Lordy, Lordy, Mr. Milanovich is 40!

Who's over the hill??  Not OUR princiPAL!  

Lighting the "bonfire!"

Make a wish!  

Forget about dieting -- after 40, it's all downhill from here!

All kidding aside, we wish you the very best, Mr Milanovich.  Thank you for all you do, for putting up with us, and, most of all, for showing us by example how to do our jobs ... with a skip in our step and a smile in our hearts.

Lockers Inspire

You drag yourself to your locker...it's the morning.  You have a long day of classes and your mind is cluttered with visions of note-taking, group work, and assessments ahead of you -- not to mention all that's going on at home.  That last taste of your breakfast muffin isn't quite helping you to wake up.  Suddenly, you look up...

What?  

What's this?  

What is on the lockers?  

What is on MY locker?  

What does it say?  

Thanks to Mrs. Pasterik and the Peer Leaders, you have been greeted this morning with a sparkle of happiness.  Phrases like "If you can dream it, you can achieve it!" and "You are somebody's reason to smile!" have been written on hundreds of sticky notes and they dot the lockers up and down the hallways.  Reminders like "Stay golden!" and "Love yourself!" light up smiles on a grey February day.  

Peer Leaders -- this is what we think about your efforts:  

• "These messages on the lockers are an awesome way to start my day.  They are cute!  Some really need these messages because sometimes, there has been no one to remind them that they are loved."  ~ Makenna B.
• "The notes on the lockers are a bit cheesy, but in a good way.  They really made my day." ~ Shay S.
• "I saw that these positive messages helped people who had a rough start to their day."  ~ David McK.
• "I loved my sticky note because it told me that 'I am awesome.'  That really made me smile, and I needed that reminder." ~ Alexis L.
• "When I came to school this morning, I was already in a bad mood.  After seeing 'You're going to have a great day' on my locker, I couldn't help but smile.  And you know what -- so far, it IS a great day!"  Brandee D.
• "When I say my note, it was simple -- I felt happy."  ~ Kaitlyn H.
• "'Be happy,' mine said, and I honestly love it.  It DID make me happy, and I really needed that today."  ~ Linzy M.
• "It was a very nice message, and it helped me to have a good Friday -- even though I was in school on a sunny 74 degree day in February."  ~ Jacob V.
• "The positive message me feel much better this morning.  Thanks, Peer Leaders!"  ~ Madalyn C.
• "As a Peer Leader, writing the messages gave me a lot of satisfaction, but I wondered if it would really do any good.  After seeing everyone enjoy their good-morning wishes, I felt that great!" ~ Brittany K.
• "The notes brought me good vibes."  ~ Kaden F.
• "I think the little sticky notes on the lockers were sweet.  We all need more positivity." ~ Ethan M. 
• "The notes were quite nice, and seeing them on the lockers made the hallways look physically brighter -- or was it the smiles on everyone's faces?" ~ Adam F.
• "My message put me in a better mood." ~ Shelby L.
• "I thought the messages on everybody's lockers were pretty amazing.  Someone took the time to actually hand-write each message, and they were all different.  They took the efforts to stick them on every locker.  It was really cool, and a nice thing to do.  I appreciate it."  ~ Nathan I.
• "I was surprised to see the positive messages on the lockers.  It made me happy to see kindness and positivity in the school."  ~ Carlee S.
• "I thought the locker messages were adorable; it really made my day!" ~ Krystal V. 

So there you go, Mrs. Pasterik and the Peer Leaders of LCCTC.  You did a GREAT job!  Even if you heard some negativity, they were said by a grumpy student who still had a smile on their face when they complained; you achieved your goal -- you made our little corner of the world a much better place.  

Thank you for making a difference in our lives.  

"If you have good thoughts, they will shine out of your face like moonbeams, and you will always look lovely." ~ Roald Dahl

"From Your Valentine": A history of Valentine's Day ~ Kyleigh Johnston

When Valentine's Day comes to mind what do you think of? Love? Candy? Romance? To most people, yes. But, the history behind Valentine’s day isn't as romantic as it seems.

In the 3rd century, Emperor Claudius persecuted the church because the priests conducted marriages. He believed that men who were not married fought better than the men who were married; instead of fighting, a married soldier would worry more about the safety of his family than about winning in battle. In those days, polygamy was encouraged by the government, but there were still some dedicated to the Christian Faith and wished to be married..

