Educational Impact

It was July 20, 1969. The nation’s attention was riveted on what was happening a world away—238,900 miles away—on the moon’s Sea of Tranquility, where humankind was about to take its first step on an extraterrestrial surface: “One small step for man; one giant leap for mankind.”

As the 2021 holiday season approaches, it might be good to update again regional developments in the wind energy business for a few minutes.

It’s early afternoon in Chandler, Arizona where your author recently visited family. Way out West, the hotter West, much hotter I might add than Southcentral New Mexico.

In CTE, we tend to focus on the technical stuff—the “hard” stuff (the technology, the tools, the processes involving equipment). But what about the people side of the business, or the “soft” side?

It was recently all hands on deck (AHOD) again as the saga of Region 9 Education Cooperative industrial-scale wind energy CTE resumed.

Picture yourself 260 feet off the ground, strapped in with a safety harness, working in the out-of-doors, with a great view. You're earning lots of money in your base paycheck, plus overtime, often plus per diem. Your near or in central or eastern New Mexico and your working on 21st-century wind turbines.

A rural New Mexico newspaper reported earlier this year that “The San Jon Municipal Schools Board of Trustees (Board of Education) unanimously voted to reject a sports cooperative agreement with Grady and House” (neighboring school districts). Other small districts although have approved similar agreements across New Mexico, in order to keep at least a minimum number of HS sports for declining numbers of their rural students. Still, others have forfeited games or discontinued sports altogether. Such declines offer young families yet another reason to move away from rural New Mexico communities. They are simply the latest of several indicators that rural populations, and the supporting rural economy, continue to decline.

Imagine this. You are in northern Lincoln County, or in Torrance County, or maybe Eddy County, and headed to your office to work. Driving a company truck to your office. Except, your ‘office’ is more than 200 feet off the ground. Atop a wind turbine tower. As a member of a technical team that is responsible for ten to 15 towers per technician. You are wearing a hard hat, safety glasses, gloves, steel-toed boots, and arc flash work clothes. You are hooked into safety harnesses. Your job is as a wind turbine technician. Sound like your kind of deal?

Picture yourself. 260 feet off the ground. Strapped in with safety harnesses. Working in the out-of-doors, with a great view. Earning lots of money in your base paycheck, plus overtime, often plus per diem. Near or in central New Mexico. Working on 21st century wind turbines.

Remember when luck starts to change and your sports team makes an unbelievable comeback? An incredible comeback? A wildly impossible comeback?

There is a long and valued connection between CTE and STEM. Career-Technical Education and Science-Technology-Engineering-Mathematics. CTE instructors and students need to understand science and mathematical concepts to do their valuable jobs in our economy. 

Step back into the story – the interview with long-time CTE instructor Mike Gaines. In addition to answering several career questions, the interview with Gaines also offers insightful suggestions regarding how CTE has changed over the years, and what is needed now in CTE. 

Remember what it was like 35 days ago? Routines were firm; prepare for work, drop kids off at school or daycare, gym time, pick up kids, cook dinner, do laundry, help with homework, and this repeats daily for the four or five day week for you, your students, and maybe your own children  Teachers…..what has changed?

Region 9 has so many programs that make a difference every day in our communities. School-based health is no exception. This link to a recent article in the Ruidoso Newspaper that has great information provided by Ashlee McEwan, our school-based health director. Please scroll down to the Help Available header to read the article.

Are you working on your dossier? Do you need assistance? Join us for a 'Dossier Workshop' from the comfort of your home.

One of the very best parts of the continuing CTE story is the people involved, the instructors that work in CTE fields, training America’s workforce. It’s a story worth reading about, worth telling and retelling. How, in this particular case, a guy chose a CTE career as a Vocational Agriculture instructor in New Mexico instead of something else.

These days find us sitting at our desks focused on monitors involved in meetings for much of the day, Zoom, Google Hangouts, Google Meets, Microsoft Team, GoTo Webinars.

New Mexico and the nation continue to struggle with the growing spread of the COVID-19, with falling oil/gas prices and mounting unemployment.

As this blog is being written, the New Mexico economy is headed south. Public and tribal schools, colleges of various types have been dismissed and may stay closed into the summer. 

With the dynamically changing environment, we have faced the past two weeks, Region 9 remains open. Departments and staff are mostly continuing work by working remotely and on projects and assignments specific to program needs.

There has been much discussion over the past few years regarding the need for ‘soft skills’ in career-technical education (CTE).

On January 24 through 25, 2020 Region 9 hosted its first annual Math Adoption Days. Curriculum selection for school districts is an onerous and time consuming process. Our schools strive to ensure that the curriculum they select for their classrooms is valid, equitable, and valuable to everyone involved in the educational process.

Region 9 is taking proactive steps across all departments to follow the recommendations from the NMDOH and the CDC.

The CTE landscape has certainly changed considerably over the last 40 years. One thing unchanged is a continuing concern for students, and ultimately, workers' safety. Safety is a BIG deal in pre-employment training by CTE instructors and later on the job, by industry project managers.

On January 28, 2020, Region 9 Education Cooperative hosted a KidWind teacher training! The event brought together twelve teachers from the outlining districts (Capitan, Carrizozo, Corona, and Hondo) as well as local community members. What is KidWind? KidWind is a supplemental classroom curriculum that provides interactive activities that provide a method for students fourth grade through 12th grade to learn more about renewable energy while, at the same time, activating students' math, science, and problem-solving skills.

This week we will complete the final session of the Region 9 Ambassador program. We are providing a series of three classes each two hours long to create more awareness of Region 9, our programs, and services among a broader representation of our staff. 

The 2020 New Mexico Legislature, now in session, continues to deal with the aftermath of the Yazzie-Martinez lawsuit decision rendered in 2018 by a New Mexico District Court.

Career-technical Education (CTE) today is very different than your grandmother’s vocational education. Remember typing and home economics?

CTE. Where have we been? Where are we headed? Past. Present. Future.

NM CTE has been around for quite a while. Following WWII and 12 million GIs returning home to America mostly from overseas, rural schools started growing out of their one-room schoolhouse origins into modest sized campuses with multiple buildings, classes, and programs. Among the program growth was CTE.

A rural New Mexico newspaper recently reported: “The San Jon Municipal Schools Board of Trustees (Board of Education) unanimously voted to reject a sports cooperative agreement with Grady and House” (neighboring school districts).

Going to class in a Career-Technology Education (CTE) program is a little different, well, a lot different than to a regular high school or college class.

Region 9 Educational Services provides a broad range of services and professional development in our member districts and across the state.