Computer repair students present on technology

EVIT computer repair students gave their big, end-of-the-year presentations today in class! They've been working on them for six weeks, honing their oral presentation skills and learning about various technological topics.

I got to see two of the PM presentations. One was about the iPhone:


And the other was about a computer that was submerged in water:


These students actually built this computer (it glows!) and then ran their PowerPoint presentation off of it! Pretty impressive.

Other topics included android cell phones, networks, touch screen technology, Windows OS history, and Apple technology. Great job everyone!

EVIT "Goes Green" for Earth Day

EVIT's "Go Green" Committee held a contest last week in honor of Earth Day. They asked students to bring in plastic grocery bags to be recycled. The classes to collect the most bags (in AM and PM) would win ice cream parties.

All together, the students collected ... Are you ready? ... 8,000 bags!!!

That's a LOT of bags (and I hear the counting took more time than anticipated).

Great job to all the classes, especially the ice cream party winners, who went above and beyond with their collection efforts. The AM winner was Ria McBride's massage therapy class with 770 bags; the PM winner was Jon Howell's class with 1,332 bags! Wow. Enjoy that ice cream. It was definitely earned!

A refreshing activity

The fire science students held a "water day" today for some local kids. It was borderline hot outside, so it was a good day for it:



After walking all the way across campus to get some photos, I admit that I sort of wanted to run through this:

A national honor

Congratulations to EVIT Superintendent Dr. Sally Downey for receiving the National Excellence in Education award from AdvancED.

Dr. Downey was one of just two educators nationwide to be honored with this award at the organization's gala awards reception in Atlanta on April 19.

Here she is, with EVIT Campus Director James Fisher and Governing Board President Garry Hays after accepting her award:


Here is what the folks at AdvancED had to say about why they chose Dr. Downey for this honor:

(Dr. Downey) joined EVIT in 2000 and set out to change the institute’s image by creating a vision and mission that would change the expectations of everyone on campus and in the community. She launched an ambitious change effort internally with staff and students, while engaging in an equally ambitious external communications effort to show principals, counselors, parents, and community leaders that EVIT is about preparing students for success in life.

She built a culture where students come first. She is committed to ensuring that all students have a skill, whether it’s using that skill to pay their way through college or continuing on to the next level in a post secondary program.

We couldn't have said it better ourselves!

Interior Design students decorate mini-houses

EVIT interior design students are helping the construction students wrap up their year-long miniature house project by adding a splash of color and pizazz.

The construction students have spent the year building the frames, laying the drywall and wiring the electricity into their tiny houses. Here are a couple of pictures from their work over the first few months:


The houses have come a long way since the beginning of the year! Now, the interior design students are adding paint and various design elements, including curtains, to spruce them up:

EVIT auto program receives large tool donation

The EVIT automotive technology program received a very generous donation from Lowe's, Kobalt Tools and SkillsUSA this week: $1,100 worth of tools!


The donation was given as part of the national Toolbox for Education Program. EVIT teacher Derek Hall and students Ola Wladyszewski and Ted Cheeseman went down to the Lowe's of Tempe store on Wednesday to thank store manager Jaime Cordova and collect the donation.


The students were very excited to see how many new tools they were getting.

EVIT has some top notch 'teen chefs'

Three EVIT students brought home silver medals from three different regional "Best Teen Chef" competitions this month.

Ryan Hinojosa took home silver from the Phoenix event; Martha Lopez won silver at the Tucson event; and Mafie Rincon snatched the silver in Denver.

Congratulations to all three students! Great job!

EVIT HOSA team cleans up at state competition

Dozens of EVIT Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) students brought home medals from the state competition last week in Tucson.

Nearly 40 EVIT students competed in the event, held April 14 - 16 at the Doubletree Hotel in Tucson. Here are the AM winners:


And the PM winners:


First, second and third place winners in each category are qualified to compete in the National HOSA Leadership Conference in June in Orlando. Here is the full list of winners:

HOSA Bowl
First place: Alex Rist, Nidhisha Patel, Casey Strutowski, Ashley Baumlisberger
Second place: Austin Roper, Jodi Copeland, Krystal Jovel
Third place: Stormy Profitt, Jenna Lann-Clemons, Nichole Town

Pharmacology
First place: Laura Kulas
Second place: Reyna Herold

Kaiser Permanente Scholarship Exam
Nidisha Patel
Casey Strutowski
Krystal Jovel
Laura Kulas

Barbara James Service Award
Gema Martinez

Forensic Medicine
Third place: Alyssa Johnson, Tori Painter

Home Health Aide
Third Place: Chanda John

Dental Spelling
Fourth Place: Janine Madrid

Dental Terminology
Fifth place: Lorraine Urie

Biomedical Debate
Fifth place: Bailey Shupe, Kirsten Ward, Lea Jones, Samantha Randall

EVIT spring fashion show a success

The EVIT fashion students put on two amazing Spring Fashion Shows last night.