Valentine, a Roman priest, was a huge believer in the Christian faith. So, he secretly married people because the loved the idea of one man and one woman having a sacred bond and being dedicated to each other for the rest of their lives. At first, Valentine was able to marry lovers in secret, but after a short period of time Valentine was caught defying the emperor's laws..

In 269 AD, Valentine was sentenced to a 3 part execution; he was stoned, beaten, and finally beheaded because of his beliefs.  The man who imprisoned Valentine was Asterius, who had a daughter who was blind from birth; Valentine and the daughter became friends.  After Valentine prayed over her, taught her of his faith, and gave her medicine in the hopes of healing her eyes.   Before his death, Valentine’s last words were on a note written to Asterius’ daughter which read, “From your Valentine.” Legend says that after Valentine’s death, Asterius returned home to find that something miraculous had occurred; his daughter was healed and could see!  This miracle secured his sainthood. And today, we refer to this priest as St. Valentine.  On February 14th, we celebrate his life and his dedication to love.

After his death, he was known as the patron saint of lovers for the marriages he conducted and his strict adherence to his beliefs -- even to the point of death.  

SkillsUSA Districts - Damian Quimby

What is SkillsUSA? Many people have never heard of it and wonder what it's about. SkillsUSA is a club where many students from vocational schools all over the nation can compete. 

The values represented in SkillsUSA include patriotism, the industrial society, knowledge and skill, technology, and the respect for the dignity of work.

The official website, skillsusa.org, says, "SkillsUSA is a partnership of students, teachers, and industry working together to ensure America has a skilled workforce and is programmed to equip students to excel."  This is true for our students here at LCCTC.

The first step in competition is districts: For District 10, LCCTC students compete against thirteen other vocational schools, and if our students place first in their competition, they move onto States. Within our school alone, there were 63 students who went to districts, the highest number of students out of all the other schools.  Congratulations to our medalists:  

• Linzy Miller, VT	Silver	Action Skills
  Trevor Cunningham April Boots Lane Kline	Bronze	Automated Manufacturing Technology
  Jason Ealy	Bronze	Automotive Service Technology
  Samara Grimes	Gold	Basic Health Care
  Dawson Fair	Gold	CNC Technician
  Kaden Fernandez	Bronze	CNC Lathe
  Bri Burgin	Bronze	Cosmetology
  Mike Birkbichler	Silver	Electrial Construction Wiring
  Taylor Dilling	Gold	Employment Application Process
  Alaina DeLuca	Bronze	Esthetics w/ model Alyssa Graham
  Shelby Leasure	Silver	First Aid/CPR
  Mollie Rader	Bronze	First Aid/CPR
  Gemma Gatto	Bronze	Health Occupations Professional
  Kyle Roxbury	Silver	Industrial Motor  Control
  Jaden Locke	Bronze	Job Skill Demonstration
  Dom Fobes	Gold	Masonry
  Earl Gravatt	Silver	Medical Math
  Krista Berkley, Brandee D’Ambrosi, Tristyn Gravatt, Jenna Locke, Jake Troutman, Dayuna Ware, Felicity Weir	Gold	Opening & Closing Ceremonies
  Mackenzie Nye, Madison Ritter, Sierra Knight, and Tabatha Zang	Bronze	Quiz Bowl
  Damian Quimby	Silver	Technical Computer Applications

Below are some quotes from some of our competitors:

• Jacob Troutman - Opening and Closing:  "I enjoy competing because it helps me present myself in front of other people."
• Felicity Weir - Opening and Closing:  "I joined skills because it gave me an opportunity to be a part of a team. It was also similar to the academic games I competed in at my home school. It has helped me build my confidence and social skills."
• Jaden Locke - Job Skilled Demo Open:  "I joined skills because I think it can help me further my education relating to my shop."
• Krista Berkley - Opening and Closing:  "I joined skills because I wanted to be a part of a team. Opening and Closing and Skills USA has helped me to open up and be more confident in my everyday life."
• Tabatha Zang - Health Knowledge Bowl:  "Skills is a great experience.  I am learning a lot about how to become a better student and a better worker.  Just from going through the competition, I have learned that preparation is key.  Confidence is also important; I am becoming more important."
• Tristyn Gravatt - Opening and Closing:  "I joined Skills for the opportunity to compete in something new."
• Dayuna Reitnauer - Opening and Closing:  "I didn't really know about Skills until Mrs. McVicker asked me to join. It is such an honor to be in Skills, especially with my friends that I met this year!"
• Brandee D'Ambrosi - Opening and Closing:  "I joined Skills because when I came to Votech, I didn't really have a place to fit in. I knew that I wanted to join a team, so I joined Skills USA. Skills has helped me in a number of different ways, but most importantly, it has shown me that having friends and being a part of something is not a bad experience."
• Christian "Pretty Boy" Seinkner - Service Specialization:  "Skills helped my realize that I am capable of winning, but only if I study hard enough."

