School Announcements
Watch As We Build Our New Career and Technology Center
We’re Building Futures in Pickens County, including a new Career and Technology Center. Get details and watch our progress by visiting the Building Futures Web site. New slideshows and aerial photographs, added several times each month, are located under the Our Progress in Pictures tab.
Free Summer Meals Offered to Students Who Are 18 and Younger
Through its Seamless Summer Feeding Program, the School District of Pickens County offers free, healthy meals to Pickens County children who are 18 and younger. Any school-age child may eat for free, regardless of income.
“The meals really are free,” said Sally Nicholson, director of SDPC Student Nutrition Services. “We’re trying to make sure that no child goes hungry during the summer months.”
“The meals really are free,” said Sally Nicholson, director of SDPC Student Nutrition Services. “We’re trying to make sure that no child goes hungry during the summer months.”
Free breakfast and lunch are being served at Dacusville Elementary and Pickens High Monday through Friday through July 30. The program will be closed July 5 in recognition of Independence Day.
Breakfast is served from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. Lunch is served from 11:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. Any school-age child who comes to Dacusville or Pickens during those times will be served. News Release
Please check out the scholarship information under the Guidance section under Services. Current information about scholarship opportunities is listed in a pdf titled "Current Scholarships".
Skelton Career Center Students Place 4th in the Nation
Auto Tech students Taylor Wise and Adam Hale competed in the National Ford/AAA Auto Skills competition in Dearborn, Michigan last week, finishing fourth in the nation out of 50 first place state competition teams. The Ford AAA Auto Skills competition gives auto tech students the opportunity to showcase their automotive problem-solving capabilities by resolving “real world” repair challenges in a timed, head-to-head match-up of top teams representing all 50 states.
New Career & Technology Center Named Pickens County Career & Technology Center
Following second reading of the administration’s recommendation, the SDPC Board of Trustees approved the name of the new Career & Technology Center being built at 990 Chastain Road, Liberty.
The new school will be the Pickens County Career & Technology Center and is due to open in August of 2011. The name was chosen by a committee of career center students and faculty members. Information about the new career & technology center can be found on our Building Futures site.
Mechatronics Repeats Win and Three Students Are Going to Nationals
On April 16, seven BJ Skelton Career Center students represented the Mechatronics program in the SkillsUSA State Competition held at the Carolina First Center in Greenville. These students competed in Mechatronics and in Motor Controls and all placed in the competition. Taking first place in Mechatronics was the team of Cory Mount and Casey Hooper, both Liberty High School juniors. Taking first place in Motor Controls was returning Mechatronics champion, Larry Austin Sloan, Pickens High School senior. These three students will represent the career center and the state of South Carolina at the National SkillsUSA competition in Kansas City in June along with six other BJ Skelton Career Center 1st place winners in other programs.
Taking 2nd place in Mechatronics was the team of Chris Smith, Daniel High School senior, and Jacob Barfield, Easley High School senior. The 3rd place winner was the team of Brandon Bryant, Daniel High School senior and Logan Wallace, Pickens High School senior.
The Mechatronics instructor, Hank Hutto, was proud of all his students. “My students showed their best by winning everything they could win.”
Twelve students competed in Law Enforcement/Fire and Emergency Services
On April 16, twelve students represented BJ Skelton Career Center’s Law Enforcement Services and Fire and Emergency Services programs in the SkillsUSA State Competition held at the Carolina First Center in Greenville. Students competed in Crime Scene Investigation, Criminal Justice, Fire Fighting, Prepared Speech, CPR/First Aide, Job Skill Demonstration, and Extemporaneous Speaking. First place winners included Justin Owens, Easley High School senior, in Criminal Justice; Deonte White, Pickens High School senior, in Fire Fighting; Emily Rochester, Daniel High School sophomore, in Prepared Speech; and Thomas Gilstrap, Pickens High School senior, in CPR/First Aide. These gold medal winners will compete at the National SkillsUSA competition in Kansas City in June along with six other BJ Skelton Career Center 1st place winners from other programs.
