?Kids! I don?t know what?s wrong with these kids today,? goes the song from the 1960s musical Bye Bye Birdie, but that?s a sentiment that has been expressed in some form or another throughout history by many adults.
Today there is a lot of negative press about youthful apathy and about juvenile crime. It seems that, when they?re not out causing trouble, kids today are listening to rap music, playing video games, or vegetating in front of the television set. Yet, a look into career and technical student organizations paints an entirely different picture of today?s youth and might remind you of another song title?The Who?s ?The Kids Are Alright??because these kids are definitely alright.
Career and technical student organizations (CTSOs) have a long, rich history tracing back almost as far as career and technical education itself. Our national association was established in 1926, and the FFA was established in 1928 as a national organization called Future Farmers of America. While they may have changed their names, just as the American Vocational Association became the Association for Career and Technical Education, CTSOs have continued their role in preparing youth to become productive citizens and to assume roles of leadership in their communities.
In addition to the FFA, which is the national association for students of agricultural education, these career tech student organizations include: Business Professionals of America (BPA); DECA, an association for marketing students; Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA), a national organization for young men and women in family and consumer sciences education; Future Business Leaders of America-Phi Beta Lambda (FBLA-PBL); Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA); SkillsUSA-VICA, which serves both high school and college students enrolled in training programs in technical, skilled and service occupations; and the Technology Student Association (TSA).
As a rule, these organizations operate on local, state and national levels, with career and technical education instructors serving as chapter advisers for the student members.
CTSOs enhance the educational opportunities for students, but they also help the students explore career paths. As they prepare their young members to become skilled professionals in the workplace, they also help prepare them to become active participants in their communities. The leadership skills being developed in career tech student organizations today are helping to create the leaders of tomorrow. FFA alone has alumni who are business leaders (James E. Oesterreicher, CEO of J.C. Penney Company, and Burton Sperber, CEO and founder of Environmental Industries, Inc.), education leaders (M. Peter McPherson, Michigan State University President and 1998 Walt Disney Outstanding Teacher of the Year Ray Chelewski), governors (John Engler of Michigan and James B. Hunt of North Carolina), U.S. Congressmen (Charles Stenholm, Bill Sarpalius and Larry Combest), and U.S. Senators (Sam Brownback and Larry Craig).
Members of CTSOs are also involved in community service projects all across the country. Following the events of September 11, 2001, career and technical student organizations in Wisconsin organized the Wisconsin CTSO Fire Truck Project?a statewide campaign to raise funds for a new fire engine for the Fire Department of New York City. The Wisconsin organizations that participated in the project are DECA, FBLA, FCCLA, FFA, HOSA and SkillsUSA-VICA, and they raised more than $130,000 in donations.
Among the recently named Toyota Community Scholars are two FFA members, Ryan Quarles and Matt Fryar (see Front and Center in the September 2002 Techniques). Their community service activities include organizing a benefit for a children?s hospital and developing a nursing home visitation program.
TSA and BPA both encourage their members to become involved with the American Red Cross, and FBLA-PBL raises almost a half million dollars each year for the March of Dimes.
FCCLA members have organized food drives, provided school supplies for foster children and worked on violence prevention?even creating their own STOP the Violence program following a school shooting in Kentucky.
These are just a few of the service projects of CTSOs. Students in these organizations are developing character as well as building knowledge. They are learning life skills along with career skills. Instead of focusing on ?what?s wrong with these kids today,? let?s look at what?s right with them. For those who participate in career and technical student organizations that is quite a lot.
One clear reason behind the success of CTSOs is the role played by career and technical educators. Many of our members are advisers for these organizations and devote countless hours of work and immeasurable amounts of support. These dedicated teachers are making a huge difference in the lives of their students, serving as teachers, mentors and role models. They offer support, guidance and inspiration for their students, who learn that, even though they are young, they still have the power to change the world. It may be in small ways now, but there is no way to know what the future might hold. After all, at least one world leader was the member of a career and technical student organization. Former U.S. president and recent Nobel Peace Prize winner Jimmy Carter belonged to FFA.
