The Colorado Association for Career & Technical Administrators

1. How did you get involved with career and technical education?  I discovered CTE when I started working at Middle Park High School in Granby, CO. I was hired as a Culinary Arts teacher and was immediately asked to develop a CTE program, along with other successful programs like Automotive and Multimedia Arts. What I love about CTE is how it takes the academic and technical skills and combines them into real-world application for our students, opening their eyes to possibilities they didn’t know existed. During my first year, I learned all about CTE and loved watching my students develop in my CTSO and other opportunities in the community. In my second year, I developed a Business and Hospitality program that increased industry partnership involvement with the school and connected students with the hospitality industry in my back door. I continued to learn more about CTE within the FACS and Business clusters throughout my career.

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2. Where do you see Colorado growing in areas of CTE? While there is obviously growth in the STEAM and Technology fields, I have personally experienced increased interest in Multimedia Arts. Students who are learning graphic design, website and app development, and taking the traditional art methods and translating those into 21st century skills. Business partners are always looking for people to help support their marketing efforts, and by offering CTE Multimedia programs, students are working as interns or full time employees using their skills from the classroom and bringing it to the community.

3. What is something you have accomplished in CTE that you are proud of? In my CTE teaching experience, I have two major events that really made me proud to be a teacher. During my second year teaching at Middle Park, I developed the Business program and a FBLA chapter. In our first year, all 22 of my students qualified for the state competition, with 3 qualifying for nationals. This was a huge boost in my program enrollment and other students saw the amazing opportunities this provided. When I moved to Durango, I started FCCLA and during my second year, one of my shy students applied to be an FCCLA State Officer – and she was accepted! This student is one I worked with and helped build her confidence and it was amazing to see her grow and become a young woman in the 4 years that I worked with her

 

4. What advice would you give a new administrator in CTE?  Stay focused on what is best for students. The world of CTE can be extremely demanding and overwhelming, with new processes being introduced regularly. By staying focused on the students, we ensure that even as administrators, we are always looking out for what works for them, what opportunities we can create, and how we can help them achieve their goals.

 

5. What are some things you would like people to know about you?  I absolutely love learning new things and learning a new skill, both professionally and personally. I’m the first one to jump into a construction class and learn how to use all the tools; I love watching my students completely ruin a cake in culinary arts, but learning from it and trying again; I love learning new outdoor activities like cross country skiing or pickle ball. Now that I live in Buena Vista, exploring on the weekends with my family is absolutely my favorite activity!