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The ADVANCE, Morch 10, 2021/Page 10A
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Students Build Workforce Skills in CTAE
By Rebekah Arnold
Contributing Writer
Students at Vidalia
High School recently cel
ebrated their involvement
in a program that gives
them a solid resource, adds
to their essential tradition
al academics, and prepares
them for their next steps
after high school. Geor
gia’s Career, Technical,
and Agricultural Educa
tion (CTAE) curriculum
offers extra skills needed
for college, stepping into a
career, beginning appren
ticeships, or entering the
military.
Depending on the
school system, up to 17
career clusters, with vari
ous pathways within each
cluster, are included in
Georgia’s CTAE program.
The national and state
level Career and Techni
cal Student Organizations
(CTSO) strengthen the
CTAE programs by shar
ing resources and coordi
nating cluster specific stu
dent organizations such as
Future Business Leaders
of America and Family,
Career and Community
Leaders of America.
The hands-on class
room experience, and the
partnerships with indus
tries and higher education
institutes, of CTAE is de
signed to build workforce
skills in students so they
may contribute to and
thrive in the workplace.
Partnerships in addition
to class work include ca
reer fairs, job shadowing,
mentorships, and business
leaders as guest speakers.
Eric McDonald, Assis
tant Principal and CTAE
Director at VHS, gave a
big thank you to instruc
tors Amy Gillies, Drones,
and Anna Helms, Business
and Technology, who co
ordinated the week’s ac
tivities. The staff at VHS
and at the Southeastern
Early College and Career
Academy (SECCA) gave
support in promoting the
different career pathways.
McDonald said, “We have
the best CTAE staff in
the state. Our collabora
tion with SECCA helps us
provide additional oppor
tunities for our students
that could prove difficult
otherwise. We are blessed
to be a part of a school
system that supports our
programs and to have busi
ness/industry leaders who
partner with us, allowing
for real-world experienc-
es.
During the week, les
sons involved learning soft
skills and career develop
ment. Soft skills include
interpersonal skills, com
munication and listening,
time management and em
pathy. These are skills that
hiring managers say lead to
more success in the work
place.
A “Get to Know your
Pathway” activity allowed
students to research their
current pathway. Students
choose a career for which
to wear the attire for pro
fessional dress day. Teach
ers and students used so
cial media, hallway posters
and door decorations to
highlight the various ca
reer pathways. Popcorn
and a movie on a Friday
capped off the week-long
celebration. After all, so
cial events are another way
businesses build into suc
cessful workplace cultures.
Further affirmation
for the importance of pub
lic school CTAE, student
development and business
partnerships was the sign
ing of a Proclamation by
Mayor Doug Roper. Mc
Donald said, “How cool is
it that our city government
takes such an interest that
we now have a proclama
tion dedicating a week for
CTAE? That doesn't hap
pen everywhere and we
know how fortunate we
are.
Mayor Roper’s proc
lamation read, in part,
that “CTAE educational
pathways are vital to the
intellectual and economic
future of the city of Vida
lia, state of Georgia, and
the United States; provide
training and skills that ad
dress the needs of in-de
mand industries; provide
equity and access for all
students; and that CTSOs
are valuable tools for im
plementing technical and
academic standards found
in Georgia’s curriculum.”
Therefore, the week of
February 22 -26 was pro
claimed Celebration of
CTAE and CTSO Week
in Vidalia, Georgia, “as the
first collaborative project
of its kind to promote the
partnership between the
city, school system, and
business leaders.”
McDonald would like
to share the positive re
sults of the CTAE program
at VHS and welcomes
“visitors, stakeholders and
business/industry lead
ers to come see the things
we are doing at VHS and
SECCA, and we love feed
back. As good as we feel
about the current state of
our program, we are al
ways looking for ways to
improve.”
CTAE WEEK - Cel
ebrating CTAE Week are,
left to right, Amanda Mos
ley- FCS/FCCLA; Shellie
Cleghorn - Healthcare/
HOSA; Amy Gillies - Un
manned Aircraft Systems
Instructor, SECCA; Eric
McDonald - CTAE Direc
tor/ VHS Assistant Prin
cipal; John Sharpe - Prin
cipal VHS; Vidalia Mayor
Doug Roper; Kevin Head-
Engineering/TSA ; Gray
Meredith - Construction/
SkillsUSA.