The BPA Mission is ?to contribute to the preparation of a world-class workforce through the advancement of leadership, citizenship, academic and technological skills.?
At the 1964 meeting of ACTE (which was then AVA), a suggestion was made to study whether the state supervisors of office education wanted a student association such as the ones that already existed for agriculture and family and consumer sciences. That study resulted in the 1966 establishment of the Vocational Office Education Clubs of America, which, by 1988, had evolved into the Business Professionals of America.
BPA offers its members opportunities for professional and leadership development, community service and competitions to demonstrate their business technology skills. Competitive events include financial services, administrative support, information technology and management/marketing/human resources.
Among the Special Recognition Awards of BPA are the Air Force Recruiting Salute Award?which encourages ?outstanding citizenship, compassionate community service, leadership and achievement, and support for American free enterprise??and the American Red Cross Award?which encourages BPA chapters to ?provide volunteer services, to assist with disaster services, to provide health and safety community education, to participate in American Red Cross blood drives, and/or to raise and donate monetary support for the American Red Cross.?
Through the organization?s long-time involvement in its national service project, Special Olympics, BPA members have contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars and donated hundreds of thousands of man-hours of participation in Special Olympics events and fundraisers.
?Business Professionals of America has a vital role in helping young people interested in business and technical fields acquire the skills necessary to be strong contributors in their chosen vocation,? says President and CEO of BPA John O. Boyd, III. ?We are also sensitive to employers? needs for individuals in their workforce who are technically skilled, but also possess a demonstrated commitment to excellence and an awareness of social and community responsibilities. Our strong local chapters combined with competitive events at the regional, state and national levels support our members? needs and help assure employers the most well-rounded, competent employee possible.?
When the Vocational Industrial Clubs of America, Inc. (VICA) was founded in 1965, 14 states were represented in its membership. Today, its more than 250,000 members come from all 50 states plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands. Included are high school and college students as well as professional members who are enrolled in training programs in technical, skilled and service occupations.
VICA?s name was officially changed to SkillsUSA-VICA in 1999, but the central focus of the organization remains the same??providing quality education experiences for students in leadership, teamwork, citizenship and character development.?
At the core of that purpose is the National Program of Work and its seven major goals: professional development, community service, employment, ways and means (fundraising activities), SkillsUSA Championships, public relations and social activities.
The SkillsUSA Championships are a great way to showcase outstanding career and technical education students from all across the nation?starting locally then continuing through competitions at the state and national levels. The national competition has become a multi-million dollar event, which in the summer of 2002 was held in a space equivalent to nine-and-a-half football fields and included more than 4,000 contestants in 73 separate events.
?SkillsUSA membership is the highest it?s been in a decade, and our national conference registration is up every year,? says Timothy Lawrence, executive director of SkillsUSA-VICA. ?Our SkillsUSA Championships has been hailed as the largest commitment of corporate volunteerism on a single day anywhere in America. Nearly 2,000 technical experts from industry and labor design and judge our 73 contests, which represent a wide variety of skilled occupations. Their organizations contribute more than $25 million worth of volunteer time, materials and equipment. For example, we have more than 700 computers donated, 50 trucks, 10,000 bricks and 100 stoves. We have complete laboratories set up for machining, welding, collision repair technology, cosmetology, robotics and 40 other occupational areas.?
SkillsUSA-VICA?s TeamUSA has represented the United States in the Biennial World Skills Competition since 1973. During the 2001 event, which was held in September in Seoul, South Korea, the terrorist attacks occurred in our country. Despite the difficulty of competing far away at such an emotional time, the young Americans produced the best showing ever for an American team at the event, bringing home three medals, two diplomas of honor and an overall team ranking of fourth in the world among 35 nations. And, Lawrence notes, TeamUSA received a standing ovation from 34 nations as they paraded into the opening session holding the American flag high.
The Mission of DECA, Inc.: ?To enhance the co-curricular education of students with interests in marketing, management and entrepreneurship.?
DECA is an association of marketing students, and its divisions include the High School Division, the Delta Epsilon Chi Division, the Collegiate Division, the Alumni Division and the Professional Division.
