Voice Thread

Thanks to the NeverEndingSearch this morning I came across a new toy, Voice Thread. Very quickly you can see applications for collaboration, sharing, commenting and a lot of other possibilities for the classroom.

Here is one that some younger children did about their experience with Oklahoma's Centennial.

Need ideas for students a bit older or faculty? You can visit the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill Voice Thread page or listen to a student explain why he chose certain photographs for his final project here.

Happy Thanksgiving

I received my first Thanksgiving message last week and thought I would share it with you. It is still not to late for your art department to design a Thanksgiving message and email it to your recruitment basefile.

This is the email that I received...

The staff of the Center for Occupational Research and Development (CORD) have created a special holiday greeting for you. We invite you to follow the link below to view our 2008 Thanksgiving card:

http://www.cordonline.net/thanksgiving2008/thanksgiving-cord.php

Clicking on the link takes you to a page with this....

What will yours look like from your technology center? Please share your links with us.

The College Visit

When I was recruiting at a Big XII University we knew that the more students that we got on campus, who had a positive experience, the higher our yield rate would be. We worked hard to get students on campus and to make it special for each one of them.

Students demand an individualized campus experience and the herd mentality of lets take a bus, show them a movie, walk them around and feed them lunch does not work.

Suggestion

When you take students to visit a campus, take into account each individual student and what their needs are. Will that student need academic accommodation and to know where the student disability services are? Set them up an appointment so that they can learn where the office is and who they will be working with. Will they need help in math? Perhaps a visit to the math resource center is appropriate. What other needs will that individual student have and how can you help them find it?

By taking students to campus and helping them get acclimated to their surroundings you are helping make their transition to higher education smoother. Students will have a better understanding of the environment that they will be immersed in and have a better sense of place.

What do you do during your campus visits?

Economic Forecast for Oklahoma

Approximately 200 people gathered on the campus of Metro Technology Center to hear the Economic Forecast for Oklahoma. The seminar was co-sponsored by CareerTech and the OSU Spears School of Business

Participants were introduced to the Oklahoma forcast by Mark Snead, Director of the Center for Applied Economic Research, and Chad Wilkerson, VP and Branch Executive of the OKC Branch of the Federal Reserve, who led a discussion on the national outlook.

Participants also heard about local area economic development and key economic trends in the agriculture and energy sectors as well as the impact of Tribal economic development in Oklahoma.

During the presentation of the Oklahoma forcast, comparissions using GDP of the US and other countries were given. It was pointed out that if the current recession cost $1Trillion, it would only equal 6-7% of GDP while some of the worst banking crisis in heavily regulated countries have equaled much more. Crises in Japan cost taxpayers 25% of GDP and in South Korea 31% of GDP. In the US, the Great Depression saw a cost to taxpayers equaling 50-75% of GDP.

Oklahoma's outlook depends on several factors, includintg an oil threshold of $45-$50 oil and natural gas.

You can view the complete forcast presentation here.

Press Release

Myra Sadker Student and Teacher Awards

The Myra Sadker Foundation provides financial awards and scholarships for students and teachers committed to equity.

Student Awards fund projects or activities proposed by students of any age that promote gender equity goals.

Undergraduate Scholarships are designed to attract and reward students who plan to teach and are committed to educational equity.

Dissertation Awards are designed to financially support doctoral level dissertations that explore or promote educational equity.

Teacher Awards fund a lesson, unit, or project that promotes fairness and human dignity.

Deadlines

Undergraduate Scholarship and Dissertation Awards are due by December 1.

Student and Teacher Awards are given throughout the year.

For more information and applications, visit Scholarships and Awards.


If you have any questions, please direct them to ncwge@aauw.org
American Association Of University Women
1111, 16th Steet N.W.
Washington DC, 20036
www.aauw.org

Your CareerTech Deliciousness

On May14, 2008 we started the CareerTech Deliciousness project.

Delicious is a social bookmarking website that allows users to share what they are reading on the web and discover what others find informative.

