Students Interview Author via Skype

Children’s book author, Doreen Cronin, was interviewed this week by Tri-Rivers
Early Childhood Education (ECE) students and staff and Preschool children and staff via Skype. “We skyped for approximately 35 minutes,” said Laura Wixtead, ECE instructor and the coordinator of the activity.

Wixtead had emailed Cornin earlier in the month and asked about the possibility of skyping with the author.  “The ECE students are currently researching children’s literature and children’s authors. Talking with an author via skype seemed like the perfect opportunity for them to learn more about writing as a career, especially writing children’s literature.”

Wixtead was excited when the author agreed to the skype session. “By using skype—a software that allows users to make free video and voice calls over the internet—the students could easily interact with the author.” During the interview session Cronin delighted participants by reading her book, Click, Clack, Moo.

“The preschoolers, high school students and staff enjoyed the time they spent
with Doreen Cronin. Being able to see her and ask questions live was a rewarding experience. Her books are awesome and we use them often in the classroom,” said Wixtead.

Here’s what Doreen Cronin told the group about herself:

I was born in Queens, New York and grew up on Long Island with my parents, two brothers, and my younger sister. My father was a police officer in New York and would entertain us for hours with terrifying stories of a rough city(remember..we’re talking about the 1970s) and hysterical stories about some of the characters he met in his line of work.

One of his favorite assignments was working in the anti-crime unit where he would dress in street clothes, ride the subway and pretend to be crazy. he would occasionally break into this routine at the dinner table and it always kept us in stitches.

When my father died 10  years ago, laughter became a rare commodity. My father passed away a few days before I was supposed to start law school at St. John’s University in Jamaica, Queens. I put school off for a semester and continued to do some freelance writing. Late one night shortly after the funeral, I found myself wide awake and crying. I just missed my father so much.

I walked over to the computer, sat down, and “Click Clack Moo” just flowed right out of me. The greatest kick of all was when I finished it, I was laughing and it felt like my dad was right there with me.

I had been sending out children’s book manuscripts for quite a while, and had a box full of rejection letters to show for it. This one felt different, it was more than a story, it was a gift from my father.

Today, any day spent reading “Click Clack Moo” with a roomful of laughing kids is like a day spent with my dad. An unbelievable gift given to me over and over again. Incidentally, the publication date for “Click Clack Moo” was January 28, which just happens to be my father’s birthday. Enough said.

The gap between acceptance of the manuscript and publication was a very long one. Long enough for me to graduate from law school, pass the bar, and begin to practice law. I worked at a Manhattan law firm where I practiced commercial and civil litigation. Brutal  hours, but for the most part, I spent my time researching and writing—two of my favorite things to do.

The attorney/children’s book combo was definitely an interesting one and one that both my employer and I took some getting used to. I remember having to take the morning off from the firm so I could meet with Betsy Lewin and shoot an interview for Scholastic. Try explaining that to the managing partner. Not exactly billable time.

After “Click Clack Moo” was featured on National Public Radio with Scott Simon and Daniel Pinkwater, one of the attorneys stopped me in the hallway to tell me what he had heard on “All Things Considered.” Seems he heard a funny children’s book read on the air, written by a Doreen Cronin, who, believe it or note, also happened to be an attorney. Although I hated to rain on his “what a freaky coincidence” parade—I had to set him straight. “That’s not a coincidence, Jon, that’s me.” The conversation ended rather abruptly, which is just as well since casual conversation is not billable time!

The firm was extremely supportive and when Betsy Lewin took home a
Caldecott Honor for her amazing illustrations, one of the partners came in to my office with a copy of the New York Times article and kissed my on the head! See, lawyers aren’t as heartless as you think they are! I juggled both careers for about six months, then realized it was time to make a choice.

I wanted to accept invitations from school kids who wrote me asking me to come visit them. I wanted to spend more time writing. I wanted to visit book stores. So I quit my law career and have been visiting, writing and traveling ever since.