Originally established as the ?Junior College? Division, Delta Epsilon Chi?s membership is now open to marketing students in four-year colleges and universities. The Collegiate Division is the student/professional division directed toward future marketing education teacher-coordinators.
Alumni Division membership is open to any former high school, Delta Epsilon Chi or collegiate DECA member, or any member of these divisions who is completing the last semester before graduation. The Professional Division membership includes teachers, state supervisory directors, cooperative employers, school administrators, board of education members, advisory committee members and parents.
The association has 170,000 marketing students, 4,500 marketing teachers and 14,000 postsecondary Delta Epsilon Chi members.
Its programs include competitive events, leadership activities, recognition programs and scholarships, which are all intended to help develop the future leaders in marketing, management and entrepreneurship.
The mission of the Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) is ?to promote career opportunities in the health care industry and to enhance the delivery of quality health care to all people.?
Officially organized in 1976 with about 6,000 members in only six states, HOSA membership has grown to more than 67,000 secondary, postsecondary and adult students, and HOSA continues to encourage all health occupations instructors and students to become involved in the organization.
Like many of our CTSOs, HOSA takes on a role of providing more than just the technical training students receive in the classroom. HOSA helps its members learn dedication, leadership and social skills?all of which are vital when dealing with people in the context of health care.
The HOSA National Leadership Conference includes competitive events as well as leadership development programs. Students can compete in five categories, which include health occupations related skills, health occupations skills, individual leadership skills, team leadership skills and recognition.
HOSA members also demonstrate the concern for others that will be an important part of their future professional lives. At the Fourth Annual National HOSA Conference, the American Diabetes Association was selected as the organization?s National Charity Project, and following the attacks of 9-11, HOSA?s Project 911 resulted in more than 10,000 letters being written to the health care professionals in New York City and Washington, D.C., described as ?HOSA?s heroes.?
There may be no other field in which the need for trained professionals is more critical than it is in health care. There is a grave concern in this country about the serious shortage of qualified health care workers, and this critical shortage is expected to grow as our population continues to age and more and more of our citizens require health care services. We can only hope that the membership of HOSA continues to grow, because that could mean that a new generation is preparing in greater numbers to take on the challenges of meeting the health care needs of the United States.
The mission of the Technology Student Association is ?to prepare our membership for the challenges of a dynamic world by promoting technological literacy, leadership and problem solving, resulting in personal growth and opportunity.?
TSA is the only student organization dedicated exclusively to K-12 students enrolled in technology education classes and boasts a current membership of more than 160,000 students?mostly in middle and high schools. About 2,500 technology education teachers serve as TSA advisers, using TSA activities to interest and inspire students to go into technology-based careers.
TSA student members also participate in local, state, regional and national competitions, as well as leadership training and community service projects.
TSA, formerly the American Industrial Arts Student Association, adopted its current name in 1988. Today, the importance of technological literacy makes the need for an association such as TSA even more evident and has resulted in a growing membership. TSA Executive Director Dr. Rosanne T. White notes, ?TSA is the youngest of the career and technical student organizations, but it appears to be the fastest growing because technology touches the lives of all students. This year, TSA celebrates its 25th anniversary. Our roots came from industrial arts, but about 15 years ago the curriculum changed to technology education, and our membership just flourished.?
National TSA Day has even grown this year into National TSA Week, which will be celebrated April 21-25, 2003.
The FBLA-PBL Mission is ?to bring business and education together in a positive working relationship through innovative leadership and career development programs.?
Future Business Leaders of America-Phi Beta Lambda is a CTSO that prepares students for careers in business and business-related fields and helps create tomorrow?s business leaders. Its membership includes middle school students, high school students, postsecondary students and?through its Professional Division?educators, alumni, business people and parents.
The organization was developed in 1937, and its first chapter was chartered in Johnson City, Tennessee, in 1942. Phi Beta Lambda, the college division, was established in 1958. Today, FBLA-PBL reports a membership of almost a quarter of a million members at the high school, postsecondary and middle school levels and the Professional Division.
