<<go back
April 12, 2005

Calhoun Community College
Tech Prep Symposium Series Finale

The Calhoun Community College Tech Prep High Tech Symposium Series wraps ups Wednesday, April 13, 2005, with a visit to the BP facility in Decatur. Students will tour the Wetlands Environmental Center, located on the BP site on Finley Island Road, and will participate in a protective clothing/gear demonstration and a session on work readiness and interview skills.

The High Tech Symposium program is presented annually by the Calhoun Tech Prep program consists of at least four (4) one-day seminars presented over the course of the school year. The series offers an opportunity for junior and senior students attending high schools within the Advanced Technologies Consortium to take part in a variety of work-based learning experiences. Each symposium focuses on issues involving the importance of technology in the industrial sector and the importance of career/technical education in preparing to enter the workforce. The program is one of several Calhoun Tech Prep programs designed to keep students involved in career/technical education and prepare them to eventually enter the technology workforce. Schools systems within the Consortium are: Athens City Schools, Decatur City Schools, Hartselle City Schools, Limestone County Schools, Madison City Schools and Morgan County Schools. Students are selected to participate in the program by their high school guidance counselors. This year, 29 students from thirteen area high schools are taking part in the series.

According to Athens High School senior Micah Gregg, a participant in the Symposium series, the program has much to offer. “The High Tech Symposium has provided me the opportunity to see, first-hand, the skill level needed for specific jobs. I have had the opportunity to meet with, learn from and ask questions of a variety of highly skilled people. The technical equipment is awesome.”

Participating industries are equally excited about the program. According to John Vickers, Manager, NASA National Center for Advanced Manufacturing, “NASA is committed to building connections with students who want to pursue exciting science and technology careers. Partnerships with educational institutions like Calhoun play a key role in educating the workforce of the future that is essential to NASA and the Nation's Aerospace Industry.”

Three other symposiums have been presented during the 2004-05 school year. The first was a Robotics Symposium which took place on November 12, 2004 at the Aerospace Technology Center on the Calhoun campus. Facilitator for the program was Calhoun computer information systems instructor Dr. Sue Mitchell. During the robotics program, students employed hands-on physics, engineering and computer design to build working robots able to compete in a series of challenge activities. The December 8, 2004 symposium focused on Advanced Electronics Manufacturing (AEM). Students toured the Boeing-Decatur facility, Wildwood Electronics in Huntsville, and then returned to Calhoun for an overview and tour of the college’s AEM advanced degree program. On February 23, 2005 students got an introduction to Aerospace Technology which included a site visit to NASA’s Huntsville facility and a look at the Calhoun Aerospace Technology program. On March 3, 2005 the topic was Process Technology and students toured the Nova Chemicals site in Decatur.

Lunch and chartered bus transportation are provided for each Symposium. The events begin between 8:00 and 9:00 a.m. and students are back on Calhoun’s campus by 3:00 p.m. Students participating in the series are eligible for two hours of elective applied technology credit at Calhoun. There is no cost to the student or the participating schools.

For more information regarding the program, please contact Gwen Baker, Calhoun Tech Prep Resource Specialist at 256-306-2665 or gzb@calhoun.edu.

Coverage of this release:

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:

Back to Menu