Garrard County Schools Highlighted at Kentucky School Boards Association Annual Conference
The Kentucky School Boards Association Annual Conference regularly attracts more than 1,000 attendees - school board members, superintendents, administrators, presenters and exhibitors - for a weekend of learning and networking. This year, Garrard County Schools were highlighted in multiple areas at the conference.
The conference began on Friday, February 24th, 2023 at 1:00PM with Garrard County High School’s Band performing. As conference attendees were entering the luncheon hall before official start time, GCHS band performed a number of songs before the conference officially began. The conference officially kicked off at 1:00PM on Friday afternoon, with the GCHS Band performing the National Anthem. CLICK HERE to listen.
This year’s conference welcomed a new addition for school board members- the CTE Showcase. The Kentucky Department of Education funded mini-grants and opened an application for high schools and vocational schools to apply to showcase a Career and Technical Education pathway. High schools and Vocational schools could choose one pathway to highlight on their mini-grant application. Around seventy schools submitted applicants for the mini-grants. KDE awarded thirty-two schools invitations to showcase events and funds to assist with expenses. Garrard County Schools received TWO invitations and TWO mini-grants to highlight the Health Science pathway at the Area Technology Center and the E-Commerce pathway at Garrard County High School.
Garrard County High School's E-Commerce pathway showcased media, retail operations, and Co-op opportunities for GCHS students. The Area Technology Center's Health Science pathway showcased skills of Phlebotomy and Nurse Aide students in real time, while also featuring alumni members who have entered the healthcare workforce. Every member of our Garrard County School Board visited the Healthcare and E-Commerce booth at the event. Two brave school board members volunteered for the Phlebotomy skills demonstration.
Garrard County High School E-Commerce Pathway instructor, Mrs. Rachel Parsons says, "I am super proud of these students. Their hard work was evident in the display and the passion they have for E-Commerce was contagious. The students showcased work from each class in the E-Commerce Pathway at GCHS. This event highlighted all the reasons why CTE is so important in KY."
Dr. Connie Lamb, GCS School Board member, volunteering to participate in venipuncture stick performed by Kaley Price, GCHS Senior.
Mrs. Mary A. Davis, GCS School Board member, volunteering to participate in venipuncture stick performed by Kaley Price, GCHS Senior.
Principal of the Garrard County Area Technology Center, Mr. Troy Watts says, "“This has been a great opportunity to show off the amazing skills our students perform on a daily basis for our health science classes."
Each year the KSBA conference welcomes all 173 Kentucky public school districts to submit a student-produced banner for display at the conference. The banners are an important contribution to the conference, reminding attendees of schools’ primary focus: learning and learners. Each banner is encouraged to depict the theme of the conference, which this year was, The Sky is the Limit. Garrard County High School’s Art Club completed the digital banner. The Art Club officers chose to make it physically together using an assortment of traditional mixed media to express the theme “ The Sky is the Limit.”
GCS Superintendent, Mr. Kevin Stull says, “Student representation from Garrard County Schools at the Kentucky School Board Association’s Annual Conference was outstanding. With the GCHS art classes producing a digital banner, the GCHS pep band providing pre-conference music plus the National Anthem, the GCHS e-commerce classes highlighting the CTE options of the business programming at the high school, and nursing highlighting one of the CTE options at the Garrard ATC, it was like having Garrard County Schools in Louisville. I could not be prouder of our students and our programs. While the students all represented GCHS, they got their first experiences in art, music, and academics at CDR, LES, PLE, and GMS. Now, GCHS is capitalizing on the hard work the students and the other school staffs have put in. It was a great example of students representing an entire district.”