“Why do I have to learn this? When am... ever going to use this?” Common

“Why do I have to learn this? When am I
ever going to use this?” Common
ques ons from students in classrooms
across the na on. When students don’t
see meaningful connec ons between
what they are learning and the real
world, their brains go elsewhere.
Knowing this, Ishpeming High School is
pilo ng a unique program that uses the
construc on trades to reinforce math
concepts.
The program developed by two teachers
from Loveland (CO) High School,
Construc on Trades Teacher Sco Burke
and Math Teacher Tom Moore, is called
Geometry in ConstrucƟon and its results
in regards to math achievement have
been outstanding. Whether it’s using
the Pythagorean Theorem to frame
roofs and square walls or conduc ng a
cost analysis of possible building
materials, students immediately take the
Algebra and Geometry they learn in the
classroom and apply it by building a
house for Habitat for Humanity.
By the me Brad Foley graduated from high
school in 2012, he had made a bicycle that served
as alterna ve energy source, providing enough
power to light its own turn signals, and helped
cra a model of an eco‐friendly dashboard for
cars. For his senior project, he’d designed a
“Mission Impossible” ‐inspired game featuring a
security system with laser trip wires. He was well
prepared for his part‐ me job helping design
plas c molds at Hi‐Tech Mold & Eng, a Rochester
Hills supplier to automo ve companies. But now
he finds himself bored in his classes at Lawrence
Technological University in Southfield, where he’s
working towards a degree in mechanical
engineering.
Sco and Tom traveled to the UP in
October to train Math and CTE teachers
on the integra on of core academics and
CTE. The result, CTE teachers are
incorpora ng more Math into their
curriculum and core academic teachers
are walking away with relevant lessons
that spark student interest. Sco and
Tom will return in March for a follow‐up
two‐day academic (Math, ELA, Science)
integra on training and again in June to
present their full four‐day Geometry in
ConstrucƟon training for interested
teachers from throughout the Midwest.
Foley’s high school program, the U ca Center for
Science and Industry (CSI), uses technology to
prepare students for automo ve and military
industry jobs. The hope is that CSI, run by the
U ca Community Schools, will help the region’s
economic recovery by aligning educa on with
employer’s needs.
Although it has gained popularity
throughout the country, IHS is the first
school in Michigan to pilot the program
and, thus far, student engagement and
achievement have been impressive. Just
another example of how the Ishpeming
School District is “building” career and
college readiness.
“There is a major gap between what employer’s
expecta ons are and where the schools are at in
terms of their prepara on,” said Jim Jacobs,
president of Macomb County Community College
in Clinton Township. “That gap primarily is in
terms of employers expec ng people to have not
only the technical skills that are required but also
be able to use those technical skills within an
organiza on.”
As factories became more automated and
machines took the place of assembly‐line works
over the past decade, however, employers have
started looking for employees with new skills.
Experts agree that automo ve industry job growth
will con nue to focus on things like advanced
manufacturing and engineering while more low‐
skilled jobs will be outsourced. “They don’t need
a welder,” said U ca Superintendent Chris ne
Jones. “They need someone who can program a
robo c arm.”
This problem inspired the crea on of CSI in 2007.
In 2008, half way through the planning year, the
auto industry began to collapse. Unemployment
rates in Macomb County soared from 9.3% in July
2008 to 18.6% a year later. Ge ng support from
companies skir ng bankruptcy was prac cally
impossible. The future of the automo ve industry
was in ques on, but planning for CSI persisted.
Five years later, the school is thriving and
a rac ng interest and internships from area
businesses as well as school districts around the
country.
Margaret Mooney, a senior who had made an
electric cello for her project, praised the freedom
and crea vity the school inspired. “We really get
to take it and run with it,” she said. “I’m very
thankful to be able to go to this school.” Mooney,
like many CSI students, first heard about the
program in middle school when she and her
parents started examining high school choices.
The district also has an Interna onal
Baccalaureate program for high schoolers, an
intensive math and science program and an early
college op on.
Staff members at CSI also emphasize the
importance of their students learning non‐
technical workplace skills like collabora on and
communica on. Nearly all projects require some
amount of group work and many are cross‐
disciplinary.
CSI prepared Foley more for his current job than
his experience at his tradi onal high school. “It
was really easy transi oning from CSI to this work
environment. I’m already used to working on a
team.”
