:07] of career and technical education would [3:09] say one of their missions every day is [3:10] to help students understand why does [3:12] this matter and where in the world [3:14] outside of school will we use this [3:16] content so that relevancy component is [3:19] woven into every course that we offer. [3:21] So, you guys are seniors. Um, if I can [3:24] take you back to, [3:26] you know, whether it was in middle [3:28] school and you started to think about [3:29] what your high school experience was [3:31] going to be like, what was your first [3:34] memory or your I guess maybe what [3:36] preconceived ideas did you have about [3:39] taking CTE classes or anything like [3:42] that? Do you remember like what you [3:44] thought it was going to be when you were [3:46] coming into high school? I know it's [3:47] going back a few years, but [3:48] >> Yeah, absolutely. So going back to [3:51] middle school, I kind of always knew I [3:52] wanted to go into either computer [3:54] programming or some sort of engineering. [3:57] So I had this notion going into school [3:59] that that's kind of the path I wanted to [4:01] follow. And I heard about all those CTE [4:04] classes we have here and kind of saw [4:06] those as a pathway to actually start [4:08] building some of my skills and actually [4:10] start building kind of a general [4:12] understanding of those two fields as [4:14] well as kind of broaden my scope and [4:17] understand a lot more technical skills. [4:19] I personally always wanted to do a job [4:22] where I'm actually creating something [4:23] and making something. So those CTE [4:25] classes allowed me to experience a wide [4:28] variety of those fields and really [4:30] understand which of these things I enjoy [4:32] more and pick up a bunch of useful [4:34] skills along the way. [4:34] >> So it sounds like you had you had an [4:37] idea of something you wanted to do, but [4:39] it also based on what you're just saying [4:41] like you had a lot of opportunities to [4:43] explore a wide variety. You know, Scott [4:46] said we had there's 80 classes, so you [4:48] got to experience a lot of those. [4:50] >> Yeah, 100%. So, obviously, I took the [4:53] engineering and some computer [4:54] programming classes. I also took wood [4:56] shop, for example. And while they might [4:59] not sound like they're directly [5:00] correlated, I've heard from a lot of [5:02] engineers that I've spoken to that a [5:05] bunch of students these days don't [5:07] actually know how to use tools or they [5:09] don't know how to build something. They [5:11] will develop in a CAD software a product [5:13] that is actually impossible to [5:15] manufacture. And woodworking for example [5:18] gave me insight into how you actually [5:21] use these tools, use these CNC machines, [5:23] use these handheld tools to really put [5:26] something together and actually see what [5:28] something is possible to be made. So I [5:31] as an engineer could design a product [5:33] and have a better understanding of how [5:34] this might actually be produced. Why [5:37] designing it this way versus this way [5:39] would add a bunch of production costs [5:41] which even taking wood shop as a [5:44] engineer that's completely preparing me [5:46] for the actual career world. [5:47] >> What about you Ree? Do you remember kind [5:49] of your first experience [5:52] in these in these courses and and and [5:56] kind of thinking back to like I don't [5:58] really know what I'm getting myself [5:59] into, but let's let's try it anyway. [6:02] >> Yeah. I think when I was first [6:04] registering for classes, like many [6:05] freshmen, I had no idea what I was going [6:07] to do and what I wanted to do. So, I [6:10] [snorts] think freshman year, I just had [6:11] like a spread of different electives [6:13] that I took. And I think originally I [6:16] really loved interior design and I [6:17] wanted to be an interior designer and I [6:19] loved that class and then I switched [6:21] over to more of like the healthcare um [6:23] setting that I loved and then I got into [6:26] like the medical terminology courses and [6:28] the CNA course and that it fit me better [6:30] and I just yeah it was brought me a lot [6:32] of it's given me more communication [6:35] skills and I've meet I've met new people [6:37] that have the same values of me and it's [6:39] just been really fun. So it sounds like [6:40] two different like you kind of had an [6:43] idea of this is what I want to do. Um [6:46] and you pursued that and have enjoyed [6:49] that and from your perspective it's you [6:51] had no idea and that's how I was in [6:53] school. You know I think I switched [6:55] ideas probably daily of like I want to [6:57] do this when you know when I grow up. Um [7:00] do you see that a lot with students of [7:02] you kind of have this varying degrees of [7:05] I know what I want to do. I have no idea [7:07] what I want to do and how can you [7:10] explain how all these variety of courses [7:12] help students, you know, learn and have [7:15] those