1. education
2. school

the roadrunner needs
to be pathed before use
SOUTHEAST
SECTA
CAREER
TECHNICAL
ACADEMY
3 R D Q u a r t e r p a r e n t NE W S L ETTE R
ISSUE 4
SECTA GRAPHIC DESIGN &
ILLUSTRATION STUDENT
WINS LOGO CONTEST
SECTA
Telephone Directory
702-799-7500
KERRY POPE
Principal....................... Ext. 4100
NICK BROCKOVICH
Assistant Principal........ Ext. 4202
The Nevada Association of Career Technical Educators holds an annual
logo competition for their conference scheduled in the summer. In a
field of over 90 designs, this year’s winner was Rachele Tolentino-Mejia, a
sophomore in Graphic Design & Illustration. “I entered this major because
I like to draw, but I’ve learned so much more this year. I’m excited about
making graphic design and illustration my career.” When asked about her
unique concept, Rachele said, “I wanted something that would represent
the future and my teacher told us to think outside the box; so, I thought
a robot is pretty different and after a few thumbnail sketches, it all kind
of came together;” however, it was not quite that simple. Rachele
continued, “I was happy with my design, but Mr. K had me do it over like
five times until it was just right – now I’m glad he did. He said when it’s
right, you’ll know it. Now, I can’t believe I was satisfied with my first logo.”
Rachele received a check for $100 from NACTE for her efforts. The
check was presented by NACTE President, Craig Statucki, a teacher at
Southwest Career and Technical Academy.
CONGRATULATIONS RACHELE!
RYAN CORDIA
Assistant Principal........Ext. 4206
BRIAN McALLISTER
Assistant Principal........Ext. 4200
HELEN MONEY
Assistant Principal........ Ext. 4204
AMANDA WHITE
Counselor – Grade 9...... Ext. 4305
SHANNON SMITH
Counselor – Grade 10.... Ext. 4302
MIKELA HARRIS
Counselor – Grade 11.... Ext. 4303
TODD HERRICK
Counselor – Grade 12.... Ext. 4301
CHRIS GALYEAN
Counselor
Testing/Scholarships..... Ext. 4304
KATHERINE DeSIMONE
Counselor
Recruiting/Admissions.. Ext. 4307
CHRISTINE ARMSTRONG
Attendance................... Ext. 4035
LISA DIAZ
Librarian..............Ext. 4025/4026
TINA COWAN
Registrar.......................Ext. 4065
HEIDI LANGE
School Banker...............Ext. 4044
JANET FINDLEY
Special Education
Facilitator..................... Ext. 4032
EMELIA MANWARREN
FASA........................... EXT. 4022
SHA VICKERY
School Nurse................. Ext. 4021
HOW TO PREPARE YOUR TEEN FOR WORK - 10 TIPS FOR PARENTS
1. Encourage your teen to investigate jobs
and careers. Talk about work and your
job with your teen.
2. Stress to your teen that for now, school
is their work. Attendance is important.
You don’t take a day off from work just
because you feel like it. The same goes
for school.
3. Explore with your teen, without being
judgmental, his or her personal talents,
strengths, likes and dislikes. The more
teens know about themselves, the
easier it will be for them to recognize
the jobs they’ll like and do well in.
4. Help your teen experience, first hand,
as many different jobs, businesses and
professions as possible. Through school,
your employer, friends and relatives,
get your teen to take advantage of
both formal and informal work exposure
programs. These include:
• Cooperative Education – working at
a job after school under the school’s
cooperative work coordinator’s
supervision while also going to
school
5. Provide as many opportunities as you
can for your student to learn technology.
New, evolving technologies and a global
economy have changed, drastically, the
jobs that are available and the way we
do business.
6. Request your school to expose students
to career choices. Visit your school’s
Career Center and explore the Nevada
Career Information System. Finding a
career focus can have a big payoff for
both your teenager and the school.
