Oklahoma teacher wins national CareerTech community service award
Robby Branscum, agricultural education teacher and FFA adviser for Stillwater Public Schools, received the national Carl Perkins Community Service Award at the ACTE CareerTech Vision conference.
The Carl Perkins Community Service Award recognizes teachers with significant accomplishments and outstanding leadership in programs and activities that promote community involvement.
“I am so proud of the work that happens daily in our CTE classrooms and environments where we take education on the move. Mr. Branscum is an extraordinary educator that invests in his students and exemplifies the mission of Oklahoma CareerTech,” said CareerTech State Director Brent Haken.
“This award specifically focuses on the power of real hands on experiences that live out the last line of the FFA motto ‘Living to Serve.’ Thank you, Robby Branscum, for making a difference.”
Read more on the Oklahoma CareerTech website.
Oklahoma Works: Agencies unite to streamline workforce development
Oklahoma CareerTech, the Oklahoma Employment Security Commission and the Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services are working together to get workforce resources to all Oklahomans.
In a new CareerTech video, the heads of the three agencies -- OESC CEO Trae Rahill, CareerTech State Director Brent Haken and DRS Executive Director Melinda Fruendt -- talk about how they work together under the national Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act to streamline the delivery of state workforce resources.
Watch the video on the Oklahoma CareerTech YouTube channel.
CareerTech trains for jobs of today and tomorrow
A recent Journal Record article highlighted aerospace technology classes at Francis Tuttle Technology Center, which are giving students job skills they can use immediately, along with skills for jobs in emerging fields.
For example, sheet metal program graduates are needed to maintain the aircraft flying now, Francis Tuttle Program Developer Nick Powell told the newspaper, but students in the composit fabrication and repair program are also learning to work on new aircraft, which has little sheet metal.
Francis Tuttle is one of 15 Oklahoma CareerTech districts offering aerospace training programs. Read more about it on the Journal Record website.
CT Conversations focuses on accreditation
Oklahoma CareerTech Conversations recently talked with Jessica Ventris, CareerTech director of academic affairs.
The conversations focused on the ongoing accreditation process for the state’s 29 technology centers and how that process enhances collaboration and best practices across the Oklahoma CareerTech System.
Watch the video on the Oklahoma CareerTech YouTube channel and learn more about CareerTech’s Accreditation Divison on the Oklahoma CareerTech website.
CareerTech employee honored as Leader Under 40
Justin Siler, adult and career development coordinator in Oklahoma CareerTech’s Workforce and Economic Development Division, was named a Young Professionals of Stillwater Leader Under 40 recently.
Leaders Under 40 celebrates the accomplishments of those who are making a difference in Stillwater. Nominees are scored on professional and philanthropic involvement in the community.
Siler, a first generation college graduate, earned a bachelor’s degree in agribusiness at Oklahoma State University and a master’s degree in educational leadership, also at OSU. He graduated from Leadership Stillwater Class 28 and served as co-chair for Class 29.
As an adult and career development coordinator, he focuses on short-term training programs and professional development for adult students.
Useful links
Follow us on X (formerly Twitter) at @okcareertech and find us on Facebook at OklahomaCareerTech and on Instagram at oklahomacareertech. Find our podcast at https://www.ctconversations.org/ and watch our biweekly news show and other videos on our YouTube channel.
For news about Oklahoma’s CareerTech System, subscribe to CareerTech communications.
State Agency Assistance at a Glance
National Research Center for Career and Technical Education
OK Career Guide Training Opportunities
No matter what, you’ve got to always follow your passion in life and always keep learning. -- Harold Hamm