Through all of it, I read and I wrote. I had been a  journalism major at  Penn State many years earlier, and I think some of that straight-forward style of writing shows in my books.

After I graduated, I worked for Newbridge Communications, where I edited curriculum-based programs for elementary school teachers. While there, I had a wonderful boss named Vita Jimenez who also happened to run the Children’s Choice Book Club, which offered parents inexpensive reprints of classic children’s books. She gave me free access to her extensive library and I read all of them! My love of children’s books was born!

I have two daughters—a three-year-old and a five-year-old—so I probably spend as much time reading children’s books as I do writing them.

Health Tech Career Day

Students in Health Technologies, a Tri-Rivers satellite program located at Harding High School,
recently learned about the post secondary education needed to become an EMT during a “Career Day.”

Instructor Laurie Wise said Career Days offer her students the opportunity to learn from experts about a wide variety of careers in the health field. The students also learn from the experts by doing hands-on activities.

Health Technologies explores a wide range of medical careers through practical lab experiences, high level academic coursework, and clinicals at healthcare facilities. Click here to learn more.

CTSO Officer Camp teaches leadership

Career Technical Student Organizations (CTSO) Officer Camp held October 12-14 at Recreation Unlimited in Ashley, Ohio provided the 36 students participating the opportunity to develop their leadership and team building skills.

The first day was highlighted by speaker Bruce Boguski who is well known for his ability to inspire others to “do the impossible,” said Bill Karcher, careers counselor for Tri-Rivers. That evening the students also learned about leadership styles and  proper etiquette.
The second day offered the biggest challenges and rewards, according to the campers. Through the High Ropes Challenge Course and co-initiative activities, the students learned to step out of their comfort zones and test themselves.

The last day covered the “nuts and bolts” of running group meetings, the importance of volunteerism and planning and goal setting for the year.
Fundraisers throughout the year help fund this activity.
More photos to come!! Students are sorting them today.

Bell joins CVB Board

Hospitality & Facility Care Instructor Barbara Bell was selected to complete a vacated Marion Area Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) Board term.
Her duties will include advising the Board, assisting with fundraisers and serving on committees. CVB Director Diane Watson said, “With Barb’s background in Hospitality, we felt she would bring a different perspective to the CVB Board. She has also worked with some of our hotels through her job at Tri-Rivers, so she is attuned to the travel and tourism industry and its importance to the Marion economy.”

DME Design winners

Winners of the Digital Media & Entertainment Bottle Design Contest were: first place, Tiarra Covrett; second place, Brian Osborne; third place, Carolyn Amos and honorable mention, Isaac Sword.

TRCC Makes A Difference!

Tri-Rivers Make A Difference Day was Sept. 17. Approximately 275 students and staff members from Tri-Rivers Career Center participated in the school’s second annual Make A Difference Day.

The event was a collaborative project with the United Way of Marion and Downtown Marion Inc.  Among many activities, participants spruced up landscaping in parks and downtown, visited residents of two local nursing homes, restored and painted park benches, cleaned up graffiti, and created signs and ornamental artwork for the downtown area.

Many of the projects were based on students’ career interests and skills. For example, women from the local homeless shelter were treated to a “spa” day conducted by Cosmetology students, while Automotive Tech students winterized the their vehicles.

Floral Design students decorated front windows of vacant businesses, Culinary Arts students worked in the Salvation Army soup kitchen, and CNET students cleaned hard drives and repurposed old computers. Digital Media and Entertainment students documented the day’s events on You Tube. Congratulations Tri-Rivers and the Marion community for this highly successful community service event! TRCC students do MAKE A DIFFERENCE!!!

Peace, Love & Popcorn

Tri-Rivers high school and adult students participated in the 2010 Popcorn Festival Parade—Peace, Love & Popcorn was the theme this year. From floats to tie dye shirts Tri-Rivers students were creative in their designs.
The students also will be busy throughout the festival at Kiddie Korner offering fun children’s games with prizes. This is the school’s annual fundraiser for Career Technical Student Organizations. Click here to see the video.

