CRTC Compass Magazine

  COVID Couldn’t Stop the CRTC Our motto at the CRTC is “Be Prepared to Stand Out,” and in this COVID-impacted school year the CRTC - our students, staff and our wider community of parents, industry and postsecondary partners, proved that those words are more than a slogan.  Because we are an applied learning center that blends classroom education and technical skill training, it was essential that we stay open for on-site learning this school year. And we were determined to continue with some form of college and career connections, such as work-based learning, professional certifications and college credit opportunities. Preparation, persistence and the ability to adapt are core principles we both teach our students and practice ourselves. We petitioned the school board and were able to open with on-site learning, and continue that throughout most of the school year. We partnered with employers to navigate shifting COVID guidelines and create innovate career connections with the resul

  CRTC Maintains Workplace Connections in the Midst of COVID CRTC Maintains Workplace Connections in the Midst of COVID It was Priscilla Durst’s first day at her internship  at the Myhre Equine Clinic in Rochester, and when they found out that she had grown up around horses, they put her right to work on an injured horse, flushing out a nasal catheter and administering oral medications. For the Concord High School senior, the immersion experience helped to confirm her ambitions to become a certified veterinary technician.  In a school year complicated by COVID rules and restrictions, both in the classroom and on the jobsite, the CRTC still was able to connect 285 students to some form of Work-Based Learning experience by working with employers and taking advantage of online connections, in-school businesses and independent study. “Thanks to creativity and the willingness to work within unusual and fast-changing parameters, local employers stepped up and adapted to give our students opp

  CRTC Health Science Students Pass EMT Practical Exam Health Science seniors (L to R) Jessica White, Kaylee Wentworth, Liz Pavnick, Lauren Martel, Yvette Kagirimpundu (back row), and Kaylee Magoon, Sarah Sponenberg, Braileigh Booker and Sarah Prouty (not photographed) have completed the CRTC EMT preparation program, which includes (in addition to classwork) 30+ hours of ambulance ride-along experience, and 4+ hours of clinical time working in the Concord Hospital Emergency Department.  All nine students are pursuing National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians certification, which requires students to pass the cognitive (knowledge) and psychomotor (skills) exams to become certified. The CRTC students completed and passed the skills exam on their first attempt in late May, and testing for the cognitive portion of the test is ongoing. Thus far, Jessica White, Kaylee Wentworth, Lauren Martel and Sarah Sponenberg have passed both exams and are now nationally certified EMTs! Once ce

  CRTC Cosmetology Students Showcase Historical Hairdos What do Medusa, Queen Elizabeth I, Hedy Lamarr, Rosie the Riveter and legendary Irish pirate Grace O'Malley have in common? They were all on stage in the Concord High School Christa McAuliffe Auditorium last month for the annual CRTC Cosmetology Hair Show, which this year focused on “Hair Through the Ages.” This was the ninth year for the annual program, started by CRTC Cosmetology teacher Kimberly Hannon as a way to provide cosmetology students from several NH Career and Technical Education centers with a creative way to showcase their professional skills and artistic abilities. Last year’s show was cancelled due to the COVID crisis, and this year’s show had limited participation due to shifting COVID guidelines and restrictions. “I thought it was important to continue with the show this year, despite the challenges, because the students needed that creative outlet and they needed to get together with students from other cen

  Meet Our Staff: Amy Tietjen Smith, CRTC Work-Based Learning Specialist In an effort to ensure all second year CRTC students have opportunities to experience relevant and robust workplace learning, Amy Smith was hired into a newly-created position last spring to  strengthen connections to local career exploration opportunities, and to develop a system to track and quantify those experiences. A challenging task under any circumstances, this work was made exponentially more difficult this past year considering that Amy was forced to create these types of connections in a COVID-restricted environment. Learn a little more about CRTC Work-Based Learning Specialist Amy Smith by reading this month’s CRTC Staff Q&A. How long have you worked in Career and Technical Education? I joined the staff at CRTC in February 2020--just before we had to shift and adapt due to COVID. So I have yet to experience a "normal" year! What industry experience did you bring to your position at the CR

  First Responder Ride-Alongs Excite and Educate Emergency Services Students On a Wednesday in late March, CRTC Emergency Services I student Sarah Lewis was living the dream, job shadowing at the Concord Fire Department’s Station 7, pulling a 11-hour shift alongside the rest of the station’s crew when the call came in for a woman who had overdosed on fentanyl. When they arrived at the scene the woman had stopped breathing and was turning blue. “My first thought was ‘oh my God, this really happens to people,’” the Concord High School junior said. “Then it was like, okay, I guess it’s time to get to work, and after that I was focused on watching, learning and what I could do to help.” Unfortunately, the woman died at the scene, which, Sarah said, became another important lesson in how first responders deal with tragedy. “Other firefighters on the shift talked with me about the experience, and helped me to gain some perspective. It’s almost like you deal with it, you talk about it, and th

  CRTC Completion Ceremony Rises Above COVID Challenges For a second year, COVID precautions forced the CRTC program completion ceremony to be held in the Concord High School parking lot. But location had little impact on the spirits of attending family and friends or the celebration of the accomplishments of 237 CRTC students who successfully completed one of the CRTC’s 11 Career Pathway programs. “ CRTC's Comp Night, despite being held in a parking lot, went remarkably well,” said CRTC Director Steve Rothenberg. “Our student speakers shared their personal journeys in both a thoughtful and candid manner. Their insights into how they have grown assures me, and I think the audience, that personal discovery, and college and career success are accessible by so many more students than we ever dreamed of.” One theme of the night was the benefits to students from having the CRTC open for in-person, on-site learning for almost the entire school year, something CRTC administrators, teacher

  Saying Goodbye to a CRTC Legend Saying Goodbye to a CRTC Legend As Rebecca Mancini was preparing for her recent graduation from the Lakes Region Community College Culinary Arts program, there was one person she wanted to make sure was there to watch her collect her diploma. Rebecca was graduating as LRCC’s Culinary Student of the Year, a member of the Phi Theta Kappa honor society, and winner of the President’s Award for Excellence, and she was eager to share that moment with the person who inspired her to rise above shyness and uncertainty and reach for her dreams -- her high school Culinary Arts teacher, Chef Bob McIntosh. “Chef Mac played a huge part in my success in education and my growth within the culinary industry,” the 2018 CRTC Culinary & Pastry Arts program graduate said. “His passion for teaching, his willingness to put in extra hours mentoring us, and his drive to push all his students to do their best are what makes him so very special.” Chef Bob McIntosh will be re