Students at the Newaygo County Career‐Tech
Center are pleased to announce a new and
emerging partnership with the United Way of
the Lake Shore. On October 24th United Way
board members Mayor Jim Rynberg of
Fremont, Newaygo County Treasurer, Holly
Moon, and NC RESA Superintendent Dr. Lori
Tubbergen Clark presented to over 300
students to ask their help in determining a
2014 “Day of Caring” project. The goal is to
fulfill an unmet need in the Newaygo County
community in which career‐tech center
students could play an ac ve role.
The United Way board members shared with
the students the “Day of Caring” projects that
have been successfully completed in past
years, but also pointed out the overwhelming
needs of our community. The group asked for
the students help in planning and coordina ng
next year’s event. The students listened
intently and asked probing ques ons of the
group to gain further understanding of the
scope of the project and parameters that need
to be set moving forward.
Execu ve Director of Career and Technical
Educa on Services, Kirk Wyers took the me
to explain to the United Way volunteers the
mission of the Career‐Tech Center’s
Experien al Service Projects (E.S.P.). “The
Career‐Tech Center has always had service
projects as a major part of its roots, but the
experien al piece is what is new
here.” Students have worked collabora vely
with county agencies and numerous partners
throughout the years, but this year the
students will be driving the projects. The
projects are embedded into the curriculum
and are an expecta on of all students that
a end the Center.
In the next few months students will be
researching and analyzing the top ideas,
comple ng a cost analysis, and seeking a way
to maximize the collec ve community
impact. A er preparing, the students will
a end an upcoming United Way board
mee ng to present proposals for future
considera on.
“I am amazed at the amount of students that
are ac vely involved in improving our
community” says Mayor Rynberg. “Our future
is certainly in capable hands with this type of
immersion and commitment to our future”.
LISD TECH Center/Center
for a Sustainable Future
As Michigan’s first net‐zero energy school
building, the Lenawee Intermediate School
District’s (LISD) Center for a Sustainable
Future (CSF) provides students of all ages
with hands‐on, experimental learning
opportuni es in the areas of agriculture,
hor culture, environmental science, and
renewable‐energy.
The LISD CSF campus consists of 75‐acres
of fields, forest, and wetlands in Adrian,
MI.
The LISD CSF, a Teaching Tool…
As a net‐zero energy school, the LISD CSF
serves as an educa onal tool for LISD TECH
Center programs and the Stubnitz
Environmental Educa onal programs.
Students gain real‐world experience in
managing, maintaining, and evalua ng
building automa on systems. During the
school year, there are approximately 80‐
100 high school students on campus daily;
in the summer, several camps are offered
to students in K‐8th grade.
Students are introduced to sustainability
concepts relevant to their programs:
building healthy soil, conserving and
protec ng water, preserving biodiversity
and food security, protec ng human
health and the environment. Students are
encouraged to think cri cally about these
op ons, carefully balancing poten al
benefits with disadvantages. In addi on,
students in our Bio‐Chemistry class work
with the grains grown at the CSF to
produce bio‐diesel fuels, as well as with
our Culinary Arts class to incorporate the
used oils. Our Culinary Arts class uses
vegetables and meats produced at the CSF
in their food prepara ons and then give
back any vegetable scraps for animal
consump on.
The LISD is currently pursuing LEED
pla num cer fica on of the LISD CSF as
well as Green Ribbon Schools designa on.
The Wexford‐Missaukee Career and Technical Center
along with Lake City High School, Marion JR/SR High
School, and Mesick JR/SR High School will be
par cipa ng in Michigan’s 3rd annual College
Applica on Week on November 4‐8, 2013, with nearly
200 other Michigan high schools.
The goal of College Applica on Week is to give every
gradua ng senior the opportunity to apply to college
and promote the need for educa on beyond high
school. During this event, students may apply to any of
Michigan’s community colleges, independent colleges
and universi es, and state universi es in which they
are interested. Students also have the opportunity to
explore and apply to post‐secondary skilled trades,
licensure, and cer fica on programs.
Meghan Howell, the College Access Coordinator for the
Wexford‐Missaukee ISD, expects more than 400
seniors to par cipate with the help of area counselors
and volunteers from the Wexford‐Missaukee Career
Technical Center, Lake City, Marion and Mesick
Schools.