experiences? [7:17] >> Sure. I think you've you've clearly [7:18] identified and both Noah and Ree [7:20] represent the varying sides of the [7:23] spectrum from a student interest and [7:26] perception and or self-awareness that we [7:29] student see students within. That said, [7:32] one of the very strategic parts about [7:34] aligning courses grouped together by [7:36] content is that we could, for example, [7:40] take a course called career search. And [7:42] it's really about discovering oneself [7:44] and your aptitude and your values and [7:47] where you might see that fit inside of [7:49] tomorrow's economy. [7:50] >> Could have used that 20 years ago. [7:52] >> I think you and I both. Um, and then the [7:54] other like the other gift that we really [7:56] have about structuring courses in either [7:58] career spheres or pathways is that it [8:01] allows a student to take an intro course [8:03] and find out and when you're 16, finding [8:05] out that something is a fit is equally [8:07] valuable to figuring out like, hey, that [8:09] is totally not for me. So, we have [8:12] students that can experience a given [8:15] career pathway for a nine-week course. [8:17] And then if that is for them, maybe to [8:19] Reese's point, if you take interior [8:21] design, then you can probably take a [8:23] second level of interior design. And [8:25] then if you're like, that was that was [8:27] amazing, but I really want to broaden my [8:29] horizons a little bit. What else should [8:31] I do in weaving things together inside [8:33] of career pathways? we have the [8:36] opportunity for students to see how does [8:37] architecture feed directly into interior [8:40] design and what should we know about [8:41] construction if that was going to be [8:43] something we wanted to explore. So to [8:46] sort of go back to the beginning, we'd [8:47] use these students on a variety of [8:49] different personal experiences and [8:51] different stories and the value add of [8:54] us having won all of those different [8:56] courses and then aligning them the way [8:58] that we have chosen to do so allows [9:00] students to explore and then once they [9:02] find their why or what I would say is [9:05] like what what is it that lights your [9:07] fire they can experience that at [9:09] different levels of immersion. Yeah. [9:11] >> Have you seen students come in like Noah [9:15] and like I want to do this, but then [9:17] fast forward 3, four years later, it's [9:19] like a 180 and they're doing something [9:21] completely different. One of one of my [9:23] favorite parts of my job is that we as [9:26] part of Compass, we have a onetoone [9:28] mentor relationship. So this year we [9:30] have 117 community based mentors and [9:33] roughly [9:35] I hope I don't get quoted on this one [9:37] but about 20 of those mentors are former [9:40] students that have now come back to kind [9:43] of pay it forward and it's it's fun to [9:45] hear their experience where we do have [9:47] some students that we clearly knew they [9:49] were going to go to St. Thomas and study [9:52] business management and then we have [9:54] students who left and did like I changed [9:56] my major six times [9:58] >> before I kind of figured out what fit [10:01] >> and I think to circle or to maybe go [10:04] back one of the real value ads about [10:06] exploring all the opportunities that we [10:07] have here is you can find out what's [10:09] your fit and what lights your fire while [10:11] you're still here. [10:12] >> So we'll get we'll get to some of these [10:15] opportunities, some of these courses. [10:16] I'm I'm anxious to ask both of you about [10:19] some of the classes you've experienced. [10:22] There is a credential credit like a [10:26] concurrent enrollment piece of this too. [10:28] Can you explain that a little bit to [10:29] people that are listening? [10:30] >> Sure. So there it will be our goal in [10:35] the next two years to have every second [10:37] level and above CTE course offer college [10:41] credit or an industry recognized [10:44] credential or both. And the two ways [10:48] that we have chosen to do that would be [10:49] one inside of our advisory board, we [10:52] have been given very specific targeted [10:54] data and Ree can speak to this better [10:56] than probably I can inside of [10:58] healthcare. Like the best thing we can [11:00] give our students is a CNA certification [11:03] or certified nursing aid certification [11:05] inside of say a manufacturing [11:07] construction class. An OSHA 10 [11:10] certification has been one of those [11:12] things. Our advisory board has said this [11:14] will help our next generation of [11:17] employees understand all of the things [11:19] that they're going to see in a [11:20] workplace. So we have some of those [11:23] credentials that have come from our [11:24] advisory board and we rely on them to [11:27] help us keep our finger on the pulse of [11:29] what's happening in their in their [11:31] reality. And the other avenue that we've [11:33] chosen to go down is something called [11:35] concurrent enrollment. I think and Noah [11:38] and I were chatting about this this [11:39] morning that if mentioned in a [11:41] conversation, most of our community and [11:43] students really understand AP classes [11:45] and how they work. Inside of career and [11:48] technical education, we have pursued an [11:51] an additional opportunity called [11:53] concurrent enrollment. And how that [11:55] works is we have instructors who have [11:57] different um career paths to get to the [12:00] world of education. And a good example [12:02] of that is this afternoon I will be [12:05] teaching a high school art course [12:07] partnered with a college level art [12:10] course. So our students are actually [12:12] earning high school credit while they're [12:13] earning college credit. So that is the [12:15] concurrent. So two things happening at [12:17] one time. And the value ad from a [12:19] student perspective is it allows our [12:22] students to get the college level rigor [12:24] with the support of all things inside of [12:26] a high school and then take those [12:28] credits with them when they leave here. [12:30] How have you guys benefited from some of [12:32] these opportunities that Scott was [12:36] talking about? [12:36] >> Um, I've benefited from the CNA course [12:39] or the certified nursing assistant [12:41] course. Um, so it's a semester long [12:44] class and I towards the end of my [12:47] sophomore year, I was leaning towards [12:49] healthcare and I wanted to go into [12:51] something in like a hospital or a [12:53] clinic. So I enrolled in the CNA course [12:57] and through that I gained my [12:59] certification by passing my state exam [13:02] and then got a job afterwards. So the [13:05] value that it gave me was huge. Um I've [13:09] now been working as a CNA for 6 months I [13:13] believe. Um, and it's just ignited my [13:16] passion for helping people. And now I'm [13:18] I know exactly what I want to do. And it [13:20] just helped me out um with confirming [13:24] what I wanted to do and also with [13:26] applying to colleges and nursing [13:27] schools. Now I have that and I have that [13:29] real world experience and it's super [13:31] valuable. I feel like when I hear about [13:34] people that go into healthcare, like I [13:36] have friends that went into whether it's [13:38] nursing or some sort of medical field, [13:42] that's something they don't figure out [13:43] until [13:45] like after graduating college. So, [13:47] you're you're already have your your [13:50] license or your certified your CNA. Is [13:53] it a license? [13:54] >> Mhm. [13:55] >> Um that's incredible. [13:56] >> Yeah. So, do you feel like [14:00] I I don't know, you probably don't have [14:02] a lot of comparisons, but do you feel [14:03] like you have like a leg up on perhaps [14:06] some of your peers when you're going to [14:08] go off after graduating? And like that's [14:11] Oh, that's that's great. [14:12] >> Yeah, I do. I think it's it's prepared [14:15] me greatly because there are so many [14:17] students that go into a nursing school [14:20] with no experience actually caring for [14:22] people and knowing what it's like. And I [14:24] think that for some people it's almost [14:27] necessary to get that experience because [14:30] you might not like it. I know there are [14:32] plenty of people in my classes who took [14:34] the course and they did clinicals and [14:36] they were like this isn't for me. like [14:38] whether it was like they didn't like [14:41] communicating with the nurses or some of [14:44] the tasks were not fun for them or like [14:47] I don't know some people just can't [14:49] handle that healthcare setting and I [14:51] think it's important that I got that [14:52] early on and now I feel like I'll be [14:54] ready for what's ahead in my future. [14:57] I think one of the things you really [14:58] highlighted was the relevancy or like [15:02] the from a student perspective it's [15:05] typically referred to as like the real [15:06] world experience because there there are [15:09] probably many of us who would say like I [15:12] enjoy caring for people but then there [15:14] are parts of you that inside of this [15:18] experience you really got the gift to [15:19] recognize like I can do some of the [15:22] things that are going to be asked of me [15:23] even if they are not my favorite part of [15:25] the day because I understand the whole [15:28] of what it looks like to care for people [15:29] in a healthcare setting. [15:31] >> So I think that from at least my [15:33] perspective is one of the huge value ads [15:36] of career and technical education [15:38] programming as we've explored it here is [15:40] that that real world relevancy to find [15:42] out like what is it really like to [15:44] experience that? Well, you mentioned [15:46] some classmates that as you go through [15:49] some of that real world experience [15:51] determine like, you know, this isn't for [15:53] me. To be able to do that while in high [15:56] school versus when you're in your [15:58] mid20s, like that's that's incredible. I [16:01] think that's probably part of the value [16:02] of it is, like you said, is as much of [16:06] not only finding what you do want to do, [16:08] but maybe what you don't want to do [16:10] through through that experience. That's [16:11] great. Better to find out in high school [16:13] than a couple thousand dollar into [16:15] college, three years of your life, [16:17] >> right? [16:17] >> Yeah. [16:18] >> No. How have you benefited from some of [16:20] these extra things? [16:22] >> Absolutely. So, I've taken several CTE [16:24] classes that have given me concurrent [16:26] enrollment credits and then some [16:27] articulated credit from a that wood shop [16:29] class. Um, and then my computer [16:32] programming class and my compass class, [16:34] those all gave me concurrent enrollment [16:36] credits which I can bring with me to [16:38] whatever university I end up going to. [16:40] and those immediately knock away some [16:42] course requirements, give me more time [16:44] to take other courses and just save me [16:47] money obviously, right? Can't complain [16:48] about that. Um, [snorts] [16:51] but through something like Compass for [16:54] example, with that credit that I was [16:55] getting, I was getting real world [16:57] experience on what it would be like to [16:59] work in a cyber security field and then [17:02] also getting the opportunity to actually [17:05] talk with professionals and work with [17:07] professionals. From that I ended up [17:09] doing an internship with NASA as we [17:12] worked with them and [17:13] >> NASA like the the space [17:14] >> the space the space space ones. [17:16] >> Okay, keep going. [17:18] >> So [laughter] [17:20] I worked more in an engineering kind of [17:22] setting with NASA. I was helping them [17:24] develop what they call a cubat for a [17:28] something called the NASA initiative [17:30] where basically they're going to trap a [17:32] bunch of people in a room for about 40 [17:34] days and they want to measure how [17:36] they're going to be able to respond to [17:37] each other, have them do simulated lunar [17:39] missions and stuff. That way when they [17:41] actually bring people back to the moon, [17:42] they have a better understanding what it [17:44] might actually be like. So I was helping [17:46] them build a device that they can use to [17:48] measure some data outside of their lunar [17:50] chamber that they built. So I was [17:53] gaining experience engineering, coding, [17:55] some electrical engineering, mechanical [17:57] engineering. While I'm still in high [17:59] school, I was working with NASA. I got [18:01] industry connections from that through [18:04] Compass. I had mentors just like Mr. Tor [18:06] was talking about. I still communicate [18:08] with my mentor every once in a while. [18:10] And I'm building real world connections [18:12] that I can jump right back to. Getting [18:16] college credit so I can take less [18:17] courses. For example, college I'm going [18:20] to is taking one of my computer [18:21] programming classes. I'm going into [18:23] mechanical engineering and it's knocking [18:24] off my programming requirement because [18:26] they are confident that I understand how [18:28] to code from that. It's just an [18:30] incredible opportunity. [18:31] >> Yeah. So, it's there's the academic um [18:34] you talked about you you have credits [18:36] that you're getting, but as much of it [18:38] is, you know, you mentioned having those [18:41] connections and not only having [18:43] connections, but practicing building [18:46] connections feels like it's a huge part [18:48] of this, right? And maybe that's part of [18:50] the goal of the mentorship program as [18:52] well is not only help students find [18:54] their path, but help them [18:57] you learn those skills of making [18:59] connection. And you're not just making [19:02] connections, you're working with those [19:04] connections, too. So, I'm not just [19:06] meeting a professional, I'm doing some [19:08] work with them, taking a step forward [19:09] from just that first interaction. [19:12] >> So, can you speak a little bit to um the [19:15] the mentorship piece of this? Obviously, [19:18] there's an incredible benefit to, you [19:21] know, students like Reese Noah, but what [19:24] about from the the mentorship side for [19:27] these people that are doing this? what [19:29] are some of the benefits that they see [19:30] through through these programs? [19:33] >> If when we or if I could go back in time [19:37] to a time when we started the compass [19:41] program and knew that a mentorship [19:43] component was going to be one of those [19:44] non-negotiables. [19:46] The [19:48] reasons why for that were were so [19:50] numerous. And again, maybe to go back to [19:53] the spectrum of students that we might [19:55] see. We we probably see some students [19:57] that again clearly know like Noah and [20:00] Reese clearly have a good vision of [20:01] where they're going to go in the future. [20:03] And then