Superintendent

Superintendent

Friday, October 29, 2010

October 29, 2010

November 2, Election Day, is an important day for Ohioans as they vote their choices for elected officials and numerous school district issues across the state.

Vantage Career Center's 7/10 of one mill Permanent Improvement levy is a renewal. It has been renewed for the past 15 years, and appears on the ballot every five years. Funds generated allow the district to provide equipment and technology for the skilled trades labs and classrooms. It also provides funds for building maintenance which are used for repairs as necessary.

Please contact me at 419-238-5411 X 102 to answer your questions about the renewal levy. And please, exercise your right to vote on November 2.

Friday, October 22, 2010

October 22, 2010

This week's blog is a great time to recognize the work of our Media Center staff, Pam Knodel, and Annette Klinger, who filled the vacancy created by Michele Prichard this summer. With Pam and Michele's efforts last year, Vantage's Media Center produced some great statistics for the 2009-10!

*Over 16,000 student visits, including scheduled class time library visits
*10,000 of these visits were simply students who sought out the library for their own reading and Media Center activity
*Materials were checked out of the library 9,000 times
*Digital cameras (for use in school projects and student organizations) were checked out 340 times

The Media Center at Vantage is full of activity and our staff provide a welcome environment for students and staff. Some of the events in September and October have been recognition of September 25 - October 2 as Banned Book Week with a banned book raffle, as well as Banned Book Trivia. Courtney Jewel, Sr. Health Technology, was the winner of the Banned Book Week drawing.

October 18-22 has been Teen Read Week with special promotions and reading rewards, as well as a "Show Us Your Beat" contest.

In addition to the themes which draw students into the Media Center, our staff and students also find rich resources in practice tests for college entrance exams, military, civil service, GED tests, and CDL and firefighting. Also available are tests for cosmetology, computer certifications, health careers certifications and electrical work. Tutorials are provided for reading, math, and writing skill improvement. And perhaps most important, resources include job readiness information such as resume writing and interviewing skills. Thanks to technology much of this information is supported by online resources.

Our staff and students make our Media Center a success. Thanks for supporting it--and keep reading!

Thursday, October 14, 2010

October 15, 2010

I hope everyone has had a chance to enjoy this fall's beautiful weather! While the autumn colors aren't the best I have ever seen, the mild temperatures have been terrific.

Next week Vantage will host the annual Advisory Committee banquet, where our training programs' advisory committees give input to our teachers. Business and industry volunteers graciously give their time to advise our teachers on the required skills and equipment which would be wise for up-to-date student preparation for the work force. We encourage our staff to do more listening than talking on October 19, when these committees meet.

While it is necessary to update our advisory committees on what students are experiencing during training, the event will not serve its purpose if committee members are not encouraged to voice their opinion on curriculum and methods of training. The annual advisory banquet and building-wide meetings illustrate a pertinent link to the real world. All of our committee members should feel their viewpoint is listened to, and that they are part of a problem-solving committee to guide our staff toward delivering the most effective training for our region's employers.

Career-technical education has a proud heritage of linking education with the real world. It is one of the factors which has been reinforced to Ohio's leadership in both government and education. In fact it is one reason that Ohio received Race to the Top funds, causing a small portion of these federal funds to be earmarked for Ohio's career-technical education advancement. While legislators and educators discuss the state's budget crisis, one refreshing fact surfaces: Career technical education is a resource to utilize for training as jobs, which were non-existent years ago, are now created in new technology fields. The skilled labor shortage can be addressed by career centers maintaining connections with area employers and adapting training programs as skills change. Vantage Career Center will continue to be active in this effort, and we encourage local business and industry representatives to contact us, so that they may represent their field on one of our advisory boards. It is vital that we remain aware of workforce needs in our school district and surrounding region.

Friday, October 8, 2010

October 8, 2010

It's officially the 8th of October, and I thought I forgot to post an entry for this week. Then I realized it is only Thursday night (Friday morning, I guess) and this week's post is early! And what a week it was!

Staff came together and pitched in to help with the week's Attendance Marathon activities. I enjoyed serving breakfast to students on Wednesday and helped at "Double Dog Day" on Thursday, serving up hot dogs in the lunch line . Our cafeteria manager, Penny Baucom, came to my aid when it was evident that I couldn't keep up with putting two hot dogs on every tray and ladling chili and cheese as well. Needless to say the line moved right along when she took over the chili detail. (I don't know how I escaped working in food service as I worked my way through college, but that is one job I never had!).

This week has flown by, and too soon we will see the end of the first 9 weeks grading period. I believe a few of our seniors would agree that this year is already going by too quickly for them.
But there is a lot left to do at Vantage this year, including many activities our students will enjoy.

Saturday, October 2, 2010

October 2, 2010

It's going on noon already today! I would like to update you on last Saturday's successful pancake breakfast which was held at Vantage with proceeds going toward the Citizens for Vantage fund. By this time last Saturday, dedicated staff members were almost finished with the clean-up tasks and we left the building in good shape for Monday's students and staff to return. For many of us, last Saturday started at 6 a.m. while we prepared for what we hoped would be a "rush" of customers from 7 to 11 a.m.

Over 160 meals were served--and I say "meals" because several people ordered meals to go or brought back pancake breakfasts for their work crews and office staff. One gentleman took time to eat his own breakfast and ordered nine more meals to take back to Ottoville with him! And many thanks to Eaton, where we filled an order for 14 breakfasts. I believe we even delivered a few meals to some offices in Van Wert. All in all, the final crowd was over the twice the size from 2009's pancake breakfast, and we hope it will grow to over 300 meals served next year!

The Putnam County ESC hosted a meeting yesterday, at the request of Governor Strickland. Knowledgeworks representatives facilitated the meeting and gathered information from area superintendents and ESC personnel regarding school efficiencies and how to maintain focus and investment in improving student achievement. I am grateful to Dr. Jan Osborn, Superintendent of the Putnam Co. ESC for inviting Vantage Career Center and Penta Career Center to be represented. Much dialogue took place regarding the strength and quality of our schools in northwest Ohio and the importance of linkages to our community in a multitude of ways.

In closing I would like to thank our Vantage staff members and four of our Board of Education members who gave up their Saturday last week. While we cooked, served, and cleaned, we enjoyed good company with each other. We also met so many of our community members who shared support for the education Vantage has provided for them and their families. Thanks to all of you who supported our second annual Pancake breakfast! I hope to see you next year!