Silver medal winners included Jacob Cuthbertson, Pickens High School senior, in Fire Fighting; Dana Stone, Easley High School senior, in Prepared Speech; Michael Ambrose, Easley High School senior, in Job Skill Demonstration; and Tyler Holder, Pickens High School senior, in Extemporaneous Speaking.
Bronze medal winners included Kristen Seay, Pickens High School senior, in CPR/First Aide; and the team of Xebian Smith, Easley High School Senior, Tyler Holder, Pickens High School Senior, and Jessica Hamilton, Daniel High School senior, in Crime Scene Investigation.
Instructor Greg Newton praised the hard work and dedication of these students. “These competitions are very important to these young people. This is setting them up for competition in life and in job skills.”
Masonry Rules State Competition
On April 16, four BJ Skelton Career Center students represented the Masonry program in the SkillsUSA State Competition held at the Carolina First Center in Greenville. These students had three hours to build a brick and block wall to meet certain specifications. Taking first place was Lakota Armstrong, Easley High School junior. He will represent the career center and the state of South Carolina at the National SkillsUSA Masonry competition in Kansas City in June along with nine other BJ Skelton Career Center 1st place winners from other programs. Coming in a close 2nd for silver was Heath Haskett, Easley High School senior. After the competition Masonry instructor Jeffery Stephens praised the hard work and professionalism of all four of his students who participated in the competition.
Graphic Communications Student Takes 3rd In State Competition
On April 16, Megan Bouwkamp, Easley High senior and student at BJ Skelton Career Center represented the Graphic Communications program in the SkillsUSA State Competition held at the Carolina First Center in Greenville. Bouwkamp competed in Screen Printing and placed 3rd in the competition. According to Graphic Communications instructor Tim Hiott “Megan has been a hardworking graphics communications student for the past three years. Her creativity and skill allowed her to represent us well. I am very proud of Megan.”
Electricity Wins Silver and Gold
On April 16, two B. J. Skelton Career Center Electricity students competed in the State SkillsUSA Electricity Competition at the Carolina First Center in Greenville. Winning gold was Chris Nalley, Easley High senior. Nalley, along with nine other first place winners, will travel to Kansas City in June to compete at the National SkillsUSA Competition. Christopher Rampey, Daniel High senior, placed second to bring home silver. Instructor Brian Stewart expressed thanks for the students’ hard work and for the support of community businesses, particularly Charles Dalton and the employees at Blue Ridge Electric Coop, who have supported the program by providing equipment, co-op opportunities, and hiring students from the career center Electricity Program
Cosmetology Wins Gold
On April 16, Daniel High School student, Samantha Kanaris, represented BJ Skelton Career Center in the SkillsUSA State Cosmetology Competition held at the Carolina First Center in Greenville. Many Cosmetology students from all over South Carolina competed in the event which included three hair cuts (45 minutes each), one long hair design (1 hour), an interview, and a written test. Kanaris won 1st place and received the gold medal. She will compete at the National SkillsUSA competition in Kansas City in June along with nine other BJ Skelton Career Center 1st place winners. Kanaris was chosen to represent the career center cosmetology program “because of her drive to excel and her accomplishments in the classroom” according to her instructor, Stacy Simmons.
Culinary Arts Wins 2nd Place in Two Competitions
On April 16, two BJ Skelton Career Center students represented the Culinary Arts program in the SkillsUSA State Competition held at the Carolina First Center in Greenville. These students competed in Baking and Pastry, and Culinary Arts. Corey Fox, Pickens High School junior, took 2nd place in Culinary Arts, producing four beautifully plated dishes in the timed event. BreAnn Adcox, Easley High School senior, took 2nd place in Baking and Pastry, producing eight baked dishes in six hours. Adcox thanked SkillsUSA for giving her this opportunity. “Being in the competition has made me feel I am ready for being out in the real world, owning my own bakery shop”, a goal of hers since age seven.