we have many students that [20:05] understand that today is Tuesday and [20:07] tomorrow's going to be Wednesday. So the [20:09] the mentorship component of that was [20:11] really designed to be another kind, [20:13] caring adult in a young person's life to [20:15] help them navigate the next chapter and [20:18] really to be another person that they [20:21] can ask questions of or that they could [20:23] go and see a workplace or that they [20:26] could even just maybe talk about [20:28] post-secary options and what those look [20:30] like from another person's perspective. [20:33] So we knew that the mentorship component [20:35] was going to be one of those huge value [20:37] ads to the students that we serve. That [20:40] said, [20:41] our mentors have given us the feedback. [20:45] I don't I feel like I'm the one winning [20:48] because I'm getting as much value out of [20:50] this situation as I think I'm providing. [20:53] So again, just a great level of [20:55] community support because inside of the [20:57] world of career and technical education, [20:59] I oftentimes say that this is one of [21:01] those things we can't do without [21:02] community partnerships. So the [21:04] mentorship component is one of those [21:06] really essential and really great ways [21:10] to highlight how we can involve our [21:12] community in the vision of teaching and [21:13] learning. [21:14] >> All right, I want to switch gears a [21:15] little bit. There's 80 classes. Both of [21:18] you have probably taken a handful of [21:19] them. What is the coolest class that [21:23] you've taken under the umbrella? [21:26] >> I personally would have to say either [21:28] compass cyber security or some of the [21:30] engineering courses like principles of [21:32] engineering for example. Both of those [21:34] gave me as I mentioned earlier real [21:36] world experience where I'm actually [21:38] doing things. That engineering class we [21:42] would learn an equation or a theory and [21:45] then we would actually build a project [21:46] to go along with it. So, for example, if [21:48] we were talking about projectile motion, [21:51] we would build a device to launch a [21:53] ping-pong ball and have to have it land [21:54] at a certain distance based off of our [21:56] calculations or taking the information [21:59] on the screen on the presentation and [22:01] actually doing something with it rather [22:04] than just hearing about it. Or compass, [22:06] I got to go into several industries. I [22:10] got to go into many engineering [22:11] buildings, many cyber security [22:12] buildings, whole lot of other ones, even [22:14] a farm. I got a bunch of actual [22:17] experience seeing what these different [22:19] fields look like. [22:20] >> You went to a farm. [22:21] >> You went to a farm. [22:22] >> Okay. What' you do? [22:24] >> So, I should I should expand on that. [22:26] It's not just a typical farm as you [22:28] would picture. [22:29] >> Sure. I'm from Wisconsin. So, when I [22:31] think farm, um I think red barn, dairy, [22:35] cows. [22:35] >> There was a dairy farm and there was a [22:38] red barn. [22:38] >> And there was a red barn. So, you're on [22:40] the right track. Yeah, [22:41] >> but they incorporated robots and [22:43] automation to go and manage the cows, to [22:46] milk the cows, bringing them food. And [22:48] it was just really interesting. [22:50] >> Is this in Minnesota? [22:51] >> In Minnesota. Yeah. 15 minutes from [22:53] here. [22:53] >> 15 minutes from here. [22:55] >> One of the It's one of the last [22:57] remaining dairy farms in Henipin County. [23:01] And and on details, I think Nova did an [23:04] amazing job of explaining the [23:06] experience. [23:08] one one of our goals again inside of [23:11] career and technical education is to [23:12] answer to answer like why is this [23:14] important? Why should it matter to me? [23:16] And the level new to me too like I have [23:20] not been to a dairy farm since I was [23:22] either of your ages and that's been a [23:24] couple days. [23:26] The level of data gathering, automation, [23:30] and also care for the animals was one of [23:33] those parts of a dairy farm that I had [23:36] >> didn't even really remember existed. So, [23:39] I think you and I might remember like if [23:41] you're on a dairy farm, it's loud [23:43] >> because the cows are non-stop asking for [23:46] something. And on this farm, it was [23:49] probably a cat was one of the most heard [23:52] animals because it would be like rubbing [23:54] up against you and asking for attention [23:57] where the cows were so well cared for, [23:59] >> so content. Yeah. [24:00] >> That it was it was almost silent. And [24:03] then as we were learning about again all [24:06] of the things to really educate whole [24:08] students about like what's happening at [24:09] a dairy farm like the data from even [24:14] like the milking machines to figure out [24:16] like cows had names but to figure out [24:18] maybe Deb was low on milk production [24:21] then they knew it was a red flag event [24:23] to find out like is Deb the cow healthy [24:26] or is Deb the cow trying to tell us [24:28] something as a result of the milk [24:29] production. [24:31] That was for me like I get super giddy [24:34] about those experiences because I love [24:35] to connect young people to the world [24:37] outside of here. And to hear your [24:39] reflection on it lets us know it was a [24:41] straightup home run. [24:42] >> And for me with my interest in [24:44] mechanical engineering, seeing how all [24:47] the gears and the robots and all the [24:49] pulleys and everything were able to run [24:52] a farm and take care of these animals [24:53] was just an amazing connection for me. [24:56] Seeing that a field that you think of [24:58] working in a metal shop or working in [25:00] some industry can connect to a farm and [25:03] take care of animals, it's just [25:04] incredible and broaden the scope of what [25:06] I pictured engineering as. [25:08] >> Well, we'll have to do a separate [25:09] episode on dairy farms cuz that's so [25:12] good. [laughter] [25:12] >> I think we could. [25:13] >> It was it was fascinating. [25:15] >> Uh what about you, Ree? What's what's [25:17] when I if I ask what's the coolest class [25:20] or experience you've had? My certified [25:23] nursing assistant class was the coolest [25:25] one because it was just so fascinating [25:28] and interesting and um we got skills [25:32] tested almost every week which was fun, [25:34] intimidating but fun and you had nurses [25:37] come in and tell you about their [25:38] experiences and help you. And um I got [25:42] to meet some amazing people through it [25:44] and you get to learn so much not just [25:48] like how to take care of people but how [25:49] to be empathetic of everybody. Um, we [25:52] did labs where we would breathe through [25:54] straws for a minute to see what asthma [25:57] felt like and we walked around with like [26:00] popcorn seeds in our shoes to see what [26:02] arthritis would feel like and weights on [26:04] our ankles. It was like the amount of [26:07] experience that I got from that class [26:09] just will stay with me for a long time. [26:12] It was a very cool class. [26:13] >> I'm going to I'm going to reframe the [26:15] question a little bit now. What is the [26:17] most unique experience you've had? And [26:20] obviously I think like the dairy farm [26:22] situation, but I know there's there's 80 [26:24] courses. What is the most maybe it's not [26:27] on your specific pathway you're on, but [26:30] what's the most unique experience you've [26:32] had in one of these courses? [26:35] >> I would have to go with Compass as the [26:37] answer. Again, it's the only course I've [26:39] taken at this school where the majority [26:42] of the learning happens off-campus at [26:44] these industry sites with professionals [26:47] coming in and talking to us in [26:50] comparison to sitting in front of a [26:51] lecture listening. You're actually [26:53] experiencing these things or going [26:55] places, seeing how things you're [26:57] interested in are actually connected to [26:59] industries and different careers. [27:02] I would say the career search course was [27:06] a great experience for me because I took [27:08] it at the beginning of high school when [27:09] I didn't know what I was going to do. [27:11] And that class is fully based on just [27:14] understanding yourself, understanding [27:15] what you're interested in. And I got to [27:19] you take like personality tests and um [27:23] you get to see kind of what fields that [27:25] you would be good in and then you get to [27:28] figure out what colleges would be good [27:29] for you. And then it was also very [27:31] interesting because there was guest [27:33] speakers that would come in and talk to [27:34] the class about what they did and about [27:36] their jobs and it was just very [27:38] interesting and I think I learned a lot [27:39] about myself. [27:40] >> That's great. [27:41] >> If I could add to that, I haven't taken [27:43] that career search class but I feel like [27:44] every single one of the CTE classes does [27:47] an excellent job of emphasizing the [27:49] different careers you can go into kind [27:51] of related to it. So, for example, in [27:54] the engineering classes, you will do a [27:56] project researching different types of [27:58] engineering fields or in wood shop, Mr. [28:02] Swinson would run a video every single [28:04] day talking about a different career you [28:07] could go into that's sort of in that CTE [28:09] realm. They all do an excellent job of [28:11] showing these different options that are [28:12] out there and kind of broadening your [28:14] horizons. [28:14] >> So, you're not just learning for the [28:16] sake of learning. It's like how do you [28:17] then take this to that? That's great. [28:19] >> Absolutely. I'm going to ask you the [28:21] same question. What are some of the most [28:23] like unique [28:25] opportunities and kind of cool things [28:28] that you would say students get to do as [28:30] in