October 10, 2008

Wow, is this a beautiful time of year or what?! I enjoyed the beautiful fall colors in Vermont last week and now get to enjoy them here at home.

I was reminded this week that I'm able to take a vacation and not have to worry about a thing here because we've got a great staff! As many of you have caught me up on last week’s activities, it’s comforting to know I could take on the challenge of biking those Vermont hills knowing that the district was in good hands and business was going on as usual (meaning our students were being taken care of). Thanks to all of you!

Tuesday we took part in a ribbon cutting for the Logan County Convention and Tourism Bureau Welcome Center, which our Building Maintenance students constructed last year. This is a great way for visitors coming off Rt. 33 at Rt. 540 to pick up information about the County. Our students did a great job and had reason to be proud! If you haven’t seen it, stop by the Park and Ride on Rt. 540 west of Rt. 33 and take a look. Thanks to Doug Limes and students for taking on this community service project!

Our Alumni and Friends Association met on Wednesday. I wasn’t able to make the meeting due to a commitment in Columbus; but from reading the minutes, I can see the committee officers are charging ahead with a lot of great plans and activities to build a strong network of alumni and provide resources to current students. It’s especially exciting that many of the events planned for this year revolve around our 35th anniversary. Stay tuned regarding specific activities—it’s going to be a busy year and we’ll need staff involvement!

On Thursday we hosted a statewide Career-Technical Communicators meeting at OHP. Shane Haggerty hosted his counterparts from both career centers and K-12 schools as well as ODE officials, and the topic was using social networking in public relations. I was able to welcome the group and sit in briefly on the discussion. I’m proud that OHP is seen as a leader in this area, and I applaud Shane’s efforts and all of you who are using Web 2.0 technologies to enhance instruction and spread the good word about our programs! I got a good photo of the group, but I can't figure out how to get it off of my Blackberry. That's my "technology challenge" for the coming week--I'll have it for you next week!

I slipped out of the meeting through the Culinary Arts kitchen where the students were busy at work preparing a wonderful lunch for the communicators group. (I also got some great photos of this group too, which I'll share next week!) The dessert was a wonderful baked-apple bread-pudding concoction which was almost too pretty to eat. But, of course, when asked to taste-test it, I felt I should. (It’s a tough job, but someone has to do it!) Yum! Donna Beale and her students always do a terrific job taking care of our guests!

Thursday I sat in on a training session for our United Way Captains. I want to personally thank JoEtta Spain for agreeing to captain our Main Campus, Earl LeVan for taking charge of Adult Education, and Sally Andrews for stepping up for Satellite Programs. Jack Reser and Ilene Heaton of United Way really helped to clarify the impact we can have as a staff if we each give just a little bit. Ilene also mentioned the five students we have involved with United Way Youth Allocations and said, “You’ve got great kids!” She didn’t get any argument from us on that! I hope you’ll all consider doing what you can to support United Way in these difficult economic times. When times get tough, community needs become even more critical. Together we really can make a difference.

I always like to share when I run into former OHP students in the community. I tried a new venture this year and ordered half a pig through a local meat processor. When I went to pick it up, the young man saw my nametag and told me he had gone to OHP in the Machine Trades Program. While he never worked in that career field, he shared that he felt he'd learned a lot through his time here about how to be a good employee. He must have, because he certainly provided great customer service! He was polite and thorough in assuring the order was filled correctly. (He also assured me the pig met its end quickly and painlessly--that meant a lot to me!) Just another example of how we prepare students not just for careers but for success in life.

Have a great weekend and enjoy the beautiful fall colors!