Former Reynoldsburg School Superintendent Richard Ross will lead the Governor’s Office of 21st Century Education beginning Feb. 1.  He was appointed by Gov. Kasich to replace Robert Sommers, who resigned to open an education consulting business.

Gov. Kasich addressed job training during his presentation to almost 200 Ohio ACTE Legislative Seminar attendees Jan. 25.  See pictures from the Legislative Seminar.

Read more in the Columbus Dispatch.

US Secretary of Education conducts a Town Hall Meeting at Miami Valley CTC on Jan. 11, 2012

Arne Duncan, U.S. Education Secretary and Brenda Dann- Messier, Assistant Secretary, visited Miami Valley Career Center Jan. 11 to meet with students and educators.  In a town hall meeting at the school, they heard from both high school and adult MVCTC students, as well as members of the community, the importance of career-technical education.  More than 100 students, business leaders and citizens attended the event, asked questions and heard from both the Secretary and Assistant Secretary regarding education and the economy.  Both praised MVCTC and CTE for its role in Ohio's economy.  News coverage included an article in The Dayton Daily News.

Registration Now Open for Build a Website Contest
University System of Ohio hosting Choose Ohio First Website Design

Contest

COLUMBUS, OH, Jan. 4, 2012 – Registration is now open for the University System of Ohio’s website building contest. The contest is open to all Ohio college and high school students. Contestants will design and build a website for the url: www.ChooseOhioFirst.org.  Registration ends on February 5, 2012.

Students are asked to design and build a website that will recruit talented Ohio students into STEMM fields. The website should encourage students to pursue a degree as part of the Choose Ohio First scholarship program.

Choose Ohio First Scholarships are awarded to students who are studying in fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Medicine (STEMM). Choose Ohio First scholarships have been awarded to more than 4,000 students in 28 programs involving 41 Ohio public and private institutions during the past four years.  Scholarship awards range from $1,500 to $4,700 per student, per academic year.

The team or individual who submits the winning entry will be recognized on the ChooseOhioFirst.org site as long as the design is used. They will receive a letter of recognition from the Chancellor of the Board of Regents for creating the Choose Ohio First website and will be recognized on the University System of Ohio website ohiohighered.org as well as in any media releases about the contest.

The winning website must:

• Encourage middle and high school students to enroll in a STEMM program at one of the 41 Ohio colleges and universities participating in Choose Ohio First.
• Incorporate the Choose Ohio First branding and color scheme.
• Highlight Ohio’s innovative Choose Ohio First programs and participating institutions.
• Be easy to navigate
• Be compatible with all browsers
• Include scholarship amounts

Bonus points will be awarded if your website is interactive, fun, engaging and cool.

Each individual or team must go to www.ChooseOhioFirst.com and complete a registration form that includes the name, address, telephone number, and email address of the team captain and information on any additional team members.

Judging begins April 3, 2012. Links to the top websites will be provided on www.facebook.com/OhioHigherEd. The public will be able to vote for the best website from April 16 through April 29, 2012 at ChooseOhioFirst.com. The votes made by the public will count towards 25 percent of the total vote.

A winner will be announced on May 7, 2012.

About the University System of Ohio - The University System of Ohio is the state agency that coordinates higher education in Ohio. The agency is directed by its Chancellor, who is a member of the Governor of Ohio's cabinet. The Chancellor, with the advice of the nine-member Board of Regents, provides policy guidance to the Governor and the Ohio General Assembly, advocates for the University System of Ohio and carries out state higher education policy.

The 2011 ACTE Image Award winner was Mike Rowe, for his support of skilled trades and skilled workers.

See his acceptance speech by clicking here:

Mike Rowe

Thirty one Fairfield Career Center carpentry graduates and one current student volunteered to help the Extreme Makeover Home Edition team build a house for a Columbus family, they volunteered over 200 man hours for the project.

The Extreme Makeover Home Edition show is about giving back and bringing neighbors togetherundefinedone environmentally friendly brick at a time. It’s a race against time on a project that would normally span several months, involving a team of designers, contractors and hundreds of workers who all have just seven days to totally rebuild an entire house! This is a great opportunity for the Eastland-Fairfield carpentry students and graduates to put their skills to work and give back. “It was the experience of a lifetime” David Barnett Class of 2011.

The 2 hour Christmas Special will aired Friday, December 16th at 8 p.m. on ABC.

The Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce releases a  new report entitled Career Clusters: Forecasting Demand for High School Through College Jobs, 2008-2018, identifies 16 career clusters which represent the full array of related occupational opportunities and education requirements. Findings show that for those with high school diplomas, decent jobs still exist but there are not enough to go around. Only one in three of high school-level jobs will pay wages of $35,000 or more; although in some cases, with experience, these jobs can provide up to $50,000.

Middle-skill jobs have promise for those who acquire some level of postsecondary education or training but not a Bachelor’s degree. For women, middle-skill jobs are the minimum threshold for a better career. One in two of these middle jobs provide career pathways leading to median wages of roughly $40,000. Such jobs are concentrated in six career clusters: manufacturing, marketing, transportation, healthcare, business and hospitality. The fastest growing career clusters for middle-skills are in healthcare (21 percent) and hospitality (12 percent).

Click here for more report information.