part of these 80 courses? [28:32] >> So, one of the very again this is [28:35] probably one of those things that if the [28:37] two of you start to do the yawn, then [28:39] I'll know I need to shift gears. But [28:41] from a from a strategy or programming [28:43] standpoint, we want students to both [28:45] have that intro level part into a career [28:47] pathway and then also a capstone [28:49] experience. So we are on the newer side [28:53] of offering a career in technical [28:54] education internship as part of our [28:57] programming to allow students another [29:00] capstone experience. [29:02] And as we have navigated relationships [29:04] in the community and heard back from [29:07] students who have experienced that that [29:09] again is kind of after that whole [29:11] student and growing whole students. So [29:14] we are have we are having students leave [29:16] for part of their day and go to the [29:19] community and earn and learn at the same [29:21] time. And that from a student [29:24] perspective has allowed that yes this is [29:28] totally what lights my fire and I see [29:30] myself in it experience and that has [29:34] been it's been meaningful from a student [29:37] experience because it's not a specific [29:39] content because as as we kind of look at [29:41] the variety of different businesses and [29:43] organizations inside of our community [29:45] the possibilities are endless. So it [29:47] allows an amazing capstone experience [29:50] for our students that is really tailored [29:52] to their unique skills and interests. [29:54] You know, I've heard a lot in whether [29:56] it's, you know, in the news or other [29:59] other areas of, [30:02] you know, when I was when I was going [30:04] through high school, you know, this was [30:08] 15 [snorts] 20 years ago, there was a [30:11] there was a lot of emphasis on you go [30:13] through high school, you go to a [30:14] four-year college, you get a degree, and [30:16] then it's like that's what you did. And [30:19] I've heard a lot about there's needs for [30:22] some of these more um you know these [30:26] these hands-on skills uh whether it's [30:30] anything in the building industry [30:32] things that are are more not more [30:36] tangible but there's a need in some of [30:39] these areas in society. Can you speak at [30:42] all to that on how some of these courses [30:46] and some of some of this programming can [30:48] help fill that void from like a bigger [30:50] picture? [30:51] >> Sure. [30:52] >> And if either of you want to tailor your [30:56] experience into maybe where you see that [30:58] fitting into tomorrow's economy, that's [31:00] that's a great um segue too. I think [31:04] again maybe to go the greater [31:06] programming concept, it is it's never [31:08] going to be any of our jobs to to [31:11] prescribe the next chapter of a young [31:13] person's academic career or professional [31:16] career. It's our job really to inform [31:18] them of opportunities that exist inside [31:20] of tomorrow's economy and then also to [31:22] build programming to support that. That [31:25] said, as as we really watch economic [31:28] shifts happen in tomorrow's economy that [31:33] those credentiing skills, so when we [31:35] talk about Reese's certified nursing [31:37] aids certificate, like that's what we [31:39] would refer to as a real stackable [31:41] credential that you get the opportunity [31:42] to take with you because that is your [31:45] introduction into the world of health [31:47] care. And so many of our community [31:49] partners are they're really like [31:51] fighting each other for someone like you [31:54] with that credential and and the [31:56] opportunities that are going to exist [31:58] for you inside of any organization are [32:00] going to be great and for maybe for Noah [32:03] to mention like I'm in high school and [32:06] yes I did spend some time with NASA like [32:09] from a resume builder standpoint like I [32:12] I just love saying that because that's a [32:14] pretty pretty awesome name drop to do [32:16] when you're still a high school senior. [32:19] So, it's really about those stackable [32:21] credentials that allow students an [32:23] introduction into a career field or [32:26] those certifications slashexperiences [32:29] from a resume builder standpoint that [32:31] are really allowing our young people to [32:33] capitalize on the experiences and figure [32:36] out where all of those experiences that [32:39] they received in high school are going [32:41] to fit in tomorrow's economy. And it [32:43] sounds like you have you and your [32:45] colleagues and then you have an advisory [32:47] board. I assume that's those are [32:49] conversations that continue to happen. [32:52] It's like what what are some of the [32:53] needs? What are we seeing? And then [32:55] leaning on some of those mentors of of [32:58] finding where you can offer more [33:00] programming, right? [33:01] >> Yeah. That's probably one of the unique [33:03] challenges to all things career and [33:05] technical education