HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Take to the skies with the Flying Tigers. They're students at Sterling High School.
This year's program has put out the largest number of high school solo pilots ever. It's the only program of its kind in the state, and for these students, it's life changing.
At 17 years old, high schoolers George Smith, James Bunch and Christian Moreno are flying high and living a dream.
They are among 40 other students who are apart of Sterling High School's Aviation Sciences magnet program, which trains future pilots and others in the aviation industry. But those three students, and another two, are -- let's just say -- flying above the rest, as they have now taken to the skies, solo.
"Everything was racing through my head, everything. My parents were crying, my instructor was proud," Bunch said.
"It was just like a dream come true, it was a very exhilarating moment," Smith said.
"I felt like I am capable of doing everything," Moreno said.
Not to worry, because by the time they reach the cockpit of the Grumman Cheetah single-engine plane, they've had hours upon hours of classroom training, intense math and science from instructors at Flying Tigers Flight School.
"A great deal of science involved with aerodynamics and with the systems on the plane," flight instructor Warren Benson said.
The training usually costs thousands.
"Generally to get a private pilot license is going to cost between $6,000 and $8,000," Benson said.
For Sterling students, it is free of charge.
For these students it's about much more than flying solo; it's about an opportunity that has already changed their lives.
"No matter what obstacle that lies ahead of you, between getting from point A to point B in aviation, just stick with it and push hard for it," Smith said.
Many of the students begin their training in the ninth grade. For many of the students, like Smith, by the time they finish the program, they will likely have their private pilot's license.
WHAT is the Energy City of the Future 2050 Competition?
The Energy City of the Future Competition provides Houston-area middle and high school students with an opportunity to explore Houston and its energy industry. As participants in this competition, students spend one semester working in four-person teams to learn about Houston and to design plans for the city’s energy use in the year 2050. Over the course of the program, participants tour the city, attend energy-related educational events, and meet with energy-industry representatives. Students also create scale models of Houston in the year 2050, devise marketing campaigns explaining how energy will be vital to that future city, and defend their plans before a panel of judges from across Houston. Winning teams receive scholarships provided by Consumer Energy Alliance!
As part of Energy Day’s year-long initiative to engage students in energy education, Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA), the Consumer Energy Education Foundation (CEEF) and our Energy Day partners are excited to host the 2nd Annual Energy Day Academic Program.
The Energy Day Academic Program helps to amplify existing academic competitions and events through a series of six unique, citywide, energy-related competitions aimed to motivate, challenge and inspire young minds to seek careers in science and technology. Winners from each competition receive an award and recognition at Energy Day.
| Event | Date | Location |
|---|---|---|
| The HoustonWorks USA & Schlumberger E2Engineering Excellence Competition | February 18, 2012 | Houston Museum of Natural Science, Houston, Texas |
| The Science and Engineering Fair of Houston | March 1-3, 2012 | George R. Brown Convention Center, Houston, Texas |
| The CSTEM Challenge | March 31, 2012 | George R. Brown Convention Center, Houston, Texas |
| The HGS/HMNS/CEA Art, Essay and Media Contests | April 1-30, 2012 | Houston, Texas |
| Houston: Energy City of the Future 2050 Competition | May 2012 | Houston, Texas |
| The Children’s Museum of Houston Young Inventors’ Showcase | May 19, 2012 | Houston, Texas |
Anatomy and Physiology – Understanding Diseases
The Health Science Program at Waltrip High School is bookended by Ayesha Ahmad and Mary Gibson. Ms. Gibson teaches a coherent sequence of Tech Prep courses and concludes in a work-based practicum prior to graduation. Ms. Ahmad teaches Anatomy and Physiology, along with a number of core science subjects.
Ms. Ahmad was difficult to spot when I first walked into her classroom, as she was seated among the students for the upcoming presentations and was prepared to engage them in discussion. On this visit, students were presenting their Disease Research Project. The students had been asked to research a specific disease, submit a written report of their findings to describe its history, causality, epidemiology, pathology, response and treatment, along with its socio-politico-economic impact. They were also expected to stand before their peers and the teacher to present their work and to defend their body of research and conclusions.
This was an effective technique to engage all types of learners, particularly visual learners. Ms. Ahmad used peer-to-peer feedback and offered support during and after the presentations. She also used the process as a way to instruct soft skills, presentation skills, course vocabulary, and to promote literacy. She was very encouraging to the students, but every misstep and every poorly remembered fact was used as a teaching opportunity to help them improve.
Every career in the health care industry starts with a solid foundation of knowledge. The Anatomy and Physiology course provides part of that foundation at Waltrip. Anatomy is the study of the structures associated with the human body. Physiology is the study of the function of each of these structures. The understanding of anatomy and physiology are fundamental to the understanding of diseases and how to diagnose and combat them. Organ systems are so interconnected that a disease in one system may result in a symptom in another system. All of the students seem to have grasped an understanding of the complexities to overcome in the course work.
Many of the students indicated that they have aspirations for future careers in the health science industry and seemed genuinely excited about their research efforts. I observed two classes and both well-behaved groups of youngsters put forth varying degrees of effort, but I believe that all of them took away an improved skill set.
(CBS News) ALLENTOWN, Pa. - "I don't really like the second shift," Nick Senniti, 20, says. "But you've got to start somewhere."
Despite the worst job market in decades, Senniti had three job offers right out of high school.
CBS News correspondent Elaine Quijano reports Senniti graduated in 2009 as a certified welder from a Career and Technical Education high school -- or what used to be called vocational education. He now works for Air Products in Allentown, Pa.
John McGlade, president and CEO of Air Products, says 4,000 of his 7,500 U.S. employees are skilled workers. His global company designs and builds high-tech hydrogen equipment and devices.
McGlade is "worried" he won't be able to find skilled workers in the future. He hires about 550 U.S. workers a year. Three-hundred-and-sixty are technically skilled positions that require two years of college or advanced certification. These positions can often go unfilled for 12 months.
"You need people who are electronics experts, instrument technicians, mechanics," McGlade said.
This year funding for vocational education was cut by $140 million and President Obama is proposing a 20 percent cut next year.
"Without support and continued development of a skilled workforce, we're not going to be able to fill the jobs," McGlade warned.
Lehigh Career and Technical Institute would be impacted, as well -- 5 percent of its budget comes from federal grants. The school trains about 3,000 students from across the Lehigh Valley. According to the National Association of Career and Technical Schools, these students can earn $26 an hour more than workers with only a high school diploma.
"There is going to be more and more of those skilled jobs that are available, that are going to be paying and provide a sustaining career for years and years to come," McGlade said.
It's a career path that McGlade estimates will need 10 million more skilled workers over the next decade.
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