?Today?s business world demands a new kind of business leader. Characteristics such as solid ethics, excellence, and leading-edge technical knowledge are critical elements that FBLA-PBL members bring to the table,? notes Jean M. Buckley, president and CEO of FBLA-PBL. ?Through co-curricular programs including career-directed competitive events, online special programs, business partnerships and leadership initiatives, FBLA-PBL creates a fertile environment for young business students to achieve their optimum career goals.?
For a more personal look at what FBLA-PBL offers for its student members and for the educators who serve as its advisers, read the article in this issue titled ?The Greatest Love of All?Advising America?s Future Business Leaders,? which was written by Phi Beta Lambda National President Brian Ferrell.
The FCCLA Mission: ?To promote personal growth and leadership development through family and consumer sciences education. Focusing on the multiple roles of family member, wage earner and community leader, members develop skills for life through character development, creative and critical thinking, interpersonal communication, practical knowledge and vocational preparation.?
Founded in 1945 as Future Homemakers of America, Family, Career and Community Leaders of America, Inc. (FCCLA) is a national career and technical student organization for young men and women in family and consumer sciences (FACS) education in public and private school through grade 12. Delegates voted to change the name in 1999 to better reflect the FACS curriculum and the programs offered to members. Today FCCLA has more than 220,000 members in 50 states as well as the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
FCCLA Executive Director Alan T. Rains, Jr. notes, ?With family as its main focus, FCCLA teaches its members important family life skills, prepares them for a variety of career opportunities, and educates them on the importance of community involvement. FCCLA members become well-rounded young adults prepared to take active roles in society.?
Before they even reach adulthood, all of the young students in FCCLA will have made contributions toward improving their communities. And one of their programs, STOP the Violence, is now a national initiative working to create societal change.
STOP the Violence - Students Taking On Prevention was created by FCCLA national student officers following the school shooting in Paducah, Ky. Such events often leave young people feeling both frightened and powerless, but STOP the Violence is a peer-to-peer initiative that provides young people with power to recognize, report and reduce the potential for youth violence?whether it is bullying, hallway fights or school shootings. Teams of local FCCLA members and their adult advisors are trained to facilitate the program in their chapters.
In 2001, the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention awarded $500,000 to expand the project by developing and training a national FCCLA STOP team of current members and alumni who have participated in previous STOP the Violence training.
FCCLA members are also active on a local level working to make positive changes in their communities. From preventing teenage pregnancies to promoting safer driving habits to restocking the shelves of the local food bank, the young men and women of FCCLA chapters across the country are finding that they have the power to make a difference.
The FFA Mission: ?The National FFA Organization is dedicated to making a positive difference in the lives of young people by developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth and career success through agricultural education.?
The FFA, which is chartered by the U.S. Congress, began its existence as Future Farmers of America and was organized nationally in 1928. In 1988, as opportunities in the field expanded from traditional farming to a wide range of agricultural opportunities in science, business and technology, the name was changed from Future Farmers of America to the National FFA Organization.
Today, the National FFA Organization has 461,043 members and 7,308 chapters?in rural, urban and suburban school settings. It is represented in all 50 states, as well as Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. A comprehensive education in agriculture usually includes classroom instruction, hands-on experience?and FFA. The competitive events and awards programs help members hone and test their skills in agriculture as well as in areas such as public speaking. FFA members actively participate in community service, and many have started their own businesses.
?The misperception is that things connected with agriculture are going downhill,? says FFA Chief Operating Officer Bernie Staller, ?but our membership is actually at a 19-year high?and 65 percent of our members are non-farm kids, and 40 percent are women. We also had more than 51,000 people at our convention this year.?
The benefits of FFA participation have been well documented. A 1999 Purdue University study, ?A Comparison of Agricultural Education Students to the ?Typical High School Student? As Quantified in The State of Our Nation?s Youth: by the Horatio Alger Association,? found that FFA members were active, involved and enthusiastic students who attached greater value to their school studies than the average student. They are also more actively engaged in school and community activities.
FFA also offers leadership opportunities, and members elect their own officers and plan activities that they then conduct with their chapter advisors? supervision. The six students?typically college students?who make up the team of national officers take a year out of their studies to travel around the country representing the FFA. Among them may be a future leader who will someday be traveling around the world representing his or her country.