• If your teen is doing well in school,
a career focus can make selecting
a college and choosing a major
subject easier.
• Job shadowing – going through a
day of work watching someone do
their job
• A career focus can add purpose to
a student’s studies and give grades
a lift.
• Mentoring – being paired with
a working adult for one-on-one
discussion of jobs and career likes
and dislikes
7. Guide your teenager toward acquiring
skills. Every employment opportunity
today requires people to use both head
and hand skills.
• “Take Your Child to Work Day” –
sponsored annually in April
8. Talk to your teen about work and career
as a goal for his or her education. Today,
lifelong learning is a reality, not just for
its own sake, but as a demand of the
• Internships – paid and unpaid
workplace. Work and careers are part
of what education is about.
9. Give your teen responsibility. Begin with
jobs around the house for a neighbor or
an older relative. Young people need to
learn that we all have to carry our own
weight; that we’re all important and that
people rely on us to get things done.
10.Suggest that your teen consider career
opportunities previously associated
with the opposite sex. There are often
excellent job opportunities for those not
traditionally associated with a particular
career. Many men now turn to nursing,
many women to engineering. It may take
extra commitment to cross gender lines,
but there are rewards.
BONUS TIPS!!
Keep a sense of humor. No matter how hard
we try to point our sons or daughters in a
good direction, we can’t live their lives for
them. So keep your approach light. Present
as many opportunities as possible to learn
about career paths. Enlist support from
friends, relatives and associates.
Be persistent in presenting opportunities;
be relaxed in expecting outcomes.
Avoid being judgmental.
Excerpt s fro m the School-to - Work
Opportunities Act brochure.
DCON (District Convention for Key Club)
From March 13th-15th, SECTA’s Key Club had
the opportunity to attend Key Club’s District
Convention and meet
other Key Clubs from
California, Hawaii,
and Nevada. Key
Clu b mem b er s
attended seminars
where they learned
many things, such
as how to manage
their time better, the importance of
professionalism, and they were entertained
by “Up With People”, a global education
and arts organization whose goal is to
bridge cultural barriers and create global
understanding through service and music.
On Saturday delegates from SECTA attended
the caucus for District Level Candidate
Offices while other Key Club members
attended seminars where they learned
about fundraising, working with different
personalities, worked with the “Up With
People” group, and learned about the Kiwanis
charities and activities, such as the Eliminate
Project.
DCON was a very pleasurable experience
that presented many opportunities for
members to grow in their leadership skills,
meet other Key Club members and attend
crucial seminars that taught them how to
be a better club and club officers.
S E C TA
Class News & Information
CLASS
OF
2018
Freshmen CLASS
We are excited to announce
that freshmen students will
have the opportunity to visit
the University of Nevada, Las
Vegas (UNLV) in April and May.
Students will tour the campus
and
learn about the college experience.
Permission slips were distributed in the
Tools and Health classes, and need to be returned to the
9th grade office in order for students to attend. Students
have been assigned a date based on their last name, and
they will be responsible to make-up any assignments that
they miss. We are in need of chaperones, so if you are
interested in joining us, please contact the 9th grade office
at 702-799-7500 x4305.
We strongly encourage both students and parents to
continue to monitor assignments and grades through the
use of Infinite Campus. Starting May 1, it will be mandatory
for all parents to register their students for the upcoming
school year through Infinite Campus. The registration MUST
be completed by June 30, 2015. If you do not have access
to Infinite Campus, please email Ms. Yeoman at TGYeoman@
interact.ccsd.net or call her at 702-799-7500 ext. 4187.
I’m also excited to announce that as we continue to educate
students on post-secondary educational options, the
sophomore class will be visiting the College of Southern
Nevada in April and May. We are in need of parent chaperones
for this event; the dates are listed below. All interested
parents wanting to help should submit the interest form
as soon as possible found on the following link http://goo.
gl/zgdLnP or by using the following QR code.
