Senior Sarah Koenig at Vista Ridge High School is the Leander ISD Career and Technical Education (CTE) Student of the Week.
Animal Science Teacher Leah King said that Sarah is one of her star practicum students who regularly receives glowing reviews and accolades from the hospital where she is completing her practicum. The hospital staff have been impressed with her customer service and general knowledge for the veterinary field.
Recently, Sarah stepped in to represent and advocate for VRHS’s Animal science pathway during grade tours. She spoke to hundreds of students and did so at a moment’s notice.
“Sarah can be counted on to represent Vista’s FFA on all levels, but is a shining example of what a student can do with the opportunities available,” King said. “She sets the bar high and gives something for our underclassmen and her classmates to strive for!”
Sarah is the chapter secretary and assists with social media. She been showing both pigs and chickens her 4 years at VRHS. She is also a District FFA officer.
]]>The Vandegrift High School “Vandy’s Dandies” Advanced Floral Design Program flowered for CASA of Travis County‘s Annual Casablanca Gala held at the JW Marriott in Austin Feb. 3.
This is the second year that Vandegrift’s Floral Design program has flowered for the Casablanca Gala. The design order increased from 30 designs in 2023 to 90 designs and two statement pieces in 2024, a testament to the excellent design work from the students in this program.
“My Advanced Floral designers this year have absolutely blown me away!” Agricultural Science Teacher Shannon Tidwell said. “To have such a large group this year who are willing to show up on weekends, work hard and produce stunning work fills me with pride! Creating real and meaningful experiences like this is what this job is all about.”
During the week leading up to the event, all 28 of the Advanced Floral designers participated in creating 38 floral pieces that were attached to clear acrylic centerpiece stands. Students Emmie Gardner, Rachel Mapes and Bryn Pearce helped build two floral pillars that were placed on either side of the podium on the main stage. Emmie Gardner also designed the main entryway design, which was placed on the registration table.
On the morning of the event, a team of eight student designers joined Tidwell to deliver and set up the remaining designs. This team included senior Belle Autry, junior Ava Blauvelt, senior Alissa Dovich, alumna Katelin Dovich, junior Emmie Gardner, junior Rachel Mapes, junior Caroline Peden, junior Madison Slack and student teacher Maggie Bayer. During set-up, designers created 71 whimsical pin frog centerpieces and added final touches to the designs that were made during class in the preceding days.
Tidwell had the opportunity to attend the event along with over a thousand other people. Nearly 2 million dollars were raised for CASA. Every single table in the room had a design created by a Vandegrift High School floral designer, and according to Tidwell, the student work received endless compliments. A reporter from Curated Texan Magazine stated that the podium floral piece was the best one that they had seen all season.
CASA representatives loved the idea of “kids helping kids,” and the Vandy’s Dandies loved having the opportunity to partner with an organization with such a noble and important cause.
]]>Junior Braelyn Hill at Rouse High School is the Leander ISD Career and Technical Education Student of the Week.
Braelyn is a student in the Applied Engineering and Agriculture program at Rouse, and an officer for Rouse’s FFA chapter.
According to Agricultural Science Teacher Brenda Morales, Braelyn’s welding skills have improved and come a long way during this school year. She has built and competed with her lamb stand, and she contributed the stand to Rouse’s agriculture barn for others to use as well. She placed second in the county show with her lamb stand and third at the Greater Leander FFA Show. She also has been very successful in showing her sheep for the past three years.
“Braelyn is one of my most hardworking students. Whether it be in the shop or in the barn, she always does her best to help out,” Morales said. “She is always the one who tries to encourage others.”
]]>Senior Kirsten Tjelmeland at Vandegrift High School is the Leander ISD Career and Technical Education Student of the Week.
According to Agricultural Sciences Teacher and FFA advisor Magan Escamilla, Kirsten is an asset to the veterinary sciences pathway at Vandegrift. She is a student that craves learning new information and skills both inside and outside of the classroom.
Kirsten is enrolled in the Practicum of Veterinary Sciences at VHS, where students have work based learning experiences at a local veterinary clinic while they pursue their TVMA CVA Level One certification. Her clinic always has amazing performance reviews, including that she puts her name on the learning board to learn new skills, answers the clinic phones with confidence, is self-motivated, wise and mature beyond her years.
Kirsten is also a member of the Veterinary Sciences CDE team with the Vandegrift FFA chapter. The team has had a lot of success over the last year and Kirsten is a strong comeptitor. They qualified for the state contest last spring, where the team placed 3rd overall. Kirsten earned first placed overall individually at the state contest.
“On our way home from state contest last May after Kirsten won, she commented, ‘A perfect score is attainable – I mean you know all the things that could possibly be in the contest,'” Escamilla said. “I remember thinking, wow, here’s a student that won first and is still chasing perfection. It’s amazing to have students that are literally the best but are humble enough to realize that there’s still a small margin left for improvement.
In December, Kirsten also competed in a scholarship CDE contest and won first place which secured a $3,000 scholarship.
]]>This month, Leander ISD is highlighting the Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources cluster within the district’s Career and Technical Education program.
