Pathways CTE Students Earn Top State Honors
SYRACUSE — With guidance from the Wawasee Area Career and Technical Education Cooperative, several Pathways students have established themselves as rising stars in their respective fields by placing in state skills competitions.
Fairfield High School student Joey Davis placed third in the culinary arts portion of the Indiana SkillsUSA competition, which took place April 13-14 in Indianapolis.
Davis was tasked with fabricating a chicken, demonstrating knife skills and preparing three plates. In less than four hours, Davis crafted several courses including a clear chicken vegetable soup, sauteed chicken rice pilaf and braised chicken leg quarters with mushroom reduction and roasted vegetables.
Davis’ third-place win was the first time a Pathways student had placed in the state competition.
Wawasee High School’s Pathways students, Kaylee Vanover, Katie Yoder and Juan Coronado also competed in the SkillsUSA culinary arts competition.
For the first time in program history, these students won first place from the Indiana Association of School Broadcasters for their audio and video work. Sixteen of the radio and television students attended the conference at the University of Indianapolis on March 12 to represent their work with area radio stations. They were among 34 schools and 883 students and staff in attendance at the event.
Andrew Mamone and Michael Shetler, both Fairfield High School students, placed first in the radio sportscast category for their recap of a week in Wawasee athletics that included interviews, commentary and live audio from games.
Fairfield’s Carlos Perez placed first in cinematography for his video entry.
“What I like about our Pathways program is the ability for any high school student to be able to test the waters in multiple career paths,” said Jeremy VanLue, who teaches radio and video classes. “I tell the kids that any time they get an opportunity they should take advantage of it. I tell them, ‘Learn any skill you possibly can because you never know where your path is going to lead you in life.’”
Pathways students are encouraged to participate in competitions like SkillsUSA and the Indiana Association of School Broadcasters to put on display the new skills and techniques they have honed over the past year of career and technical education courses. The state competitions also provide networking and training for the students and an opportunity to practice their professionalism.
Pathways is a cooperative partnership between Whitley County Consolidated Schools, Wawasee Community Schools and Fairfield Community Schools, who work together to prepare area students with the skills necessary to become successful in college or career.
“Our goal is for each student to experience a vibrant environment at Pathways where they can master new knowledge, tap their creativity and explore their potential,” said Director Jon Everingham. “At Pathways, we are preparing our students for a wide range of high-wage, high-skill and high-demand careers.”
Programs of study include: agriculture; architecture and construction; arts, AV technology and communications; business and marketing; culinary arts; education and training; health services; human services; law, public safety, corrections and security; manufacturing; and transportation.