St. Clair Technical Educa on Center staff
members earlier this month paid to wear blue
jeans to work, a fund‐raiser for breast cancer
research and educa on. Health teacher and
cancer survivor Marilee McClure organized the
event. “As a 10‐year survivor, it is important to
me to give back to the research that helped me,”
McClure said.
On September 24, 2013, the Branch Area Careers Center
inducted 26 new members to the Na onal Technical Honor
Society (NTHS). The NTHS is a non‐profit, educa onal
organiza on, founded in 1984 to reward excellence in technical
and career educa on. Only those students who are
recommended by the faculty and exhibit the quali es of skilled
workmanship, honesty, responsibility, leadership, ci zenship,
and scholas c achievement are selected for membership.
Pictured are Health Academy, OJT & PracƟcum Inductees: Instructor Cheryl Covell, Alexis Luckadoo, Mallorie
Bassage, Sara DeBoard, Allison Clemens & Instructor
Janean Bignell (not pictured, Andrea Ferrin, Johnathen
Fillmore)
Students are required to have a 3.0 or higher cumula ve GPA at
their home school, as well as have no more than 5 tardies or
absences per semester. Also, students are required to have a 3.5
or higher cumula ve GPA at the BACC, as well as have no more
than 5 tardies or absences per semester. These students were
nominated by their BACC teachers in May of 2013 and must be
Students Serve Gourmet‐Style Meals for Seniors
Once a month, a group of about four dozen senior ci zens gather at the L.B. Williams Room at Roseville Middle
School for a gourmet lunch on a budget. The L.B. Williams Room is the culinary arts and restaurant management
division of the high school’s career technical educa on program. Students learn everything needed to run a
kitchen, from sanita on, to budge ng, to, of course, gourmet cooking.
That’s what brings the 45‐50 seniors from the Recrea onal Authority of Roseville and Eastpointe’s senior center in
each month. For $5 each, they are served a mul course gourmet meal. Each visit offers a new culinary delight
made by the sophomores, juniors and seniors enrolled in the course. “It’s fabulous and it’s wonderful,” said Elaine
Bozin, a St. Clair Shores resident ac ve in the authority’s senior center. “The students are trying so hard and
learning, and the food is delicious.” Unlike most gourmet eateries, the student chefs at the L.B. Williams Room are
happy to share their recipes with diners who want to try them at home.
The monthly lunch offers seniors a social gathering to look forward to and gives students cooking and service
prac ce that they can put to real‐world use a er gradua on. “This intergenera onal thing is great,” said Jon
Grommons, who runs the culinary program at Roseville High School. “First and foremost, it gives the kids a really
good chance to socialize and prac ce appropriate business behavior, but also it gives these folks a chance to see
teenagers doing something that’s posi ve.”
By the end of their senior year, students who have been enrolled in the program for two years are able to earn
college credits. The program is designed for students interested in going into the culinary arts, hospitality or
restaurant‐management fields, but it draws a larger group of students. “We have a large pool of students who
aren’t interested in going into the field; students who are in their senior year and are taking it as an exploratory
course; students who have maybe filled all their credit requirements and want to take it because they will be
ge ng more of an experience than just si ng in the classroom; students that are curious; and students that just
like to eat,” Grommons said. “I tell them, I understand you don’t want to be a chef or go into the industry, but
you’re going to be feeding yourself, your family, so you want to be able to do it hygienically — you don’t want to
give anyone food poisoning — and nutri ously.”
For more informa on on the L.B. Williams Room, call (586) 445‐5635 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays during the
school year. Senior ac vi es can be reached at (586) 777‐7177.
The Women’s Leadership Confer‐
ence took place on October 22,
2014 at Menowe Summit Adven‐
ture in Sturgis, MI. Professional
women who work in non‐
tradi onal careers in Branch
County Mentored and spoke to
Branch Area Careers Center stu‐
dents. Some of the speakers
were: Jodi Noble, Legg Middle
School principal, Chris ne Hoelt‐
zer, Michigan State Trooper, Don‐
na Hobday, VP at Century Bank
and Trust, Kathy Barone owner of
Koltz‐Barone Funeral Home,
Bonita Hoffner, Warden at Lake‐
land Prison and Dianne Pavka,
Para‐professional at the Branch
Area Careers Center in Machining.
Instructor Receives Pilot and Bridge Project Award
Kyle Chetosky went through the Graphic Arts program at Anchor
Bay. Kyle says, “Straight out of high school I went to Macomb
Community College. Graduated from MCC in 2012 from the MACA
department with a 3.7 GPA and four degrees—three art degrees
(crea ve design & layout, crea ve imaging & illustra on, and
collabora ve media) and a general studies degree.”
His art and experience has lead him to several unique and exci ng
paths. In order to make it through college debt free, Kyle had to get
crea ve the last few years. Not willing to sit in a booth and sell
tradi onal art at local art and music fes vals, Kyle came up with an
idea that would have the design directly relate to the corresponding
music fes val. To do this, he was also offering body paint to people.
This social and fun experience to helped him advance his skills in
the pursuit of his trade, and with hopes to make some profit. The
debut of his fes val entrepreneurship was in 2010 when he visited
Dude Where’s My Tent 2, Land of Nod, and Cheeseburgerfest. Kyle
has men oned, “Through these three music fes vals not only did I
make enough money to help fund my college tui on but I also got
recognized by local newspapers. I have been doing my
entrepreneur art ever since.”
Kyle was a lead coordinator in a public art project that displayed the
idea of “go green” for Detroit. Kyle, in correspondence with Studio
Too and Arise Detroit; conducted and planned out a project to do a
80 foot by 20 foot wall mural, within three days. Two days for prep,
one day for paint. During the day of paint, the local kids came to
join the team and Kyle; all we did was conduct the kids with what to
do. The children deserve majority of the credit on that beau ful
piece.
Kyle’s art has also been hosted in the Beatniks Gallery, a local
gallery residing in the Russell Industrial Complex in Detroit. His
pieces have been auc oned off at a silent auc on called “go green
Detroit” at the Rooster Tail in Detroit. He is currently an ar st
represen ng Studio Too and looking forward to more projects like
“Go Green Wall” coming up this summer.
Six months out of college Kyle got his foot in the door, his first, on
paper, official, graphic ar st job working for a prin ng industry
company called LabelStop Inc. Six months later, Kyle became their
lead Graphic designer. As Kyle said, “You could say I might be si ng
comfortably ght right now, but I know this is only the beginning.
We are just ge ng out of the intro.”
Alison Nord, an Educa on for Employment (EFE) teacher with
Kalamazoo Regional Educa onal Service Agency and a
Comstock Public High School accoun ng instructor, has been
selected as the 2013 recipient of the Kansas State Accoun ng
Pilot and Bridge Project Award. The award honors individuals
who help develop the Pilot Accoun ng project at a na onal
level and who are considered pioneers in the field.
The Accoun ng Pilot and Bridge Project is a na onal ini a ve
aiming to bridge the accoun ng educa on that high school
students receive to the college level and to help increase the
supply of students for the accoun ng profession. It also seeks
to have the College Board adopt accoun ng as part of its
advanced placement curriculum.
Nord has taught college accoun ng for two years and is
beginning her third year as a trainer for the Accoun ng Pilot
and Bridge Project. She will travel to Kansas State to accept
the award on October 11. Alison graduated from Grand
Valley State University with a bachelor’s degree in accoun ng
and worked as a CPA in both public accoun ng and private
industry for nine years. She obtained her master’s in
educa on at Aquinas College and has spent over 14 years
teaching business courses at Comstock High School in
Kalamazoo.
“It’s an honor to be part of the Accoun ng Pilot Bridge
Project,” Nord said. “This rigorous curriculum will a ract
quality students into our accoun ng classes, where they will
not only get prepared for college level accoun ng classes but
will also become much be er cri cal thinkers in all of their
future classes.”
Educa onal for Employment is an award‐winning program of
the Kalamazoo Regional Educa onal Service Agency
(Kalamazoo RESA). EFE offers state‐approved career and
technical educa on to Kalamazoo County students in grades
10 through 12. Its programs prepare young people for
employment or post‐secondary experiences in a broad range
of fields, including engineering, manufacturing and industrial
technology, business, management, marke ng, health science
and more. Programs reflect “real world” applica ons and
maintain the rigorous requirements of the Michigan Merit
Curriculum as well as state, na onal and industry technical
standards and requirements.
Kalamazoo RESA provides a wide variety of educa onal
support services across Kalamazoo County and around the
state. Programs include job training for students and adults,
professional development, special educa on, bus driver
safety training, professional prin ng services and more. The
agency is one of 56 intermediate school districts in Michigan.