As a reminder, Regional School Calendars are due by June 1, 2022 for school administrative units (SAU) and private schools approved for tuition purposes, in coordination with their local secondary career and technical education (CTE) school. This requirement is part of Public Law 2011, Chapter 686 to promote collaboration among local school administrative units that may benefit from inter-administrative unit collaboration beyond CTE.
For school year 2022-23, both regional school calendars and individual calendars for each school administrative unit must be submitted by the director of the local CTE Center/Region to the Department of Education (DOE) no later than June 1, 2021 for a decision on approval by July 12, 2022. Guidance and templates can be accessed electronically at www.maine.gov/doe/regionalcalendar/.
Given the coordination required for fulfillment of this law, the Maine DOE recommends that SAUs initiate discussions as soon as feasible, including representatives from all affected secondary schools and their associated career and technical education center or region.
Pictured: Pam Abzan the instructor of Lewiston Regional Technical Center’s Medical Science Program, left, stands with her student Olivia Servidio who has been selected for the AspirnautTM Summer Research Internship.
One of Lewiston Regional Technical Center’s very own students, Olivia Servidio, has been chosen for a spot at AspirnautTM Summer Research Internship. This internship is hands-on and a mentored laboratory experience for high school students interested in a career in the fields of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM).
Participants reside for six weeks on the campus of Vanderbilt University and conduct biomedical research at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, TN. Interns are paid a stipend for the time they work in the lab, provided room and board, and given the opportunity to interact with university faculty and administrators.
Students in the past have been involved in research ranging from understanding diabetic kidney disease and breast cancer to designing microfluidic devices with engineers.
Only 20-25 students, from all over the country who apply, are accepted into the program. Students applying need to achieve excellent test scores in science and math and are committed to pursuing a career in the STEM field. The right candidate needs to be curious, resourceful, highly engaged, and resilient.
Olivia Servidio is a bright and driven student and was nominated by her Medical Science teacher, Pam Abzan, to participate in this internship.
Pictured: Team LRTC 8023 with their robot. From left to right: Ahmed Hussein, Omar Osman, Jacob Willette, and Chance Tuttle.
April 2nd – 10th is National Robotics Week, a time to focus attention on this interdisciplinary component of computer science. In Maine public schools, robotics comes to life in a variety of ways. From our high school students participating in robotic competitions down to the youngest elementary student programming robots to follow a sequence, robotics is a grassroots effort that we can see in many schools. This recognition, dating back to 2009, has a simple mission – “to inspire students in robotics and STEM-related fields and to share the excitement of robotics with audiences of all ages.”
This second installment highlights the underdog story of LRTC 8023 (Team 8023*) from Lewiston Regional Technology Center. The team formed in 2019 and only had one competition under their belt when FIRST suspended the season. At that first meet in Massachusetts, they walked away the Rookie Inspiration Award and many lessons learned from competing on the field.
LRTC 8023’s two awards in a display case at their school. Two events, two awards, including an Alliance win, is quite the feat. The broken piece was sent with love from Team 6324 with the inscription “Ouch!”
After a year and half without in-person competitions, the team made their return to the carpet for the Pine Tree District’s FIRST Robotics Competition held at Thomas College in Waterville. The twenty-six teams were from Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts, many of them with long established programs and experienced mentors.
The team had been spending months getting their robot ready for their first competition of the 2022 season. They were, however, underdogs. They came out of the qualifying matches with a 3-6 record. They were brought into an Alliance with Orange Chaos (Team 4564) out of Brewer and Morpheus (Team 5813) out of New Hampshire going into the playoffs. After a spectacular final match with a close point count, LRTC came out victorious. It was a big lift for the young team mentored by LRTC Trade Works instructor Alan Graves and Lewiston High School Social Studies teacher Kathy County. As a result, they ranked 21 of 183 in New England district. LRTC 8023 was one of the fourteen Maine teams headed down to the NE District Pease ANG Event this past weekend, where the field was deep and the competition was fierce. They came in 32nd overall after a 5-7 record during qualifying and did not make the playoffs. “They worked hard, showed up and had what it took to show what a true underdog can do,” LRTC Student Services Support Kelsey Poliquin said. The town of Lewiston recognized the team’s accomplishments and proclaimed April 5th to be “Robotics Team Day” and invited the team to city hall to be formally recognized.