One especially fun part was right at the beginning of the show. Fashion students teamed up with the interior design class to create matching outfits and chairs. The interior design students decorated the chairs in whatever style they were given (country, rock, 1920s, etc), and the fashion students created a garment that coordinated.

Then the students, models and designers all came out on the runway with the chairs and matching outfits. It was really something to see! Here is one of the country-themed chairs:


And matching model:


The rest of the show was just as great, filled with beautifully designed clothing from the first and second-year fashion students.


The multimedia students took lots of amazing photos, too, which I will post next week. Here is one of those students, hard at work at the show:

More medals for EVIT competitors

It's competition week for EVIT students! Not only did our students bring home loads of medals from SkillsUSA, but other students were busing competing (and competing well) at the Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) state conference this week!

Fashion students brought home several medals in different categories.

*Fashion Construction:
Kiley Hogan, bronze
Alex Lockhart, bronze
Holli Lukens, bronze

*Fashion Merchandising Showcase:
Brisa French, silver

*Fashion Design:
Landry Low, gold

A special congratulations to Landry, who will go on to represent Arizona FCCLA and compete at the National Convention in July in Chicago!

Students in the Early Childhood Education class were busy at the FCCLA conference, too. Here is a list of those winners:

*Illustrated Talk: Teen Pregnancy Prevention
Lucy Antimo & Brooke Button, gold

*Illustrated Talk: Adolescent Development: Sexting
Brittney Fitzgerald & Chase Larson, gold

*Illustrated Talk: Shaken Baby Syndrome
Natalia Patterson, gold

*National Programs in Action: Stop the Violence
Dating Violence Prevention Campaign
Brenda Martinez & Kelsey Sartain, silver

*National Programs in Action: Teen Driving Safety
Laura Gonzalez, Amber Hernandez & Lauren Carlos, gold

*Community Service Project Manual: Teens Helping Teens
Mandalyn Hill & Andrea Armijo, silver

*Community Service Project Manual: LaMesita Homeless Shelter Infant Room Adoption Project
Molly Hayne & Priscila Rubio, bronze

Molly and Priscila prepare donations for the La Mesita infant room.

*Community Service Project Display: Hand Me Down, Lift Me Up: Teens Helping Teens
Alaina Astone & Kaci Dawley, silver

Alaina and Kaci sort through donated clothing for their project in March.

*Community Service Project Display: LaMesita Homeless Shelter Infant Room Adoption Project
Nayeli Mosqueda & Lizbett Pesqueira, silver

*Focus on Children: Child Abuse
Blanca Zamora & Norma Maldonado, bronze

*Focus on Children: Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
Elizabeth Magallanes & Danae Nims, gold

And a special congratulations to Laura Gonzalez, Amber Hernandez, Lauren Carlos, Mandalyn Hill and Andrea Armijo who were all selected to represent Arizona FCCLA in the national conference in July.

Great job!

EVIT students snatch 23 medals at SkillsUSA

Twenty-three EVIT students brought home medals from the SkillsUSA Arizona Championships this week!

Firefighting:
Gold: Alec Langton
Silver: Colston Dunkelbarger
Bronze: Jacob Eustace

Radio production:
Gold: Bre Bullis and Nicole Bird

Collision:
Gold: Nick Gaffney
Silver: Paul Gilesspie

Cosmetology:
Gold: Jessica Watson
Silver: Reannon Dame

Food and Beverage:
Gold: Kimberly Hodges
Bronze: Steven Hawkins

Commercial Baking:
Gold: Calena Srutowski
Silver: Lianna Chinappi

Masonry:
Gold: Matt Woodhall

Advertising Design:
Silver: Patrick Griffin
Bronze: Christi Castaneda

3D Animation:
Gold: Matt Weldon and John Lilly
Silver: Kris Saddler and Korey Duhamell

Computer Repair:
Silver: Kyle Rasmussen

Level 2 Basic Auto:
Gold: Luis Gamez-Valenzuela
Bronze: Chan Aye

EVIT had 125 secondary and post-secondary students participate in the competition, which was held at the Phoenix Convention Center on April 12 - 13. The event involved 80 different contests with nearly 2,000 Arizona students competing.

Good luck to the gold medalists, who will go on to compete in SkillsUSA's National Leadership and Skills Conference in Kansas City in June.

Walking for a good cause

EVIT staff and students came out to downtown Mesa on Saturday to support the Mesa United Way in the "Live United Walk United" event.

EVIT folks have spent the past several weeks raising money for the event, bringing in more than $3,100 so far -- and the donations are still pouring in! Half of the money raised goes to United Way, and half comes back to EVIT!

Here is EVIT Superintendent Dr. Sally Downey at the event with Ms. EVIT Monica Leftwich:


And some of the EVIT health students, who walked the three miles in their program scrubs:


Thank you to all who raised money and walked for such a great cause!

New wheels for EVIT auto students

A big "thank you!" to Saturn of Tempe for donating this 2004 Saturn Ion to the EVIT automotive program:


EVIT auto students will be able to use the car for lots of hands-on training. Donations like these from our industry partners help the students keep up-to-date on the skills they need to be successful employees in the field.

On Friday, the folks at Saturn handed over the keys. EVIT automotive teacher Randy Baker (on the left in the picture below) then brought the car back to campus. Also pictured are Arik Watts, service manager for Saturn of Tempe; Mike Isham, special finance manager for Saturn of Tempe; and Michael McAfee, director of education for the Arizona Automobile Dealers Association.


Our students can't wait to get to work on this car!

Get ready for the 5th Annual Spring Fashion Show

Are you ready for some fashion?

The fashion merchandising classes are putting on their annual Spring Fashion Show next week. This year's theme: Musical Masquerade. Students can see the show during class time on Tuesday, April 13. Student tickets for that show are $2, and all proceeds go to the Mesa United Way.

Additional shows for the general public will be held at 5 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 15. Tickets for those shows are $5 for general seating, $10 for premier seating and $20 for VIP.

To purchase tickets, call fashion merchandising teacher Kristen Johnson at (480) 461-4141.

The shows promise to be amazing. The students have been working hard on their designs since the end of January. First-year students have each designed three garments: two for the runway and one for themselves. Second-year students have each designed seven garments: five for a collection, one for the runway and one naturally dyed garment.

Here are a few photos from last year's show:


See more pictures from last year's show here.

EVIT welders donate lamp to Tempe Diablos

A welding student and teacher spent three weeks working on something rather amazing. Check it out:


It's even more impressive in person. They're donating the lamp to the Tempe Diablos, which is holding their annual Casino Night fundraiser on April 17. This item will be sold during the event's silent auction. The lamp will be sold to raise money for the Diablos, an organization that donates time and money to various community-based youth projects in Tempe.

The group often gives scholarship money to Tempe students who attend EVIT. They are so generous with our students that when they asked for help with their fundraiser, welding teacher Pete Acosta and student Demetri Davis were happy to step up to the plate.


What made this project so successful was Demetri's knowledge of guitars. He's a guitar player and likes to fix them up as a hobby, so getting the details on the lamp just right was a cinch for him.

"It just takes time," Demetri said. "You've got to do the best you can to make it look as real as possible."

Mr. Acosta choose Demetri to help on the project not only because of his love of guitars but also because of his meticulous attention to detail.

Great job! Now if only I could figure out how to convince them to make one for my office...

HOSA students gear up for state competition

EVIT students in the HOSA organization (Health Occupations Students of America) always seem to be busy. They've spent the school year raising money for Autism Speaks, and now they're getting ready for the HOSA state competition, held April 14-16 in Tucson.

EVIT students will compete in the following categories: nursing assistant, home health aide, medical reading, biomedical debate, CPR/first aid, forensic, medical terminology, dental spelling and terminology, medical photography, career health display, and HOSA Bowl. Some students also have been competing for scholarship awards at the state and national levels.

First place winners usually go on to compete at the national competition, which will be held this year in June in Orlando.

Several students have been staying late after school on Mondays to practice their health trivia skills:


EVIT's HOSA team is notoriously a good one. Last year, the team brought home several honors from the National Competition, including a merit award for their efforts raising money for autism research.

Good luck at the state competition!

The great MC 10 egg drop

Students in the MC 10 class have been learning about the layers of the skull and brain. To drive the point home about how fragile the head can be, students were challenged to come up with a "helmet" for an egg and drop it from the Health Sciences Center balcony.

The students worked together in groups of three and each group got the same supplies for their "helmet": Styrofoam plates, rubber bands, napkins, straws and toothpicks.


They had a half hour to protectively encase their eggs. The groups who were successful would get extra credit points.


It was a happy ending for all the eggs involved: none of them broke!