Blogs
Past Fellow Mentor Interview Blog
I consider myself blessed indeed to have been assigned to my mentor, Dr. Beyonka Wider! Our first conversation was like talking to a long-lost friend, like I had known her all my life! Dr.
Wider’s enthusiasm, excitement, and passion for all things CTE is absolutely contagious and is so refreshing...
Creating Real Connection: A Foundation for Strong Mentorship
If you were to ask anyone about how building a strong mentorship works, it would be to focus on building a strong connection. In meeting with Martin Hanley, my Association for Career & Technical Education (ACTE) Fellowship Mentor, the principle of building connections was a clear focus. Our firs...
My 1st California (CACTE) Career Technical Education Board Meeting
Participation in the ACTE Fellowship Program motivated me to take an active role in my state ACTE chapter as Legislative Chair. I am honored to serve my state not only to support CACTE
members' awareness of local, state, and national CTE initiatives and funding but to personally carve out time to s...
Federal Legislator Interview
During National Policy Seminar (March 20-23, 2022), Virginia’s Congressional members were very hard to schedule time with. We were able to schedule a joint zoom meeting with the eleven conference attendees from Virginia and Educational Legislative aids, Karishma Merchant and Montrel Tennessee from...
Quick Connection
I met Christi Hack, my ACTE Fellow Mentor, on a zoom meeting on February 2, 2022 and we immediately made a connection! We are both Agriculture teachers by trade and that allowed us to instantly jump into conversation. Christi is in Kentucky and is currently serving in an administration position ...
Growing Leaders in ACTE
After National Policy Seminar (NPS) an idea has continued to resonate with me– and that is this, how does one grow a leader? As an educator myself, in the profession of helping students learn and develop talents, discover interests and abilities, and ultimately grow into their future careers, I ha...
Using My Teacher Voice
Entering my first day in the classroom I remember giving student instructions. At first it appeared students were not listening, and then I realized my voice was not having the impact I intended because I was using my regular voice, not my teacher voice. After this sudden realization I quickly incre...
Personal Accountability-The Way Out of the Blame Game
Are you feeling frustrated, tired of others making mistakes that make your life more difficult, wishing away the day due to all the incompetent people around you? Many days of asking yourself…why do they do it that way? Why don’t they talk to the people who actually do the job? Why must I always...
Mock It Til You Rock It! How Mock Interviews Can Benefit Students
For the past three years, the Las Cruces Public School district has worked with the New Mexico Workforce Connections office to host a mock interview event for CTE students. The event gives students an opportunity to practice their interview skills with a community member. Students and interviewe...
ACTE Fellowship Mentor Interview
It was befitting that the opportunity arose to interview Ms. Jayme Fitzpatrick prior to attending the upcoming National Policy Seminar in March. Ms. Fitzpatrick currently serves as CTE Manager for Career &Technical Education in the Deer Valley Unified School District in Phoenix, Arizona. A fun f...