Powell High School and the state want students to leave prepared to take on the real world — on Oct. 14 two students demonstrated what that could look like.

“I would say that Powell High School prepares you for the future … that’s what this is all about, and in that sense a lot of my peers, I don’t see eye to eye with on a lot of things, but we are all headed for our future,” senior Meisja McCrary said.

Students are either taking the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery, looking at colleges or eyeing a trade, she added.

McCrary and Kaden Wolff served as examples of Career Technical Education concentrators and students who have earned industry recognized credentials at Powell High School. The goal, based on the state and a CTE grant, is for all students to have some form of industry recognized credential beyond their diploma when they graduate, Powell High School Principal Tim Wormald said at an Oct. 14 board meeting. 

“That’s an area that is new to us, but I think we’re getting some traction, starting to figure out how we can help our students get a credential that is meaningful for them,” Wormald said. “[it] not only allows us to meet our requirement that the state gives us, but also is meaningful in some way for the students, at least, that’s our hope.”

Earning CTE certifications has the potential to benefit students, he said. Wolff, a junior, is figuring out what he wants to do but “if nothing else, it’s going to look good on a resume, it’s going to probably help him out as he’s out there applying for jobs and thinking about his future career,” Wormald said.

Students are considered career ready CTE concentrators (Powell High wants all students college, career or military ready), when they have passed three courses within a specific CTE program.

For a student like McCrary, who told Wormald she’s looking at becoming a nurse practitioner or nurse anesthetist, she has now had experiences that can provide direction.

McCrary is a concentrator in agriculture, health and education while Wolff has earned certifications that could serve him well in graphic design or business. 

“I actually earned my CNA license, and I’m working under it at The Heartland assisted living facility,” McCrary said. “I came from work today to be here and it is a great opportunity.”

She participates in the high school work experience program and has been supported by Kandi Bennett, a SkillsUSA adviser and family and consumer science teacher at Powell High School, in earning certifications. Bennett even drove McCrary and other students to Worland to earn their CNA license. For her education and agriculture path, McCrary has filled observation hours at the middle school (she will be applying for a substitute license this summer at 18) and she has earned her ParaPro license. In agriculture, McCrary, who is an accomplished member of FFA, has earned her beef quality insurance certification.

As a concentrator in three pathways McCrary is “just the average student at the high school,” she said. 

“So Meisja, I don’t know that you’re the average,” Wormald said with a chuckle, “I don’t know that quite as many students have taken advantage of those opportunities to earn those credentials like you have.”

Wolff has also succeeded in the CTE program albeit with a more focused lens.

Wolff has earned certifications in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop while staying at Powell High, he said.

To earn his certifications he worked his way through the advanced graphics class, gaining hands-on experience along the way.

“I got to do all sorts of projects on the computer, which that really helped the most with just getting familiarized with all the tools and the terms and all that stuff on the programs,” Wolff said. 

He added this was beneficial in allowing him to prepare before testing for his certifications.

“I’m not totally sure … what I want to incorporate the certifications with in my future, but I am focusing on sort of a business path right now, and I think I can incorporate this into my own business whether it’s creating advertisements or something like that,” Wolff said.