Elmore Education Matters

February is Career and Technical Education (CTE) Month® and is a time to celebrate the value of CTE and the achievements and accomplishments of our CTE programs in Elmore County. These programs give students technical skills, academic skills, and employability skills. Regardless of whether students plan to go to college or enter the workforce, CTE programs help prepare them for the future.

Continued growth in our career and technical programs at the Elmore County Technical Center has led to the construction of a new 45,000 square foot facility that will allow us to bring all of our programs back onto

one campus and expand program offerings. Thirteen programs are currently offered on the

ECTC campus: Automotive Service Technology, Aviation Technology, Computer Technology, Construction Technology, Electrical Technology, Heating Ventilation & Air Conditioning (HVAC), Hospitality & Tourism, Medical Sciences,

Plumbing & Pipefitting, Pre-Engineering & De-

sign, Public Safety & Law, Teaching & Training,

and Welding Technology. Students and staff in

the Aviation Technology, Construction Technology, Electrical Technology, HVAC, Medical

Sciences, Plumbing & Pipefitting, Public Safety

& Law, and Welding Technology programs are excited to “move in” this month, and renovation of the existing facilities will begin in the near future.

Workforce data impacts the programs we

offer and student demand for those programs.

The Teaching & Training program opened this school year and will provide students with knowledge and skills needed for teaching and professional training consultant careers. Students will culminate this two-year program with an internship and the Praxis Core Academic Skills Test. In addition, due to the high demand for medical professionals, two Medical Sciences instructors are needed to meet the requests for

enrollment in this program. Dual enrollment in

technical (manufacturing technology and welding) and academic areas (general psychology, U.S. History 10th grade and 11th grade, American Government, Economics, and English 101

and 102) are also offered on the ECTC campus.

Each of our four high schools also offer some or all the following CTE programs:

Agriconstruction; Food, Wellness, & Dietetics;

Business Management and Administration; Marketing, Sales & Service; Restaurant and Food and Beverage Services; Finance; Advertis-

ing Design; General Agriscience; and Sports Medicine. Junior Reserve Officer Training Corp (JROTC) is offered onsite at Stanhope Elmore

High and Wetumpka High. Elmore County High and Holtville High students have the option to participate in JROTC at Wetumpka High.

Career and technical education benefits

students in many ways, and we encourage our students to participate whenever possible. Elmore County Schools constantly strives to provide the best possible environment where every student is empowered and succeeds!

Richard Dennis is the Superintendent of Education for Elmore County Schools. He is a 1983 graduate of Holtville High School. He served 21 years as a high school principal at Holtville High, Wetumpka High and most recently, Prattville High. He and wife, Leslie (also an educator) have three sons and a daughter.

Elmore County Schools

Wetumpka Students Place in Science Fair

Wetumpka High School recently recognized the following Science Fair winners:

Rhett Pinkston, first place in Animal, Plant, Computational & Bioinformatics Sciences

Adrianna Orsi, first place in Behavioral & Social Sciences

Jasmine Anderson, first place; and Madison Corkran and Chad Strickland, second place in Cell, Molecular, Microbiology & Biochemistry

Julian Vilardi, first place; and Dylan LaPorte, second place in Chemistry

Judson Wood, first place; and Kaleb Sims, second place in Engineering Mechanics

Jackson Rodriguez, first place in Energy: Sustainable Materials and Design

Wyatt Hardee, first place; and Timothy Hughes and Jacob Norrell, second place in Medicine, Health & Translational Medical Sciences

Luke Sipper, second place in Physics, Astronomy, Mathematics & Materials Science

Logan Bracknell and Nathan Currier, first place in Robotic Systems & Communication Technology

Lily Vilardi, first place in Bio-Engineering

Troy Professor Visits ECTC Students

Recently, Elmore County Technical Center’s Education & Training students chatted with Dr. Marie Kane, assistant professor from Troy University’s College of Education, about future educational opportunities, pathways to teacher certification, and benefits of becoming a teacher in Alabama.

Wetumpka Senior Wins SETC Keynote Award

Wetumpka High Theatre Guild senior Logan Oakley has won the Southeastern Theatre Conference’s Keynote Emerging Artist of Promise (KEAP) Award. SETC is the largest theatre conference in North America, and the KEAP Award is designated to help talented, scholarly high school theatre students attend the annual SETC Convention. Students are nominated based on scholastic aptitude and artistic potential.

Oakley will be recognized at the conference in Memphis, Tenn., March 9-13, where he will have exclusive access to Keynote speakers who are industry leaders in theatre, film and television. Only four KEAP Awards are given each year. Oakley is Wetumpka’s fourth winner and first technician to win.

Elmore County Tech Students Meet Safety Credentials

Six Elmore Country Technical Center students from Plumbing & Pipefitting have credentialed in NCCER Construction Site Safety so far in the 2021-2022 school year. Shown top row from left are Trey, Jason and Chris; and bottom from left: Cesar, Bryant and Jaylon.

VEX IQ Challenge Kicks Off for Elmore County Robotics Students

Millbrook Middle School, along with Airport Road Intermediate, hosted the first of a four-part series of VEX IQ challenges at MMS January 7 for 3rd-8th grade Robotics teams in Elmore county. Millbrook Middle, Holtville Middle, Wetumpka Middle, Eclectic Middle, Redland Elementary and Airport Road Intermediate robotics teams came together to have a night of excitement, collaboration and competition. Seventeen teams in the district competed.

The competition was held in Millbrook Middle’s new STEM lab in the library. The new lab was built this past summer, thanks to the Elmore County Board of Education and Superintendent for Elmore County Schools Richard Dennis.

“This was an excellent opportunity for us to share with our parents and community stakeholders our passion for STEM education and highlight are students growing talents in coding and robotics,” Millbrook Middle Principal Sean Kreauter said. “Millbrook Middle School has been in the forefront of STEM education in the county and our Middle School director, Ayena Jackson, as well as our STEM director, Tracy Wright, have been instrumental in expanding the STEM program throughout Elmore County.”

The next three parts of the series took place at Millbrook Middle on January 21, 28 and 31. The events may be viewed on YouTube.

Info and photo for this article from Elmore Autauga News

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