This month Pioneer Technology Center is celebrating CareerTech Month with all CareerTech stakeholders across the nation. Along with our celebration, we want to share some of our recent efforts that continue to give us so many reasons to commemorate. This year we have embarked upon our opening year of the Technology Centers That Work (TCTW) initiative; at the same time we are building the framework for our up and coming Project Lead the Way programs: biomedical sciences and pre-engineering.

The Southern Regional Education Board (SREB), based in Atlanta, Georgia, is working with a small group of Oklahoma technology centers to lead in the implementation of an enhanced version of the High Schools That Work (HSTW) design. Pioneer Technology Center is one of the state’s tech centers that has committed to adopting the Technology Centers That Work (TCTW) culture within our organization. The Key Practices of the TCTW initiative include high expectations, programs of study, academic focus, career-technical emphasis, work-based learning, teacher collaboration, student engagement, extra help and guidance and a culture of continuous improvement. Specifically, we, at Pioneer Tech, are focused on providing challenging vocational and technical studies that emphasize technical competence and the use of high-level mathematics, science and language. We also want to stress to our students the importance of taking the right courses. According to the SREB, "Students who complete the HSTW-recommended career/technical concentration and academic core have higher mean reading, mathematics, and science achievement scores than students who do not meet either or both conditions." Therefore, we know focused academics and career and technical training are an important combination for the success of our learning communities.

Another effort in enhancing our current learning communities includes implementing Project Lead the Way’s biomedical sciences and pre-engineering programs. Specifically, the biomedical sciences program combines math, science, and technology in hands-on, real-world learning experiences to build a foundation for expertise in human and animal life. A sampling of possible careers for a biomedical science student might include being a doctor, dentist, medical technologist, biomedical engineer, ultrasound technician, nurse, veterinarian, paramedic, pharmaceutical scientist or dietician. The biomedical program will enhance our health careers and nursing programs, and at the same time give us an additional edge in fighting the healthcare workforce crisis.

The pre-engineering program piece also uses applied instruction to make science and math relevant to students. Program learning is designed to be reality-based and hands-on. The cutting edge pre-engineering curriculum includes foundation courses such as introduction to engineering design, principles of engineering and digital electronics. Students will follow up their foundational training with specialized curriculum in aerospace engineering, biotechnical engineering, civil engineering and architecture, and computer integrated manufacturing.

Becoming a TCTW school and implementing biomedical sciences and pre-engineering programs at Pioneer Tech are welcomed challenges. We strive to look at ways that we can effectively provide services that address the broad diversity of our community. These initiatives are great examples of our dedication to enhancing the lives and securing the futures of those we serve.