Chaperones Needed:
Monday, April 13th Sincerely,
Mrs. Shannon Smith, Sophomore Class Counselor
Mr. Ryan Cordia, Assistant Principal, Sophomore Class
Summer school registration starts in April. If you are
interested in taking classes during the summer, please see
Ms. White to sign up. Students may enroll in traditional or
online courses, but remember that course offerings are
limited during the summer. Please see your counselor
for more details.
In preparation for the next school year, all freshmen students
completed their pre-registration and academic plans in
their Tools and Health classes. Each student selected
courses and received a copy of their forms to review with
parents. If you need to make any changes, please email
Ms. White. No changes will be granted once the new school
year begins. Remember to go to Secta.us to check if you
have any summer assignments to complete.
If you have any questions or need additional information,
please contact the 9th grade office.
Sincerely,
•
Students and Parents:
We’ve almost made it! With
three quarters of the way
through the sophomore year,
the junior year is just around
corner. In preparing for next year we
spent the month of February meeting with students and
going over course requests for the 2015-16 school year.
Parents can go to their students Infinite Campus account
(computer portal only) and check the academic plan to see
what classes have been recommended or requested. Any
conflicts or requests for changes can be emailed to Mrs.
Smith, [email protected], up until the week before
school starts in August. Students taking Honors or AP
classes next year will have summer assignments which
will be posted on the Secta.us website by June.
It is important to set up your Infinite Campus account for
the upcoming school year. In the past, registration forms
were normally sent home on the first day of school. At this
time, the process has changed. No paperwork. It is required
that the parent/guardian will be responsible to register
their student(s) in Infinite Campus starting in May 2015. If
you have not set up your Infinite Campus, please contact
Ms. Yeoman at 799-7500, ext. 4187 or email TGYeoman@
interact.ccsd.net.
Juniors have already made
course requests for the
2015-16 school year. Here
are some reminders:
Seniors may have two open periods. The purpose of
open periods is for students to leave campus to work
or do some other activity. There is no credit for open
periods and students must not be on campus during
open periods. Students should only request open
periods if they have a way to leave campus.
•
Student Aide will be given to students whose schedule
cannot be filled with any other class.
•
Course descriptions can be found in the SECTA
Course Catalog on the school website www.SECTA.us
under the Resources tab. http://secta.us/wp-content/
uploads/2014/15/Course-Catalog-2014-15-AO-5-13All.pdf
•
Online summer school with Nevada Learning Academy
will be June 15-July 23. You must register with Mrs.
Harris-Harris starting April 8.
Ms. Money, Assistant Principal, Freshmen Class
CLASS
OF
2017
jUNIOR CLASS
•
Students can obtain
a record of classes they have
already taken on Infinite Campus. Unofficial
transcripts can be printed on Infinite Campus.
Ms. White, Freshmen Class Counselor
SOPHOMORE CLASS
CLASS
OF
2016
SENIOR CLASS
We have reached the final
stretch as we head into the
4th quarter with our sights set
on graduation at the Orleans
Arena on June 9, 2015 at 6:00
p.m.
This is a reminder to students currently enrolled in online
classes through Nevada Learning Academy and APEX to
please stay on top of your work! Reports have been coming
in that several SECTA students have fallen behind and are
not on pace to complete their courses by the end of the
semester.
Monday, April 6th Monday, May 4th
CLASS
OF
2015
Senior Fail Safe
letters will be
sent out via
certified mail
on April 17 for
all seniors who
earn a “D” or
“F” for quarter
3 in any classes
needed for
graduation, as
well as all nonproficient students. Senior Fail Safe letters are sent as a
warning that graduation is in jeopardy. Parents that receive
a Senior Fail Safe letter are welcome to contact each teacher
via email (teacher email addresses can be found on secta.
us) or set up a parent-teacher conference with Mr. Herrick
in the Counseling Office.