The okcareertech list started aligned to the Tech Prep grant as a way to share resources for those responsible for writing the grants so that they could have handy articles and reports to assist them. It has grown to include information about education, higher education, accountability, web 2.0, STEM and much more!!

Today we reached bookmark 500!!! That is 500 articles that impact education in Oklahoma and how the picture of education looks nationally and internationally.

I just wanted to share this great resource and to encourage you, if you have yet to sign up to do so. You can get it emailed directly to you or you can see what we have been bookmarking by visiting http://delicious.com/okcareertech

STEM Equity Pipeline

Last week, approximately 35 people from across the CareerTech System met on the campus of Metro Technology Center to talk about equity in STEM. The 2 day workshop was facilitated by Mimi Lufkin, Rick Larkey and held with the National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity, or NAPE.

The workshop covered biases that exist about the participation of women in the STEM workforce, Perkins IV accountability measures and equity, the use of data, case studies and a Promising Practices Panel including Dr Maria Monteros, Noble Foundation, Dr Karen High from OSU, Jessica Bullock, Francis Tuttle Technology Center and Derek Beller, Tulsa Technology Center.

Participants were exposed to information that they can bring back to their home campuses and share with decesion makers and influencers. Small steps like reviewing publication materials for equity and diversity, reviewing websites and activle recruiting women into STEM careers through use of the PLAN ACT data are all possibilities.

For more information on how you can get involved with the STEM Equity Project contact Dr Lou Hargrave at the OK Dept of CareerTech

College Transitions

If you are following the year round recruitment plan then you should be making plans for you December and even January recruitment.

As we begin to start looking at enrollment management and how it can be applied to Oklahoma's technology centers, we must look at the transition to college and career. Today we will talk more specifically about the transition to college.

After looking at your technology centers data, and specifically the Cooperative Alliance data, you should be asking how many students are transitioning to college? The next question should be why are they not?

Theories exist trying to explain an increase or decrease in overall student enrollment. Some cite a downturn in the economy or an increase in available scholarships and financial aid as reasons enrollment increases. The opposites could be said about why enrollment on a macro-scale would decrease.

Looking closer, why are your individual students not enrolling? Is it a lack of a college going culture at the home schoool, technology center or community, are there socio-economic reasons or are they simply not prepared academically or socially?

A fairly new trend in higher education is the Office of First Year Experience. The office exist to help students transition to higher ed offering social and academic support. Many colleges require new freshmen students to take a freshmen orientation course helping them to learn the ins and outs of going to college.

How can these concepts be applied to career and technology education in Oklahoma? Each of the 29 technology center districts has in place a college transition initiative through the Alliances and many students are taking advantage of this wonderful opportunity. How do we expand on this?

Would students benefit from a Senior year, second semester course on College Transitions? The 30 minute course, two time a week could introduce students to using an online library, the college application process, how to find campus resources, help filling out the FAFSA and many other important activities students need to be familiar with during their first year in higher education. The course could also include field trips to college campuses that allow students to meet with academic advisors, support services, see where they will live and learn about the social aspect of college through student organizations.

Giving students the tools for a succesful transition is vitally improtant to Oklahoma's economy and our responsibility. How can we increase our successes?

Scouting CareerTech

We have told you about Scouting CareerTech, an opportunity for Scouts to come on your campus and engage in activities aligned to your Career Majors. In addition to the California STEM initiative, we have found another example.

We wanted to share with you an example of how this can work with the automotive industry. A Muskogee Ford dealer hosted an event where 82 Scouts worked on their automotive mechanics merit badge.

Read the Muskogee Phoenix article here

Scouting CareerTech can do the same thing for Scouts in your area while getting them on your campus and engaged with your faculty. Go to the Tech Prep website to learn more!

Thanksgiving Luncheon

Thanksgiving Luncheon Provides an Education and Employability Skills for Technology Center Culinary Arts Students

More than 400 pounds of turkey, 300 pounds of ham, 250 pounds of whipped potatoes, and 100 pies and desserts, are required to provide a Thanksgiving luncheon for over 1000 community guests at Meridian Technology Center. The Meridian Culinary Arts students who are enrolled in the courses of culinary arts assistant and restaurant food and beverage serve management assistant gain education and employability skills. Students assist with the planning, organizing, production, and service of the event which provides a live and realistic learning experience.

