Trenton High School DCTC participants for the 2016-2017 school year were Tanner Smith, Katrina Catabian, Kathryn Bialoblocki, Madison Donaldson, and Donald Grocki and Morghan Crandall (not pictured).
BY KATHY KANE
The Downriver Career Technical Consortium is made up of nine school districts including Trenton, Grosse Ile, Carleton Airport, Huron, Flat Rock, Riverview, Southgate, Carlson and Woodhaven.
It was founded 51 years ago with two schools, two programs and the ideal of giving students educational choices. Its purpose is to provide academics, career and technical experiences to prepare high school students for college or highly skilled trades. Students in the program can now also earn advanced placement credits and up to 29 credit hours at Henry Ford College and Schoolcraft College.
The group held an appreciation breakfast in January for its 10th grade job shadowing program that was held last year over several weeks at 26 businesses, schools and police and fire departments with 35 mentors in the Downriver area. Forty four students who were chosen for the program had to compete by writing and interviewing for the opportunity to job shadow.
Four Trenton businesses that participated in the job shadowing were Jackson, Snider, Parker, DDS, Colors By Kim, Market Insights and the Trenton Trib. Trenton Counselors Stacy Marcum, Angie Siggia, Principal Michael Doyle, Assistant Principal Ronald Diroff and Superintendent Rodney Wakeham from Trenton Public Schools were also present at the ceremony.
Trenton students involved in the program included Tanner Smith, who experienced Jackson, Snider, Parker dental offices, Kathryn Bialoblocki, who worked at Home Spun in Riverview, Madison Donaldson and Katrina Catabian, who worked at Grosse Ile nursing, Morghan Crandall who had a marketing and journalism experience at Trenton Trib and Market Insights and Donald Grocki, who shadowed at the Woodhaven High school dental program.
One Grosse Ile business, Grosse Ile Nursing, hosted four students, two were from Trenton High School. Grosse Ile was represented by counselors Joan Sclater and Sarah Strohbeck, Grosse Ile High School Principal Paul Szymanski and Superintendent Joanne Lelekatch.
Grosse Ile 10th graders who participated were Hannah Thomas, Julia Bargardi and Jillian Pusdesris, who had a Police Department experience and Kaylee Sochocki, who had a teaching experience at Woodhaven High School.
Students were expected to keep journals of their encounter and report back to their counselors. Those students who spoke about their career duties at the event enjoyed the career exploration and really engaged with the programming.
The DCTC also offers 20 two-year (junior and senior year) programs, including criminal justice and EMT, agri-science, architecture, auto body, aviation, cabinet and furniture, construction, cosmetology, dental, digital media, engineering, graphic arts, health, hospitality, heating and cooling, information technology, education, marketing, megatronics and welding.
Interested students should check with the participating high school’s counseling office for more information.