Auto Tech Placed 2nd and 3rd at State
On April 16, two BJ Skelton Career Center students represented the Auto Technology program in the SkillsUSA State Competition held at the Carolina First Center in Greenville. Dillon McRee-Toby, Pickens High senior, placed 2nd in the event to bring home silver. Charles Tra Williams, Pickens High senior, placed 3rd in the event. The Auto Technology program at the career center is a nationally certified program that prepares students for many jobs in the auto industry.
NATEF Winner
On February 11, 2010, twelve students from across South Carolina participated in the first ever NATEF All Star Automotive Competition held at Midlands Technical College in Columbia, SC. BJ Skelton Career Center is proud to announce that James Drummond, a Pickens High School senior and Automotive Technology student at BJ Skelton Career Center, placed 4th in the competition. Automotive instructor Phillip Smith said “I am proud of the work this student has put into the program. His accomplishment highlights the good work going on here at the career center.”
This all day event included testing in each of the NATEF/ASE areas of Brakes, Electrical, Engine Performance, and Suspension and Steering. Each task consisted of the following elements:
· Correct use of equipment involved.
· Correct interpretation of service information used.
· Student’s ability to demonstrate logical and deductive reasoning.
· Student’s ability to access the situation, identify cause, predict effect on vehicle/component performance or operation, and determine corrective action required.
· Student’s ability to relay / record information in an articulate manner as required.
HOSA Winners
Along with sponsors Mrs. Jan Ayers and Ms. Joyce Stover, twelve members of BJ Skelton Career Center’s HOSA (Health Occupations Students of America) chapter recently attended the HOSA State Leadership Conference in Charleston, SC. The students competed in a variety of events bringing home awards in three areas. Alisha Barnes, Nicole Howard, and Amanda Ivester placed 4th in the state in Medical Reading. Kelsie Kimbrell and Miranda Watkins placed 4th in the state in Community Awareness. In Forensic Medicine, Ashley Frady and Jessica Carroll placed 6th in the state.
Culinary Arts First Place Winner
After winning first place in the district FCCLA (Family Career Community Leaders of America) Culinary Arts competition in Charleston SC in February, B.J. Skelton Career Center Culinary Arts student, BreAnn Adcox, went on the compete in the March 20 state competition where she placed 2nd . Miss Adcox is a senior at Easley High School and a third year Culinary Arts student (instructor Kelly Holder) at BJ Skelton. She plans on attending Greenville Tech in the fall to pursue a degree in Baking and Pastry Arts.
Robot Crate
FIRST Robotics Competition, the BJ Skelton Career Center Carpentry III seniors were constructing the crate to ship it in. Creativity and imagination are required to build a robot. The Carpentry III seniors made building the crate just as important part as building the robot. The crate transported the robot to competition in Atlanta, GA in March.
(L-R Brandon Brooks, Jennifer Lee, John McCall, Steven Stack, Tyler Westfall,Jeremiah Armstrong, Amaris Crump, Robert Pitts and not pictured, Matthan Owen )
(L-R Brandon Brooks, Jennifer Lee, John McCall, Steven Stack, Tyler Westfall,Jeremiah Armstrong, Amaris Crump, Robert Pitts and not pictured, Matthan Owen )
Grime Scene Investigation
Mrs. Martin’s 3rd grade class enjoys the “Grime Scene Investigation” presented by Kelsie Kimbrell (on left) and Miranda Watkins (on right)
BJ Skelton Career Center HOSA members Kelsie Kimbrell and Miranda Watkins brought “Grime Scene Investigation” to Liberty Elementary School this week. The students visited three classrooms where they taught the 3rd and 4th graders proper hand washing techniques and the importance of clean hands in preventing the spread of disease. After the classes practiced their hand washing techniques, they applied Glo Germ to their hands which highlighted any germs left when put under florescent light. Liberty Elementary teacher Michelle Merritt reported that “this was a very informative presentation about the importance of personal hygiene. The students enjoyed the fact that they were able to participate in the lesson through using the Glo Germ.”