Southeastern Technical College Names
Semi-Finalists for GOAL Program
Four Southeastern
Technical College (STC)
students have been select
ed as the College’s semi
finalists for the Georgia
Occupational Award of
Leadership (GOAL). Cho
sen as semi-finalists are:
Emily Ely, Dental Hy
giene Degree Program;
Kimbrell Higginbotham,
Dental Hygiene Degree
Program; Erica Paige Mur
phy, Associate of Science
in Nursing Program; and
Claudia Martinez Wilson,
Healthcare Management
Degree Program & Medi
cal Assisting Diploma Pro
gram.
GOAL, a statewide
program of the Techni
cal College System of
Georgia (TCSG), honors
excellence in academics
and leadership among the
state’s technical college
students. GOAL winners
are selected at each of the
state’s 22 technical colleges.
"The purpose of the
GOAL program is to
spotlight the outstanding
achievement by students
in Georgia's technical col
leges and to emphasize the
importance of technical
education in today’s global
workforce," said Natalie
Osborne, STC’s GOAL
Coordinator.
Students were nomi
nated by their instructors.
A screening committee of
STC employees selected
the four semifinalists af
ter conducting interviews
with all nominees.
A panel of business,
civic, and industry leaders
from the community will
evaluate these four stu
dents in the next round of
interviews and select one to
be the Southeastern Tech
nical College 2021 GOAL
Winner. The GOAL win
ner will compete in region
al judging in April. In May,
all college winners will be
recognized and the nine
regional finalists, three
The Toombs County
Head Start Program is cur
rently taking applications
for the 2021-2022 pro
gram year. The program
is proudly administered
by action pact, your local
community action agency.
The center is licensed by
DECAL (Department of
Early Care and Learning)
and is Quality Rated. Chil
dren must be 3 years old by
September 1, 2021, to be
age eligible for Head Start.
The Head Start Center fol
lows all COVID guidelines
set forth by DECAL and
the CDC.
Due to the COVID-19,
we are not able to complete
applications in our office,
however, we are serving
our clients via phone and
virtually via Microsoft
Teams. Anyone who is in
terested in completing an
application for your child
can call the family advocate
from each region, will be
announced and will com
pete at the state level. One
student will then be named
as the statewide GOAL
winner. That student be
comes an ambassador for
Georgia’s entire technical
college system and receives
a grand prize of a brand
new car provided by KIA
Motors, the statewide cor
porate sponsor of Georgia’s
GOAL program.
office at (912) 526-9229
to schedule a date to com
plete the application by
phone or through Micro
soft Teams.
Head Start is a fed
erally-funded preschool
program that is of no cost
to our families. Services
included are as follows:
nutritious breakfast, lunch,
and snack; individualized
education; developmen
tal screenings; social ser
vices; parent engagement;
assistance to parents in
accessing health and den
tal services; and much
more. Lots of activities for
children and parents are
planned throughout the
program year. The program
does not provide transpor
tation. Priority is given to
children with a diagnosed
disability (IEP/IFSP), fos
ter children and those ex
periencing homelessness.
Head Start Taking Applications
Blood Donation Remains
Essential During Pandemic
A year ago, many
things in the world paused
due to the COVID-19 pan
demic. But the need for
blood never stopped. To
day blood donations are
just as essential, and the
American Red Cross urges
individuals who are healthy
to make an appointment to
donate blood.
For patients in the
emergency room, fighting
cancer or coping with a life-
threatening illness, help
can’t wait. Their health is
reliant on the selfless gen
erosity of blood donors.
However, the blood
supply continues to
face challenges from
the ongoing pan
demic and extreme
winter weather that
impacted much of
the U.S. last month.
More donors,
especially those
with type O blood,
are needed now
to ensure that pa
tients have lifesav
ing blood products
available for emer
gencies and every
day medical treatments.