District competition had 3 different locations: New Castle School of Trades, Butler County Career and Technical Center, and Lawrence County Career and Technical Center. 

This year, at the New Castle School of Trades, our Opening and Closing Team helped start off the event as they merged with a team from another school to present the meanings of the symbols for SkillsUSA. Then when the team is done, everyone went on to their competitions.

Of all of the LCCTC competitors, 33 earned medals.   Eleven gold medalists will continue on to states.  Congratulations!  They are as follows:  

• Krista, Berkley,  Opening and Closing Team, Cos
• Brandee D'Ambrosi, Opening and Closing Team, HA
• Taylor Dilling, Job Interview, Weld
• Dawson Fair, CNC Machine, MTT
• Dom Fobes, Masonry, Mas
• Trystan Gravatt, Opening and Closing Team, CA
• Samara Grimes, Basic Health Care Skills, HA
• Jenna Locke,  Opening and Closing Team, CA
• Jacob Troutman,  Opening and Closing Team, COT
• Dayuna Ware, Opening and Closing Team, HA
• Felicity Merlini,  Opening and Closing Team, HA

On April 19-21, LCCTC will take a total of 23 students to state competition; those not continuing as gold medalists will compete in straight to state events like the following: Chapter Display Team (Trevor Cunningham -- MTT, Stormy Fiello and Noah Skelley -- EO), and Promotional Bulletin Board Team (Gemma Gatto -- HA, Jaden Locke -- COT, and Tabatha Zang -- VT), Mechatronics (Kyle Rocksbury & Mike Birkbickler -- EO), Welding Sculpture (Devin Dilling -- Weld), and Chapter Cake Display (Ben Schwartz -- RT).  To assist with the voting process for state officers, delegates (Brianna Burgin -- CA and Machaela Nail -- HA) will also attend, as well.   

Maddy and Alyssa -- enjoying time after competition!

Relaxing after competition -- Lunch!
Earl, Matt, Mrs. McVicker-Shaffer, Maddy, Mrs. Daughterty, Mollie, and Dayuna

Bri works on her mannequin to demonstrate her skill!

Smiles all around for Alaina and and her model, Alyssa

Model Amanda and  Halle works on her nail design.

Mark demonstrates his skill as a server.

Team Works is focused and ready to show what they know as they construct a bathroom.
Austin, Carter, Noah, and James

The Opening and Closing team:  Going for their 5th district gold!
Felicity, Jenna, Krista, Jake, Tristyn, Dayuna, and Brandee

Jaden ready to pitch her product to the "shark tank."

Crafty Corner ~ Spray Paint Valentine Day Art: Brandee D'Ambriosi

What You Will Need

A spray bottle, or clean and empty perfume bottle

Acrylic paint ( 50 cents at Wal-Mart)

White paper without lines

Tape

Scissors

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Step 1- Use your scissors to cut out a shape. For mine, I folded a piece of paper in half and cut a symmetrical heart.

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Step 2- Put rolled pieces of tape on the shape you cut out.

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Step 3-  Lay the shape down on another piece of white paper.

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Step 4- Get your spray bottle and acrylic paint, and mix ⅔ or paint and ⅓ of water. I used red because most people think of red hearts when they think of Valentine’s Day.

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Step 5- Spray the piece of paper. Be careful not to spray too close to the paper, or it will leak through. If you get paint on anything other than the paper, wipe it up with water before it dries.

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Step 6 (Optional)- After letting the paint dry and removing the shape you taped down, you can write something inside of the empty, white space in the middle. My favorite quote about love is “Love Is In the Air”, so I wrote that.

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To finish, fill in with your favorite sweet-nothings!