Ohio Attorney General visits TRCC

Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray visited Tri-Rivers Level 1 Public Safety Services students Wednesday, Sept. 8. He commended the students for being part of an accelerated demanding program. One he said provides a valuable service to the area. Sheriff Tim Bailey also visited. PSS student performed formations.

Tigers & Bears, Oh My!

Mascots TR and CC were busy Saturday, Sept. 4. They visited the Hickory Grove Lake Campground Parade in the morning and then were off to Saturday in the Park for the afternoon!!

Entries in the Hickory Grove Parade, 805 Hoch Rd, Marion, included Popcorn  Royalty, cool cars, and more. TR and CC got to ride on a neat golf cart.   Their chauffeur was  a graduate of Tolles Career and Technical Center. So there was lots of career tech talk!!  The event raised funds for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

From Hickory Grove, TR and CC headed to Saturday in the Park, at Lincoln Park in Marion. The crowd was huge and the wind was something else!! However, it didn’t stop kids from having a great time. Tri-Rivers’ area was busy with kids playing our “hillbilly” golf and looking  through our program and levy materials.

Thanks to all the students who were mascots and assisted at the events: Kaitlyn Kerr, Ray Wilson, Sierra Easterday, Aaliyan Keith, Kyle Hopkins, Alivia Young, Kennedy Burroughs and Shaylee Wilson. (And all the others who may not have signed in) It was a fun day!!!

Vex Robotics incredible training

“VEX Robotics is an incredible way to learn basic robotic programming and manufacturing techniques. It is erector sets meet computer programming. They are simple to build and can be made and can also be used to solve complex science and mathematics problems.

Thirteen teachers met for two days this summer on August 9 and 10 to learn how to build and program robots using “Easy C” programming language. Each teacher earned more than $700 worth of robotics equipment and hardware for their school. Area students will be the big winners because of the teachers dedication to their craft.

Attending the training at held at TRECA were; John Kuzio-Elgin, Jill Eyestone-Upper Sandusky, Scott Jones, John Seibel, Jon Crothers, and Ritch Ramey  – Tri-Rivers Career Center, Mark Robinson –Harding, Drew Mosely –Bowling Green State University, Tad Douce & Ed Goodwin – River Valley, Rick Fryman – Cardington, Kurt Grunert & Kristi Matlack of North Union.

These schools all participate in the National Robotics Challenge. Vex Robotics is an integral part of Science Technology Engineering Mathematics (STEMS) education. The Vex Robotics equipment and training was provided by Depco trainer Rob Smith and staff. They did a great job demonstrating how the software can be used to solve complex STEM project in our class rooms.

This training will help prepare the teachers to instruct programming and manufacturing concepts.  The training was provided for by the Marion Area STEM grant through TRECA and the Marion Community Foundation with a $80,000 grant Tri-Rivers Engineering Instructor Ritch Ramey was awarded to provide STEM training for area schools by Honda of America.

TRCC Tech Prep Engineering and Harding graduate Drew Mosley attended the session to learn how to student-teach robotics to his classes at Bowling Green State University. He has helped judge at the NRC the last two years and plans to use them in the class room this winter.

“This was very strenuous training. We plan on using these in our engineering program at Elgin. We know it will help prepare our Engineering students for the real world and help those that will be attending Tri-Rivers and Marion Tech better transition into their robotics classes,”
said Elgin Engineering and TRCC CAD teacher John Kuzio.

The TRCC staff will be using the robots we earned in our 1st after school Robotics Club. We plan to use these robots in our career technical labs, math and science class rooms and to enhance students education. Mr. Seibel and Mr. Crothers have extensive experience in the engineering field and have completed 8 days of Math Machine and Vex Robotics summer classes to add robotic projects to their math classes to promote hands on learning using robotics. Mr. Jones has many years experience in the machine trades field and is using Vex robotics in his Manufacturing Transition program.

You can find out more information on the vexrobotics.com website.