“It’s fun to be able to make something with, you know, your own two hands, and be able to put something together that may not be obvious or the easiest thing to do,” Vandegrift High School student Truman Labaj said.
Students in this cluster have several programs of study to choose from: Applied Engineering and Agriculture, Animal Science, Plant Science and Environmental and Natural Resources.
“While I’m not going to be a veterinarian, or I don’t intend to currently, I do want to pursue business and taking the programs and working through the CTE classes, I’ve been able to get more skills that I will need for my job,” Cedar Park High School student Katelyn Groppe said. “Competing in job interviews, I’ve learned to coherently answer questions and stay calm during these or any different kind of interview or application process.”
Learn more about these programs by watching the videos below.
Junior Ava Herron at Leander High School is the Leander ISD Career and Technical Education (CTE) Student of the Week.
Ava is a part of LHS’s Health and Wellness program, focusing on Applied Nutrition and Dietetics.
“Ava is a standout student in this new program of study, and her natural leadership abilities have helped us create a strong foundation for future classes,” Family and Consumer Sciences Teacher Keli McCabe said. “Ava’s passion for nutrition and wellness and dedication to our school motivate our entire class.”
]]>The February CTE Partner of the Month is the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office for their involvement with the Health Science program at Glenn High School.
Williamson County has a stand alone unit, unique to the Austin area and Texas, solely dedicated to mental health. Members of the unit, known as the Crisis Intervention Team (CIT), frequently come to Glenn to share more about the program as well as the importance of mental health.
“WCSO has been a great partner to bring into the classroom,” GHS Human Services teacher Courtnie Gattis said. “The Crisis Intervention Team is always willing to come and speak with GHS students, partner through any training, questions or examples that students ask while also helping to shed light on the importance of mental health, erase stigmas and fear around openly speaking about mental health issues.”
One member of the team who has been a guest speaker at Glenn is Sargent Andy Perez. During his times speaking with students, Perez has explained the importance of mental health, gone over statistics in Williamson County, talked about situations that might occur on shift. He’s also offered insight to students on the extensive training the Crisis Intervention Team goes through and how it is different from typical mental health officer training.
Leander CTE values the investment Andy Perez and other members of the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office have made in our CTE students and programs.
Each month of the 2023-24 school year, the Career and Technical Education department of Leander ISD is recognizing a community partner that has made an exceptional impact on the district’s CTE students or programs. These partnerships are at the core of CTE’s mission to give students valuable, hands-on learning experiences with industry professionals.
]]>Junior Isabella Fahnert at Leander High School is the Leander ISD Career and Technical Education (CTE) Student of the Week.
As an active member of the Career and Technical Student Organization FCCLA, Isabella has worked very hard on a personalized nutrition plan project that she will present to judges at the FCCLA Regional competition in Corpus Christi this month.
Family and Consumer Sciences Teacher Keli McCabe said that Isabella is helping to build campus awareness of the Health and Wellness Program of Study as she influences her classmates with her positive attitude and exceptional communication skills.
“Izzy is a stand out student who has no fear when it comes to accomplishing her goals,” McCabe said. “She is a leader in the classroom and on campus!”
]]>Senior Rex Plunkett from Glenn High School is the Leander ISD Career and Technical Education Student of the Week.
Rex has an interest in Counseling and Mental health. This semester, he started a club at Glenn focused on Mental Health. He also made a plan for the use of garden beds, and is working to make this unused common space a safe space for anyone needing it.
“Rex is an excellent advocate for Mental Health and I can’t wait to see what else his passions lead him to do in his future!” Family Consumer Science Teacher Courtnie Gattis said.
]]>This month, Leander ISD is highlighting two Career and Technical Education (CTE) Clusters: Human Services, and Hospitality and Tourism.
The Human Services Cluster includes Cosmetology and Personal Care Services; Family and Community Services; and Health and Wellness programs of study. The Hospitality and Tourism Cluster includes a Culinary Arts program of study and a Lodging and Resort Management program of study.
“The cosmetology program has given me the opportunity to work on what I want to do in my life, in high school,” Leander High School Graduate Spencer Thompson said. “It’s given me the opportunity to do what I want to do, earlier in life.”
Glenn Culinary Student Jonathan Rodriguez Martinez said that students in the culinary program get extensive hands-on experience and learn a variety of practical skills.
“If you’re trying to actually get into the food industry, I feel like this course would be a good course to go into because it’s very hands-on, very focused on team-building exercises and they actually teach you about the processes of what to expect when you’re entering into the culinary industry,” Martinez said.
Family and Community Services students learn to plan and organize events and volunteer with local organizations, which also builds valuable skills through experience.
“I think it’s really good to learn critical thinking skills and problem solving,” Rouse Student Isabella Cardenas said. “And you get really good team building skills.”
Hospitality students develop skills ranging from customer service to housekeeping to sales.
“Hospitality has taught me how to analyze my situation, even if I don’t know the solution,” Rouse Student Emilyn Le said. “It’s taught me to overcome not knowing what to do.”
Learn more about these LISD CTE programs of study in the videos below.