The Thanksgiving luncheon requires the assistance of all 50 students and staff. Four student leaders from the previous year are chosen to assist with coordinating the students who are participating for the first time. The student leaders direct the student teams in the preparation and production prior to the event and during the event. They will serve as the leaders in the two dining areas on the event day. The student leaders are responsible for delegating tasks and making sure the event runs smoothly. Students learn about the skills and coordination required to host and serve the estimated 1000 people within a two- hour time frame. The interaction with the guests provides valuable lessons in being professional, providing outstanding service and meeting the needs of the customers.

The luncheon has been benefitting the students and community for more than 30 years. This year the Thanksgiving luncheon will take place on November 14, 2008, from 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. at Meridian Technology Center.

For more information on the Thanksgiving luncheon or to learn more about the Culinary Arts program, call 377-3333 or visit www.meridian-technology.com.

Carolyn LeGrand is a Culinary Arts/Lodging Management Instructor at Meridian Technology Center

(My note-What a great way to get the students involved with the community!! Marketing, public relations, recruitment and more can be rolled into one event included in your uear-round recruitment plan. Your students participate and get real world experience while doing something relevant, and everyone gets to eat!!)

(Picture-The First Thanksgiving by Jean Louis Gerome Ferris, hosted by wikipedia)

Veterans Day 2008

Today, on this national day of remembrance, I want to offer to all our our soldiers and veterans a very humble "Thank You."

Yesterday, my kids school was visited by Veterans talking about their personal stories and sacrifices for our freedoms. At supper last night we talked about what they had heard, important lessons that we must never forget.

I was also reminded about a tribute that CareerTech put together to the families of Veterans working with us. We invite you to view the CareerTech Remembers Its Veterans slide show and reflect with us.

You can learn more about Veterans Day by going to the Veterans Day website. There you can find a teachers guide, poster galleries, history, fact sheets and much, much more.

November

As you think about the month of November, here are some ideas and suggestions that could be included in your year round recruitment plan.

As you hold special events like Multicultural Day, it is a good idea to start a three-ring binder that includes information about the event.

Include a copy of the invitation that was sent, what was the time line for informing counselors and students about the event, what staff was involved and what were their duties? Record this information and you will have a record of what was successful and what was not and next year will be even easier to prepare for and will run smoother.

Here are some suggestions for this month...

8TH GRADE YEAR

• Multicultural Day

FRESHMAN

• Multicultural Day

SOPHOMORE YEAR

• Multicultural Day
• Personalized communications from counselors
• Letters to National Merit & Academic Scholars

JUNIOR YEAR

• Job Fair

SENIOR YEAR

• Job Fair

Remember to update your plan as you go along each month. Doing so will make make next November easier to plan and be prepared for.

If you would like a copy of the our Year Round Recruitment Plan, contact us.

Holiday Greetings

It is November and if you are recruiting students with data like names and email, it is time to start thinking about what your e-cards will look like for this year.

What am I talking about? I bet you already have been sent one and just did not think about it.

One of my favorites is from Eckerd College: http://www.eckerd.edu/holiday/

Here are a few that we have shared on the Blog from Ashland University.

http://ecard.ashland.edu/index.php
http://ecard.ashland.edu/index.php?ecardYear=2006adm
http://ecard.ashland.edu/index.php?ecardYear=2004adm
http://ecard.ashland.edu/index.php?ecardYear=2003adm

Technology Centers in Oklahoma can do the same thing with the data that they have from PLAN EOS and a little time devoted to developing the card.

If you have written your year round recruitment plan, write it in your plan that now is the time to start thinking about what you will put in the card so that it can be developed and e-mailed in the early part of December to reach students before they leave for break.

Send us your e-card, we want to see what you come up with. We will also be on the lookout and share this years round of cards from universities and colleges across the country.

(Image from Wikipedia)