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Hart County High School Celebrates Georgia’s CTAE Month
Throughout the week of Feb. 11-15, Hart County High School marked Georgia’s CTAE (Career, Technical and Agricultural Education) initiative with a series of events to help students understand how to plan for life and a career after high school.
Tuesday set the week into gear, with a college expo to show students state-based secondary educational options. Dozens of Georgia colleges and universities were represented at the college fair, ranging from technical colleges to liberal arts-based universities and alternative opportunities. From Brenau University to Georgia College and more, institutions filled the Fine Arts Center to show students what they can look forward to after graduation.
The following day brought in some 30 local industries and businesses to represent themselves for the career expo. The City of Hartwell, the Hartwell Telephone Company, several branches of the military and more showed up to show off to students possible local employment options once they finish high school and helped them plan out possible future educational and career routes.
On Friday, Dwayne Dye, Hart County Director of Economic Development and President of the College and Career Academy, presented a lecture to all grades at the high school. The Fine Arts Center was packed with 10th to 12th grade students, while 9th grade students viewed the presentation through live streaming in their classrooms. At the core of his presentation, Dye discussed financial wellness and the wide range of career opportunities available here in Hart County.
“Students don’t have to leave home to find successful careers,” Dye said. “I want everyone here in this room to be a millionaire, and you can do that without ever leaving home.”
Dye reviewed tips on saving money, avoiding debt, setting expectations for salaries in accordance to education levels, and broke down what students can expect for themselves in desired career fields, specifically to what are preferred options locally.
Dye also pointed to the number of jobs now available in the community, ranging from being a quality control operator, forklift driver and machinist, to being an engineer, accountant, nurse or biologist, all among options open to students after graduation, with industries in the area. The key, though, is understanding strengths and weaknesses within themselves, as well as knowing what they enjoy doing so no day at work feels like a job, Dye said.
“Set your expectations, know your strengths and weaknesses, and understand who you are and what you want to be,” he said. “Invest in yourself.”
Confessing he was once a struggling student, Dye said he wasn’t always sure as an adolescent where the road of life would take him. But heading off to Athens Technical College decades ago, he learned quickly what he wanted to do, could do and made it happen.
“I am a poster child for believing in technical pathways. I learned computer programing way back then, when that wasn’t as big of a deal as it is now, and through that pathway, I was able to make a career and become successful,” he said. “You can start your career here, and stay here. But if you want to travel the world, there are companies here that will help you do that.”
College and Career Academy CEO Brooks Mewborn echoed Dye’s lecture, noting that students at the high school and adjoining academy have the world at their fingertips- they simply have to complete what they are starting within the walls of the school. A plethora of careers, both technical and otherwise, are being taught at the high school and students have the opportunity to gain experience and college credits before they graduate and walk across the stage in May, diploma in hand. Engineering, graphic design, robotics, engineering, cosmetology and other practical, career-based education is growing within Hart County schools and is setting students on a pathway for success after high school.
The crucial point, though, is taking advantage of the opportunities set before them, and graduating from high school prepared for their future, Mewborn said.
“I admit, I was a struggling student, but now I have five degrees hanging in my office,” Mewborn told students. “Of those, the most important is my high school diploma I got here at Hart County High School. That is what opened the doors for everything else. Without that high school diploma, no other diploma would have happened.”
Currently, Hart County has a 96 percent graduation rate, which is a vast improvement from years ago, and is higher than the state’s average graduation rate of 81.6 in 2018. The college and career academy has played a key part in making that happen, as the academy allows students to pursue their best traits and practice traits that will become careers, many of which will be based in Hart County through the industries already set up or planning to open soon. There are at least 1,400 job openings slated to be filled in the county within the next eight years, which means opportunities for students to stay locally and grow as the community does, he said.
“We want our kids to know, you don’t have to leave home to have a great career, make a good living and make something of yourself,” Mewborn said. “You can do that right here. That was what this week was all about, making sure our kids know what their options are and how they can make their dreams happen, here, and grow from there as they wish.”
About CTAE: Career, Technical, and Agricultural Education (CTAE) is preparing Georgia's students for their next step after high school--college, beginning a career, registered apprenticeships, or the military. Georgia CTAE pathway course offerings, and the new Educating Georgia's Future Workforce initiative, leverage partnerships with industry and higher education to ensure students have the skills they need to thrive in the future workforce. CTAE offers students more than 130 career pathways within the 17 Georgia Career Clusters, according to the Georgia Department of Education.