Schedule a blood donation
appointment by down
loading the Red Cross
Blood Donor App, visiting
RedCrossBlood.org, call
ing 1-800-RED CROSS
(1-800-733-2767) or en
abling the Blood Donor
Skill on any Alexa Echo
device.
March is Red Cross
Month, and the Red Cross
is celebrating blood, plate
let and plasma donors for
stepping up to meet the
constant need for blood
amid the pandemic. In
thanks for being a vital
part of the organization’s
lifesaving mission, all who
come to give on March 15-
26 will receive an exclusive
Red Cross T-shirt, while
supplies last.
Important COVID-19
Information for Donors
The Red Cross is test
ing blood, platelet and
plasma donations for CO-
VID-19 antibodies. The
test may indicate if the
donor’s immune system
has produced antibodies
to this coronavirus, regard
less of whether an individ
ual developed COVID-19
symptoms. Testing may
also identify the presence
of antibodies developed af
ter receiving a COVID-19
vaccine.
COVID-19 antibody
test results will be available
within one to two weeks in
the Red Cross Blood Do
nor App or donor portal
at RedCrossBlood.org. A
positive antibody test re
sult does not confirm in
fection or immunity. The
Red Cross is not testing
donors to diagnose illness,
referred to as a diagnostic
test. To protect the health
and safety of Red Cross
staff and donors, it is im
portant that individuals
who do not feel well or be
lieve they may be ill with
COVID-19 postpone do
nation.
Upcoming Area
Donation Opportunities
(March 16-31)
Montgomery
Ailey
3/16/2021: 1 p.m. -
6 p.m., Higgston Baptist
Church, 512 James St.
Mount Vernon
3/31/2021: 10 a.m.
- 3 p.m., Brewton-Parker
College, 201 David -Eliza
Fountain Circle, P.O. Box
197
Toombs
Vidalia
3/17/2021:12 p.m.-5
p.m., Vidalia High School,
901 North St. W
Lyons
4/5/2021: 1 p.m. - 7
p.m., Partin Park Callaway
Center, Partin Park Calla
way Center, 168 Miot Dr.
4/7/2021: 2 p.m. - 7
p.m., Veteran's Community
Center, Highway 280 W.
Each Red Cross blood
drive and donation center
follows the highest stan
dards of safety and infec
tion control, and addition
al precautions - including
temperature checks, social
distancing and face cover
ings for donors and staff
- have been implemented
to help protect the health
of all those in attendance.
Donors are asked to sched
ule an appointment prior
to arriving at the drive and
are required to wear a face
covering or mask while
at the drive, in alignment
with Centers for Disease
Control and Preven
tion public guidance.
About Blood Donation
Download the Ameri
can Red Cross Blood Do
nor App, visit RedCross-
Blood.org, call 1-800-RED
CROSS (1-800-733-
2767) or enable the Blood
Donor Skill on any Alexa
Echo device to make an ap
pointment or for more in
formation. All blood
types are needed
to ensure a reliable
supply for patients.
A blood donor card
or driver’s license
or two other forms
of identification are
required at check
in. Individuals who
are 17 years of age in
most states (16
with parental con
sent where allowed
by state law), weigh
at least 110 pounds
and are in generally
good health may be eligi
ble to donate blood. High
school students and other
donors 18 years of age and
younger also have to meet
certain height and weight
requirements.
Blood and platelet do
nors can save time at their
next donation by using
RapidPass® to complete
their predonation reading
and health history ques
tionnaire online, on the day
of their donation, before
arriving at the blood drive.
To get started, follow the
instructions at RedCross-
Blood.org/RapidPass or
use the Blood Donor App.
About the
American Red Cross
The American Red
Cross shelters, feeds and
provides emotional sup
port to victims of disasters;
supplies about 40% of the
nation’s blood; teaches
skills that save lives; pro
vides international hu
manitarian aid; and sup
ports military members
and their families. The Red
Cross is a not-for-profit
organization that depends
on volunteers and the gen
erosity of the American
public to perform its mis
sion. For more informa
tion, please visit redcross.
org or cruzrojaamericana.
org, or visit us on Twitter
at (a)RedCross.
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