that [33:08] we although we are we are always looking [33:11] at how we can serve the needs of our [33:13] students and communities better. It's it [33:15] is very common inside of the from the [33:18] teacher perspective to say I did [33:20] something term one and I'm going to [33:22] retool that for term three. like that [33:24] relentless pursuit of improvement again [33:27] to serve the needs of our students and [33:29] communities best is really really [33:32] evident in the programming and also how [33:34] often we improve the programs here for [33:37] students. [33:38] >> Yeah. [33:38] >> Well, as we close here, I I'll ask all [33:41] of you the same question. [33:44] um for for you know for you Ree what [33:47] would you tell whether it's a a student [33:50] that's about to come to high school or [33:54] to a parent guardian of a student that's [33:56] going to be in high school. [33:58] What would you tell them as far as why [34:00] they should get involved with some of [34:02] these CT and and other opportunities [34:05] available? [34:06] >> Honestly, it truly is not to [34:10] overemphasize or anything. It seriously [34:11] is life-changing. These courses have [34:15] pivoted so many people to what they want [34:17] to work on, where they want to go. These [34:19] courses have confirmed for me that [34:20] engineering is the right path for me. [34:22] They've given me skills that I can use [34:25] in my engineering. For example, with the [34:27] wood shop class I took, I got certified [34:30] to run a CNC machine and learn how that [34:32] works and use it. When I go into [34:35] engineering, if I have a part that needs [34:36] to be machined, I have a better [34:38] understanding of how this will actually [34:40] be used. [34:41] These courses don't just build you [34:43] academically. They give you skills that [34:46] allow you to actually contribute to the [34:48] workforce and understand how different [34:51] careers operate. So when you're [34:52] communicating or working with different [34:54] professionals, you have a better idea of [34:56] what they do on a day-to-day basis, how [34:58] they work. Really, these courses, [35:01] honestly, I don't think there could be [35:03] much better than them. They give you [35:04] credits, they give you experience, they [35:06] give you interpersonal skills. They're [35:08] just a great opportunity. May by your [35:11] >> I would tell families and students that [35:13] the experiences that you get through [35:16] these courses is so valuable and it's [35:19] stuff that you're going to carry with [35:20] you for the rest of your life like [35:23] communication skills cuz you talk to [35:26] peers that are outside of the building [35:28] and I think it's very important to be [35:31] able to advocate for yourself and be [35:33] able to meet new people and help new [35:36] people. I would just say that it's it's [35:38] a great way to for personal growth and [35:41] then also as we said earlier to figure [35:43] out what you like to do before you leave [35:45] high school because I think it's it's [35:47] very helpful to know what you're going [35:48] to do now or to know what you don't want [35:51] to do now so then you don't do it later. [35:54] >> What would you tell families? I think it [35:56] and I don't I don't want to do the thing [35:57] where I do the broken record all over [35:59] again, but inside of career and [36:01] technical education, we are really after [36:04] championing the whole student. So again, [36:07] to both things that you have both [36:09] mentioned, it's really about that [36:10] academic knowledge, the technical skill [36:13] assessment, stackable stackable [36:16] credentials, and then also allowing our [36:19] students to grow in how do I network, [36:22] how do I build relationships? And I I [36:24] think one of like a good example of that [36:26] is if if given the opportunity, I'm [36:29] guessing Noah could probably speak to [36:31] the value of there's this thing called [36:34] LinkedIn and I'm in high school and I [36:36] have over like how many connections do [36:38] you have? [36:39] >> Couple hundred. So, so like the value ad [36:42] of the programming in connecting the [36:44] learning to the world outside of school [36:46] or when Ree was really mentioning like [36:48] this programming gave me empathy for the [36:51] people that I may serve in a potential [36:53] career. Again, it kind of gets back to [36:55] that how are we educating and serving [36:57] the needs of whole students. [37:00] >> Well, that's great. [37:02] Well, I think that's it. Obviously, for [37:04] those listening, you know, Reese might [37:06] be taking care of you someday. So, um, [37:08] you know, you might might see her Noah, [37:10] you'll probably see him on the moon on [37:12] the the next moon landing. But, uh, uh, [37:15] thank you all for joining me today. Good [37:17] luck to both of you and the rest of your [37:19] senior year. Scott, thank you. [37:20] >> Thank you for having us. [37:22] >> Yes. Thank you. [37:28] [music]