Riverwalk Project Resumes

The October 29th, 2009 edition of the Calais Advertiser featured an article on the Calais Riverfront Walkway and the volunteers that have developed and maintained the walkway since its inception in 1990. The historic railroad, now walking trail, was used by Col. Benjamin Church during the French and Native American wars. Confederate soldiers emerged from the station to rob a local bank, and it was an important part of the waterfront commerce.

The volunteers were getting along in age and were asking for help in improving and maintaining the walkway. That's when students from SCRTC became involved. The truck-driving, welding, and building trades program students decided to get involved as part of their programs community service requirement. Last fall the classes put in 70 railroad ties, leveled them, and added the gravel.

On October 19th, 2010, the Early Childhood Education class, along with the Building Trades class, returned to the Riverfront to add a final layer of gravel to the section of trail they worked on last year. More classes from SCRTC will be involved with the project this fall as there is still more work to be done.

National Technical Honor Society

St. Croix Tech. Center is proud to introduce the officers for the Center's first Chapter of National Technical Honor Society.

Pictured left to right are; Angelica Underhill, Jenn Ross, Beth Knight and Patricia Johnson. The NTHS is the acknowledged leader in the recognition of outstanding student achievement in career and technical education.

Thousands of schools and colleges throughout the U.S. and its territories have a chapter of the honor society on their campus. These members schools agree that NTHS encourages higher scholastic achievement, cultivates a desire for personal excellence, and helps top students find success in today's highly competitive workplace.

Membership in NTHS is an important career and professional investment recognized by education, business and industry. The officers will be planning fundraising, and community services activities for the chapter to focus on this year.

8th Grade Students Visit SCRTC

On January 22, 8th grade students from Beatrice Rafferty School in Perry and Woodland Jr./Sr. High School in Baileyville visited St. Croix Regional Technical Center. After lunch, which was provided by Angie and the Calais High School cafeteria staff, Center Director Bob Moholland welcomed the students and explained the agenda for the day. Students were then divided into groups and escorted to each program by SCRTC students.


In Mr Sluzenski's Building Trades program, students had the opportunity to assemble tool boxes that had been pre-cut by SCRTC students. Students were able to take the tool boxes home. In Culinary Arts, Instructor Mr. Dean organized a scavenger hunt. Students identified machinery, tools, and products and the student with the most correct answers won a giant candy bar. In Mr. McPhee's Welding shop students were able to witness a 5,500 degree flame cut through steel. Mr. Barnes, Automotive Service Technology Instructor, showed students how to gap a spark plug and explained the primary functions of the spark plug. Students visiting Mrs. Skriletz's Certified Nursing Assistant classroom viewed a brief video about the nursing profession. Computer/Electronics program Instructor Mr. Bragdon explained the various options available to students attending his program. Early Childhood Education Instructor Mrs. Hallowell showed students the new E.C.E. classroom, lab, and kitchen. This facility, which also houses the Commercial Truck Driving Program, was built by SCRTC Building Trades students. Mr. Moholland, Center Director and Truck Driving Instructor, demonstrated to students the computer/simulator used to practice specific driving conditions, and he also discussed important parts of the industry. Students had the opportunity to try out the simulator, and only a few of them crashed.


All visiting students were given a "program of study" for each SCRTC course. This will help both the students and their parents plan ahead to ensure their children have taken the appropriate courses to be successful at SCRTC and the world of work.

SkillsUSA

Elections for SkillsUSA officers for the 2010-2011 school year will be held on October 29th.

Here's the latest news and information from SCRTC . . .

St. Croix Regional Technical Center has begun its 20th year serving students from Eastport, Woodland, and Calais. As one of Maine's 26 Career and Technical Education Centers our mission is to prepare our students with workforce entry level skills and/or post secondary education. To help our students prepare for success we have added the opportunity for each student to obtain a 10 hour OSHA card. Weibley Dean, Culinary Arts instuctor, with help from SCRTC faculty, is teaching this course on Friday afternoons at Washington County Community College. The 10 Hour OSHA card will be an important asset for our students as they compete for jobs in the future. This card will demonstrate to potential employers that our students have completed a certified course in safety and risk management.

Accuplacer

In addition to the OSHA Safety Card students will be acquiring this year, we have added the opportunity to take the Accuplacer test. This test is required by all of Maine's Community colleges and some private and public colleges as well. Darin McGaw, Assistant Dean of Students/Community Services, at Washington County Community College is administering this test for SCRTC students in WCCC's Multi Media Room. This test will help students identify their current level of proficiency in math and english. With the results of this test, SCRTC will be better prepared to help our students enter post-secondary institutions, or prepare them for the workforce.

SkillsUSA 2008-2009

The St. Croix Chapter of SkillsUSA, formerly VICA, will be holding elections for officers on Monday October 6th. Positions of leadership available for students are President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Reporter. The top priority of the leadership team is fundraising. The cost of sending students to the State and National Championships grows higher each year, and without any monetary help from the sending schools the entire burden falls on the shoulders of our students.

Our first fundraising event will be held at Johnson's True Value parking lot on October 11th. The 4th annual Carharrt Cook-Out starts at 10:00 a.m. and runs until 2:00 p.m. Carharrt sponsors this event for schools across the country. Carharrt realizes that "the SkillsUSA organization and competitions are the first steps in teaching best practices to the next American workforce. SkillsUSA instills the drive and allows them to experience the sacrifices it takes to be among the best in their field". A big thanks to Dave, Cathy and all the people at Johnson's for helping with this event.