Cloverdale JAG program succeeds at annual Career Development Conference

JAG students who participated in the CDC competitions include Kayla Fidler, Jasmine Blankenship, Seth Geiger, Olivia Johnson, Brook Bowling, Taylor Cornelius, Dalton Henry, Levi Godsey, Wyatt McDougall, Holly Garretson, Gabrielle Hamilton, Harley Pellam, Jalen Johnson and Lilian Brown, Haley Maners, Kierra Gilliam and Chelsie Edwards.

Courtesy photo

Seventeen students in the Jobs for America’s Graduates (JAG) Indiana program at Cloverdale High School recently made a strong showing demonstrating work skills and creativity at the 2019 Career Development Conference at Terre Haute’s Ivy Tech campus.

Three Cloverdale students took top honors in two events at the competition, with Haley Maners and Kierra Gilliam placing first in Career Presentation and Writing Skills, respectively. Chelsie Edwards also placed third in Career Presentation.

Other students who participated included Kayla Fidler, Jasmine Blankenship, Seth Geiger, Olivia Johnson, Brook Bowling, Taylor Cornelius, Dalton Henry, Levi Godsey, Wyatt McDougall, Holly Garretson, Gabrielle Hamilton, Harley Pellam, Jalen Johnson and Lilian Brown.

In addition to participating in the competitions, students were able to meet with peers from other area JAG programs and connect with local employers and elected officials who served as the event’s judges.

JAG is a state-based school-to-career program committed to stemming dropouts among students who may have significant obstacles to graduation or employment, and enables work-based learning experiences that lead to greater success after high school.

Cloverdale JAG specialist and coach Karl Turk said the program currently has 37 students, but that it is always looking for more and serves as a valuable outlet that sets them up for later success.

“I often tell people that it’s that class that teaches the things people often feel later in life should have been taught in school,” he wrote to the Banner Graphic. “It’s a course designed to help students get from their current point A in life to their next point B, while focusing on becoming a better version of themselves.”

“JAG gives my classmates and I the opportunity to go out and physically explore our future endeavors,” student Olivia Johnson also wrote. “On days when we can’t go out and explore, JAG brings our future possibilities to us in the classroom.”

Gilliam and Maners will be moving on to compete at a state competition, which will be held March 15 at the Ivy Tech campus in Indianapolis.

Cloverdale High School, along with a newly established program at North Putnam High School, is a member of Region Seven, which consists of all the area high schools in Clay, Parke, Sullivan, Vigo and Putnam counties.