As members of HOSA, Kimbrell and Watkins presented this “Community Awareness Problem” in preparation for competition at the HOSA State Leadership Conference which takes place in Charleston this March.
Carpentry Program Wins Canned Food/Keeping Warm Drive
The Carpentry program at BJ Skelton Career Center collected 147 of the 304 cans collected during the H.O.S.A Canned Food Drive during November 2 through December 15. Jim Garrison’s Carpentry I (juniors), Carpentry II (seniors) along with the Intro to Carpentry (sophomores) class did a great job bringing in canned goods for the food drive. Carpentry won this same competition last year. After the Christmas Holiday break, these classes will be treated with free snacks for winning the competition.
Culinary Arts Complete ServSafe
The students in Mrs. Kelly Holder’s Culinary Arts junior class at BJ Skelton Career Center recently successfully completed the National ServSafe examination. This certification program, which comes from the National Restaurant Association for foodservice professionals, will help the students enter the restaurant industry as well as making them more employable to restaurants in the Upstate.
Graphic Communication Class Helps Edwards Middle School
Mrs. Kellie Pepitone’s Edwards Middle School students are preparing to sell printed bags at the school store. They designed an emblem for Mr. Tim Hiott’s Graphic Communication class at Skelton Career Center to print on the bags. The Edwards Middle School students visited the graphics lab on November 24 to see how the graphic design process works. They will return the career center in December to help print the bags. This project incorporates STEM standards (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) which Ms. Pepitone prepared for by attending the STEM symposium this past summer. Mrs. Pepitone and another Edwards Middle School teacher, Mrs. Heather Beam, have combined forces to make this project a meaningful experience for their students.
First Block at Career Center
BJSCC Directors Lay First Blocks for New Career & Technology Center
Former BJ Skelton Career Center directors Ben Smith and Dr. Mendel Stewart along with current director Leonard Williams laid blocks this week for the new career and technology center being built at 990 Chastain Road, Liberty. Pictured are Dr. Stewart, Ben Smith, and Leonard Williams. The new facilities are a part of the district’s $365 million facilities plan.
Check out our Building Futures Web site for updated site plans, schematics, fact tables, and floor plans as well as slideshows of work in progress. Slideshow
Check out our Building Futures Web site for updated site plans, schematics, fact tables, and floor plans as well as slideshows of work in progress. Slideshow
Board Approves GMP for New Career & Technology Center
The new Career & Technology Center will be built at a guaranteed maximum price (GMP) of $21,625,955. The board approved the price at a November 23rd meeting.
The price includes the balance of the site work excluded from the early site package as well as the building package and is reflective of the scope and design required by the district. H.G. Reynolds Company of Aiken will be the contractors for the project. The new school is expected to open in August 2011.
The price includes the balance of the site work excluded from the early site package as well as the building package and is reflective of the scope and design required by the district. H.G. Reynolds Company of Aiken will be the contractors for the project. The new school is expected to open in August 2011.
Board Approves Career & Technology Center
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Board Approves Revisions to Career & Technology
Center Design Development Architect Joel Carter presented new design development drawings of the career and technology center to the board on September 14. The new designs incorporate a reduction in square footage from 232,000 to 152,000. The board approved the revised designs which bring the new building into budget. According to Carter, the plans should be available in mid to late October. ... Design Development Drawings
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Board Approves Plans
Board Approves Schematics for Career and Technology Center
The School District of Pickens County Board of Trustees approved schematic designs for the new career and technology center at its meeting on November 24. Schematic designs are based on courses that will be offered at the center.
In regular meetings, a team composed of the architects, administrators and the school planning team examined the career center’s offerings in conjunction with courses that will be offered at the new high schools. Courses requiring large investments in equipment and space such as automotive technology, carpentry, cosmetology, culinary arts and Project Lead the Way will be offered at the center. Other career and technology center courses will complement the SDPC Schools of Study offerings at the new high schools. News Release ... Architects' Presentation