There are currently over 150 seniors with outstanding fees
due to the school banker. Fees need to paid as soon as
possible, or those seniors run the risk of missing out on
other school related functions, such as senior grad night,
prom, and other senior graduation activities.
March proficiency results are expected back by mid-April,
and those seniors who have not yet passed all proficiency
exams will have one final attempt before graduation, during
the week of April 26.
As always, please feel free to contact Mr. Herrick, 12th grade
counselor, or Mr. Brockovich, 12th grade administrator as
needed.
Sincerely,
Mr. Herrick, Senior Class Counselor
Mr. Brockovich, Assistant Principal, Senior Class
Sincerely,
Mrs. Harris, Junior Class Counselor
Mr. McAllister, Assistant Principal, Junior Class
How Do You Create Success?
There is a recipe for becoming successful. It doesn’t happen by “LUCK”. So what 5 words would you choose as
ingredients for a recipe if you were creating a successful person? As Senior Cosmetology teachers, we believe
that a positive work ethic, commitment, integrity, problem solving skills, and a passion for what you do will put
you on the path to success.
Our Senior Cosmetology students have put these ingredients together and success is on the stove! The rigor
and challenges are evident in all of the different assignments, projects, and competitions that students have
completed or will complete this semester.
The Senior Employability Project which includes a cover letter, resumé, business card, service menu, and marketing
strategies, etc. is well underway. The ingredients are really being tested as students put their final recipe and
efforts into passing the Employability and Technical Exit Exams in March and April and the final mock boards for
the Nevada State Board of Cosmetology Licensure Exam in May.
SkillsUSA competitions will be held April 14-17 in Reno, NV. We have students competing in hair, nails, aesthetician
competitions, as well as leadership events. The gold medalists will then go on to the National SkillsUSA competition
in Louisville, Kentucky in June. We are excited to find out who our medalists will be!
We want to send out KUDOS to ALL of our SENIORS! The recipe is yours to customize. Keep adding the ingredients
and make the best recipe you can for reaching your success. Graduation is only weeks away!
PAGE 2
S E C TA
Students Preparing
for Nevada State
SkillsUSA Championships
SkillsUSA members at Southeast Career Technical Academy
are preparing for the SkillsUSA State Conference that will
be held in Reno April 14th-17th. Practice will be taking
place in all career and technical classrooms in the weeks
leading up to the conference. All students will also take a
Professional Development Test before going. In the case
of a tie, the student with the highest score will get the
medal. Teachers and advisors will accompany the group
as they travel to Reno.
All SkillsUSA members and advisors wear the official red
blazer. The school provides the blazers for students for each
conference. It is a sea of red at the opening, closing and
awards ceremonies. SkillsUSA members from the following
classes will be competing: Cosmetology, Construction, Auto
Tech, Auto Collision, Health Occupations, Graphic Design,
Culinary, Animation, Architecture, Website Science, Drafting
(Auto CADD) and Media. Competitions include leadership
events and hands-on skills events. Twelve students will
also be the Voting Delegates to choose the State Officers
for the 2015-2016 school year. They will interview and
listen to the speeches of the candidates and then choose
which candidates would best represent SECTA and Nevada
WACAC LAS VEGAS
COLLEGE FAIR
Meet with representatives from over 150 colleges and universities
For High School Students and their Parents
Las Vegas Academy of the Arts
315 S. 7th Street • Las Vegas, Nevada 89101 • Gymnasium and Cafeteria
Monday, April 27, 2015
Pre-Fair Workshops 5:15 - 6:40pm
College Fair 7:00 - 9:00pm
Highlights
• Workshops
• Testing Information
• Counselors Help Booth
SkillsUSA in the coming year. One of the current SkillsUSA
Nevada State Officers is from SECTA. She is Amberly
Nelson from Auto CADD.
On-site registration available in
Library (Main Building).
Registration Opens at 4:30pm.