On Wednesday, March 3, 2022 from 8:00 to 10:00 am, the Work Force Group for LD 313 will hold its next meeting hosted by the Maine Department of Education.
LD 313 was passed in the 130th legislature and is focused on several topics regarding Career and Technical Education. If you would like to join as an attendee and listen to the discussion, you can use the following link at the time of the meeting.
On Wednesday, February 23, 2022 from 8:00 to 10:00 am, the Work Force Group for LD 313 will hold its next meeting hosted by the Department of Education.
LD 313 was passed in the 130th legislature and is focused on several topics regarding Career and Technical Education. If you would like to join as an attendee and listen to the discussion, you can use the following link at the time of the meeting.
Maine DECA (formerly Distributive Education Clubs of America) held their annual Career and Development Conference in Auburn at the Hilton Garden Hotel on Friday February 11th.
DECA, an association of marketing, hospitality, finance, and entrepreneur students, prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality, and management from high schools and colleges around the globe.
During the DECA Conference, students from Oxford Hills Regional Technical Center competed in marketing and hospitality categories for a chance to earn a seat at the International Career and Development Conference in Atlanta in April. FOCUS training provided workshop activities and team building for an action packed day.
Maine Department of Education Maine School Safety Center’s Wendy Robichaid was one of five judges that helped out at the conference.
The application process is now open for mini-grant funds from the UMaine Extension Professional Development in Agriculture Literacy (PDAL) program to support Maine High School Career & Technical Education (CTE) Culinary Arts Instructors.
These funds can be used for agricultural literacy education programs at Maine High School CTE Culinary Arts Programs. The deadline for email submission of the application materials is 5:00pm on March 1, 2022. Selected projects will receive funds by March 31, 2022.
To apply, complete the application form and provide a short description of your proposed project, estimated budget, timeline, and how it will impact agricultural literacy education and/or promote the use of local foods in your Culinary Arts Program.
For more information or technical support contact Kathy Savoie at ksavoie@maine.edu.
On Wednesday, February 2, 2022 from 8:00-10:00 am, the Work Force Group for LD 313 will hold its next meeting hosted by the Department of Education.
LD 313 was passed in the 130th legislature and is focused on several topics regarding Career and Technical Education. If you would like to join as an attendee and listen to the discussion, you can use the following link at the time of the meeting.
This is a reminder that Regional School Calendars are due by June 1, 2022 for school administrative units (SAU) and private schools approved for tuition purposes, in coordination with their local secondary career and technical education (CTE) school. This requirement is part of Public Law 2011, Chapter 686 to promote collaboration among local school administrative units that may benefit from inter-administrative unit collaboration beyond CTE.
For school year 2022-23, both regional school calendars and individual calendars for each school administrative unit must be submitted by the director of the local CTE Center/Region to the Department of Education (DOE) no later than June 1, 2021 for a decision on approval by July 12, 2022. Guidance and templates can be accessed electronically at www.maine.gov/doe/regionalcalendar/.
Given the coordination required for fulfillment of this law, the Maine DOE recommends that SAUs initiate discussions as soon as feasible, including representatives from all affected secondary schools and their associated career and technical education center or region.
On Wednesday, January 12, 2022 from 8:00-10:00 am the LD 313 Work Force Group will hold its fourth meeting, hosted by the Maine Department of Education.
LD 313 was passed in the 130th legislature and is focused on several topics regarding Career and Technical Education. If you would like to join as an attendee and listen to the discussion, you can use the following link at the time of the meeting.
Maine DOE Newsroom 