Published: July 18, 2008 05:58 pm            

CAWS teacher program

CULLMAN — By Trent Moore

trentm@cullmantimes.com



Seventeen teachers from the city and county school systems have been given a taste of factory life this week as part of a Cullman Area Workforce Solutions (CAWS) program that began last year.

“I think it’s great, and it gives teachers a different outlook,” County Board of Education Superintendent Hank Allen said. “It’s good sometimes to see things differently and have a different perspective.”

The Cullman Employment Center teamed up with CAWS and the local school systems to give interested teachers a chance to see beyond the classroom, into the jobs many of their students may hold in the future.

Cullman City School Board President Suzanne Harbin said the program is intended to educate local teachers about the expanding industry and opportunities in the Cullman area.

“There are great jobs in this area,” she said. “Education is very important, but it doesn’t always have to be a four-year degree — sometimes it can be a two-year degree or workforce training.”

Harbin said the expanding industrial growth in Cullman creates a unique opportunity for many local students to have a good paying job right here in Cullman after high school.

“The economic development of Cullman relies on having an educated workforce,” she said.

Many of the teachers who participated in the program gathered Friday at the Cullman Chamber of Commerce to talk about their experiences, and how what they learned in the work force will hopefully help them in the classroom.

Vinemont High School teacher Jennifer Carmack, who spent her week at SUMMA Technology, said the time she spent there truly opened her eyes to the fact that sometimes college is not the right option for every student.

“I normally push college,” the English teacher said. “But, now I can steer them into a different avenue if that’s really where they want to go.”

Vinemont High School teacher Connie Hilton said she also had a lot to think about following her experience at SUMMA Technology.

“Every kid has their own traits and ideas and maybe everyone doesn’t want to go to college,” she said. “This helped me be able to let my kids become what they want to be, not what we want them to be.”

CAWS Chairman Judy Bradford agreed with Hilton and Cormack, and said the fact that college isn’t right for every student is something they are trying to impress upon the participating educators.

“College is great, college is wonderful,” she said. “But, there are other great options out there for kids who don’t want to go that route.”

Math teacher Kim Oliver said her time at the Cullman Electric Cooperative gave her a good example she can use to remind her math students to pay attention.

“I was told at least three times (by Co-op employees), ‘I wish I’d have paid attention to algebra,’” she said. “So, now I can go back and tell my students that.”

It wasn’t all business, though, as Hilton said she also had a bit of fun while spending her time at SUMMA Technology.

“I got to use a big, hydraulic drill that drills through metal,” she said. “They were like power tools on steroids.”

The corporate teacher exchange project was funded partially by a grant from the Alabama Department of Labor and partially by the corporation’s involved.

        

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