CTE presentation made at Lovell school board meeting

By: 
David Peck

The Career and Technical Education program at Lovell High School and Lovell Middle School was featured January 13 during the regular meeting of the Lovell school board.

In the monthly focus portion of the meeting, teachers Alana Thackeray, Jode Kraft and Nick Edelman presented an overview of the high school CTE program, and Steven Durtsche later presented the middle school program.

“We teach real world, hands-on technical skills,” Kraft said, adding that the graduation rate for CTS “concentrators” is 90 percent, some 15 percent higher than the rest of the student population.

The trio listed career clusters as agriculture and natural resources; arts, audio/visual and communications; business and marketing; human services; marketing, sales and service; architecture and construction; transportation, distribution and logistics; and manufacturing.

Edelman said LHS offers Ag I, II, III and IV, as well as applied agriculture, which includes FFA, and advanced agriculture. Kraft said the school offers business publishing I, II, III and IV, graphic design I and II, accounting I and II, entrepreneurship and personal finance, teaching real world skills. She said she coordinates the SkillsUSA program with Bret George.

Thackeray said LHS offers child development I, II, III and IV and advanced child development, as well as nutrition and food preparation I, II, III and IV, advanced foods, fashion apparel and interior design I, II, III and IV, advanced apparel and furnishings.

Speaking for George, Edelman said LHS offers wood technology I, II, III and IV, construction technology I, II and III and computer aided drafting I, II, III and IV, as well as robotics/mechanics and auto mechanics I, II and III. Edelman also noted ag welding I, II, III and IV and advanced welding and manufacturing.

Kraft reported on advanced CTE courses including work experience in the community and job shadowing. The teachers noted the success of FCCLA, FFA and SkillsUSA and various community projects from a food drive for the Lovell Food Pantry to making handrails for the Hyart Theatre.

Middle school teacher Durtsche also reported on LMS CTE programs including woodworking and other “shop” classes, digital and computer classes, graphic design and business publications. Thackeray spoke about the Teen Living class taken by all eighth graders, which teaches a variety of life skills and such topics as self-esteem, health, child development, drug use and abuse, cooking and healthy eating and decision-making.

The next regular meeting of the school board is scheduled for Monday, Feb. 10.

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