After the competitions, a dinner/social is planned for the
evening of Thursday, April 16th. Friday morning students
from all over Nevada will be awarded medals for the top
three places. Earning a gold medal will take them on to the
SkillsUSA National Convention in Louisville, KY in June. Each
year SECTA takes approximately 20 gold medal winners to
the national competition.
SkillsUSA promotes understanding of the free enterprise
system and involvement in community service activities.
Local businesses who are interested in more information or
getting involved in SkillsUSA can contact SECTA. SkillsUSA
emphasizes total quality at work, high ethical standards,
superior work skills, life-long education and pride in the
dignity of work. For more information: visit www.skillsusa.
org or call Mary Agan at 799-7500 x4202.
ProStart Invitational
CONGRATULATIONS to all SECTA students who
participated in the 13th annual Nevada ProStart
Invitational that was held Feb. 25-26 at the Las Vegas
Le Cordon Bleu.
In the Cake Decorating-Buttercream Division, Ian Castano
placed 4th and Samantha Backman placed 2nd.
In the Edible Centerpiece Division, Maria Garcia Silva
came in 1st place.
Workshop Topics
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
The Road to College Planning
NCAA
Financial Aid & Scholarships
Thinking About Going East for College?
College Planning for High School Students
Undocumented Students
Mock Admissions
Home on the Range, What it Takes
...and more.
All sessions are 40 minutes in length w/Q & A.
To pre-register and print a personalized code for your
selected colleges and to receive information, please visit
www.wacaccollegefair.com.
FREE Parking:
Lot and street parking is
located on Clark Street
between 7th and 8th Street.
WESTERN ASSOCIATION
FOR COLLEGE
ADMISSION COUNSELING
IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR PARENTS AND GUARDIANS
REGISTRATION FOR 2015-2016
ATTENTION PARENTS! Infinite Campus parent accounts are no longer optional. In order to register your child(ren) for
the 2015-2016 school year, you MUST complete the online
registration procedure through the parent portal. If you are
currently using your son or daughter’s Infinite Campus account
to log in and check grades, you will need to activate your
PARENT account. The online registration in May cannot be
completed through the student account.
Letters have been sent to all
households that do not have
a current active PARENT
account. Please follow the directions in the letter to activate your parent account so
you’ll be ready for online registration in May. If you have an active parent account,
but do not remember your login information, please contact Mrs. Yeoman by email:
[email protected] or by phone: (702) 799-7500 extension 4187, and she
will be happy to help you.
SECTA’s Management Team took 1st place for their
restaurant concept, menu, marketing plan, interior
design, written proposal and verbal presentation and will
represent the State of Nevada at the National competition
that will be held April 18-21 in Anaheim, California at
the Disneyland Hotel. Members of the team include:
Cameron Asato, Chabelis Bolanos, Selena Ice, David
Nead, Haylee Stephens and Chef Instructor, Joyel Reyna.
GOOD LUCK ROADRUNNERS!
PAGE 3
S E C TA
NATIONAL HISTORY DAY
We made quite an impact on the state NHD (National History Day) event at UNLV.
Please congratulate Andrea Blaskan for winning 1st place in the individual historical paper category.
Ms. Forrester had some victories with Cillia Jose and Tyler Chervo winning 1st place in the group
website category, and Kevin (Jet) Baroudi won a special award through ABC-Clio.
All of our students did fantastic and the winners are invited to participate in the national contest in
Maryland over the summer.
Our students made our social studies department look very good and made SECTA look awesome
in the process!
KEY CLUB HOSTING
“ILLUMINATE THE NIGHT”
SECTA’s Key Club will be hosting their second annual “Illuminate the Night”
which is a 5K fun walk and/or run and it will be held at Southeast Career
Technical Academy on Friday, April 24th from 4:00p.m. – 10:00pm.
Proceeds will be donated to the Colors of Lupus foundation.
CONGRATULATIONS SECTA!
