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Oct. 24, 2019 

Study Urged to Measure Interest in Career & Technical Education 

In September, district leaders and board members Bernadette Saleh and Juanita Camacho visited a school in Philadelphia that offers Career & Technical Education in collaboration with Johnson Controls. 

During a board work session this week (Oct. 22), board members expressed interest in pursuing the concept further, but board president Bernadette Saleh urged the district to first check and make sure the idea is something students and community want.

“Before we invest all our time and money, I’d like to see a small study to gauge interest,” she said, adding that the concept will require major commitment from many community partners. “My other major concern is that the jobs students will have in the future have not been created yet.”   

In Philadelphia, the school prepares students—some of who have been enrolled in the school by the judicial process—to work in various trades, such as heating and cooling technicians. Students apply what they learn to the school itself and are responsible for ensuring that the building’s mechanical systems run smoothly.  “This is a great thing for them to be able to do,” said Saleh. “I just want to make sure it’s what they want to do.” Several board members noted that the job of servicing heating and cooling systems, and major appliances, is not something that will be lost to automation anytime soon. 

Superintendent Sandos said a focus on career and technical education for some students could result in “tailoring some of the course work, so math being taught looks like the math that students would use later in the trades.” Given the state’s number of sunny days and the blossoming emphasis on renewable energy, he added, the program might focus on skills needed for the solar industry. 

Before getting fully behind the push for career and technical education, board member Karla Najera also asked for any plan to precisely detail where resources would be taken to support it. “What will this be taking resources from?” she asked.   

On the whole, however, board members expressed interest in continuing to pursue a plan.

CASB

Board member Sally Daigle recently attended the Colorado Association of School Boards (CASB) Delegate Assembly. The Delegate Assembly is the foundation of CASB’s governance structure and provides critical direction to CASB when it represents members’ interests before state and national policymakers. Daigle reported that the group discussed safety and mental health issues. The assembly also approved several resolutions that address charter schools that want to operate both as entities under the Charter School Institute and simultaneously tap local property tax resources. “That’s not fair to taxpayers,” said Daigle, and “usurps” local control.  

Oct. 8 Incident

Superintendent Sandos discussed staff response to an incident at Sheridan High School on Tuesday, Oct. 8, when a SOAR Academy student engaged in a violent encounter with a high school student from Denver.  Superintendent Sandos praised staff members for their responsiveness and support for staff and students. “I’m very, very proud of this group—up and down,” said Superintendent Sandos. “I couldn’t have been more pleased with how we responded.” Five minutes after the incident started, he said, all key district leaders were on site.

Board members also discussed ways to better stay in the loop as such events unfold. Chief Operations Officer Cyndi Wright also provided an update on implementation of various safety systems provided via a recent SAFER (School Access for Emergency Response) grant from the state of Colorado. “I believe the trainings were a catalyst in how calm we were during the emergency that Tuesday night,” she said. “We felt comfortable doing what we do.  On the inside, none of us were super calm but on the outside, we were calm.”

Ron Carter

Board members also discussed various options for paying tribute to the late Ron Carter, who passed away earlier in the month. Carter was a longtime board member and board president.

Located southwest of Denver, Sheridan School District 2 seeks high-level post-secondary options for all students through continuous improvement of quality instruction. More: