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Changes coming to Nevada Regional Technical Center
The new director of the Nevada Regional Technical Center, Dr. Phillip Witt, and a host of students, presented an update on what is going on at the technical center to the Nevada/Vernon County Area Chamber of Commerce during the group's monthly chamber luncheon Jan. 11.
Each of the 12 programs offered to high school students at the NRTC were represented by one or two students from Nevada or an area sending school.
Information on program curriculum, student organizations, class projects, and community involvement were presented to the chamber.
This also included a lunch catered by the culinary arts students and their instructor, Chef Lunkenheimer.
Making presentations were Amanda Carey, culinary arts, Nevada High School; Victoria Culbertson, marketing, Nevada High School; Austin Greer, welding technology, Nevada High School; Marissa Hear, agriculture, Nevada High School; Bobby Hilvert, computer networking technology, Northeast Vernon County High School; Kelly Kristek, graphic design, Nevada High School; Shelby Oakes, early childhood careers, Nevada High School, Brian Purchase, computer networking technology, Northeast Vernon County High School; Kadessa Shadden, business technology, Nevada High School; Colton Short, computer aided design, Nevada High School; Jon Smalley, construction technology, Butler High School; Ben Souza, graphic design, Northeast Vernon County High School; Kayli Wilson, health sciences, Nevada High School and Tucker Wingert, automotive technology, Nevada High School.
"The Nevada Regional Technical Center is providing many exciting opportunities for nearly 500 students from Nevada and the surrounding area," noted Dr. Witt.
Witt is one of several new faces and changes that greeted students this school year at NRTC. There are three new teachers, and one new program.
"These are just some of the changes that they have experienced this year," said Dr. Witt.
He discussed two major initiatives that they are working on for next year. The first is Project Lead the Way.
Two new courses will be offered to students in grades nine through 12 for the 2013-'14 school year. The courses are part of a new Pathway to Engineering program which will utilize a real,world, problem,solving approach to learning.
These courses will continue to expand the diverse course offerings that are available at the Tech Center, which are designed to prepare students for the demands of industry and post-secondary education.
The current computer aided drafting and computer maintenance and technology programs will begin the transition to PLTW, each offering one of these new courses. The technical center is also working toward becoming a Project Lead the Way certified school. Certified schools are able to provide college credit, scholarships, and admissions preference to students who qualify.
The second initiative is to implement the ACT WorkKeys assessment system, said Witt, so "we can provide the National Career Readiness Certificate to all students who complete a program at the technical center."
This is a job skills assessment system that measures real world skills that employers have identified as being critical to job success, he noted. Using this system will help teachers to identify growth areas for students, resulting in more highly qualified students entering the workforce, Witt concluded.
"We are very proud of all the students that attend classes at the technical center. These individuals are preparing themselves to be successful through career and technical education and will soon become an integral component of our community."
If anyone is interested in the programs offered at the Nevada Regional Technical Center, they should contact the office at (417) 448-2090.