Early bird tickets will be sold for $5 until April 10, 2015. Regular admission
tickets will be sold for $8 until April 23, 2015. At the door tickets will be
sold for $10. Once you receive your ticket, please hold onto it for you
will receive an admission wristband on the day of the race. Key Club will
also be offering meal deals for $5.00.
For more information, please check out sectailluminatethenight.weebly.com
Hope to see you there to support a great cause!
Secta students
experience
shakespeare
On February 11th, Mrs. Bell’s
English 12 classes travelled to
CSN Cheyenne to attend The Utah
Shakespeare Festival performance
of Macbeth. The festival takes its
production of the Scottish Play to more than 25,000 students in five
western states.
SECTA’s students were very eager to see how the director interpreted
this William Shakespeare tragedy after they had analyzed the text in
class. For many, this was their first time in a theatre watching a dramatic
play performed live. Students also got a chance to meet and greet the
actors after the play in a question and answer setting.
Overall, the group did not leave disappointed; students became theatre
critics and argued for most of the journey back to SECTA on what was
spot on based on the text and what could have been improved.
Mrs. Bell hopes to bring her seniors next year to experience Shakespearean
theatre.
Southeast Career Technical Academy has been named a Magnet School of Distinction
by Magnet Schools of America (MSA), the National Association of Magnet and ThemeBased Schools. Without the dedicated staff and driven student body, this award would
not be possible.
Schools are judged on their demonstrated ability to raise student academic achievement,
promote racial and socioeconomic diversity, provide integrated curricula and instruction,
and create community partnerships that enhance the school’s theme.
SECTA will be honored and receive a plaque at the MSA National Conference on April 24th.
COUNSELORS’CORNER
*Pre-Registration activities for the 2015-16 school year have been completed in
classrooms. All students should have provided parents with a copy of their preregistration form. Students and parents wishing to change a course request should
email their grade level counselor by Tuesday, August 18, 2015. No schedule changes
will be made once the school year begins, which includes changing electives or levels
of a class. (Move from AP to honors, for example) Honors and AP courses will have
summer assignments. Students should check the secta.us website in June for their
summer assignments.
Current 11th grade counselor - Mikela Harris - [email protected]
Current 10th grade counselor - Shannon Smith - [email protected]
Current 9th grade counselor - Amanda White - [email protected]
SECTA STUDENT WINS GOLD
MEDALS IN
KARATE STATE
CHAMPIONSHIP
One of SECTA’s 10th grade students
in the Sports Medicine program,
Joseph Tolentino, competed
in Phoenix, AZ in the USA
Karate State Championship and
National Qualifier (US Olympic Sanction
group and event).
Joseph had an amazing performance and
won two gold medals for both Kata (forms)
and Kumite (fighting). He was named Arizona State
Champion for 16-17 year olds Advance Division and
he is now qualified to represent Arizona and Nevada
this coming July in the National Team Trials that will be
held in Florida.
*All college bound juniors should plan to take math and science during their senior year
to prepare themselves for the collegiate level. All juniors will be taking the ACT exam
on April 28, 2015, but it is recommended that students also sit for the SAT exam on
June 6, 2015. Students can register at www.collegeboard.org. Students receiving free/
reduced lunch should see Mr. Galyean in the Career Center to request a fee waiver.
*Students will be able to sign up for summer school in April by making an appointment
with their counselor. Summer school will cost $100 per semester course. Honors and
AP courses are not offered during regular summer school. Honors and AP courses may
be offered through the Nevada Learning Academy, but will only be open to students
who have previously taken the course. Summer school times are expected to run
from 7:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. Session 1 is expected to be held June 15-July 2 and
Session II is expected to be held July 6-July 23.
Tentative summer school sites for 2015 - Arbor View, Canyon Springs, Clark, Foothill,
Las Vegas, Legacy, Liberty, Spring Valley, Valley, and Western.
Congratulations Joseph!
GAC 4709.4