TECH PREP STUDENT SHOWCASE Wired to the future Getting a jump start on careers

By IAN HILL
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Penn Care Medical Products of Niles now has an Internet site. And as a result, Kati Raymond, an Austintown Fitch High School junior, now has a better understanding of her future.
Raymond was one of several Fitch students who worked to create the Penn Care Web site as part of the Mahoning Area Consortium Tech Prep program. She said her participation has encouraged her to pursue a career in information technology.
"It definitely made me want to do it more," Raymond said. "It's so interesting."
The work of Raymond and other local students enrolled in the tech prep program was on display Monday during the first annual Tech Prep Student Showcase in Kilcawley Center at Youngstown State University.
Ahead of the game: Arlene Floyd, the director of associate degree and tech prep programs at YSU, said the program will benefit students like Raymond when they enter college.
Floyd said because students in the program are given hands-on experience in technical fields, they have a better understanding of technical majors in college.
"They can start out at a level well above other freshmen," Floyd said.
To enroll in the program, a student must be a high school junior or senior who is planning to pursue at least a two-year college degree in a technical field. The students are split into groups that work with local and national businesses on projects related to their chosen field.
Floyd said that about 205 students from 14 local school districts are enrolled in the program.
The businesses that participate in the program include Cisco Systems, a national information-technology company. Through the tech prep program, a group of students from Chaney High School recently worked with Cisco representatives to construct information-routing technology.
Preparation: Ken Brelick, a Chaney junior, said he feels the program will give him an advantage over other students when he enters college.
Maurice Thomas, a junior at Choffin Career Center, added that he believes the program is "getting us ready for the computer world." Thomas was among the Choffin students who worked with Cisco representatives to build an Internet server in a school closet.
Floyd said high school students who are interested in participating in the program should contact their guidance counselors.