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16-Year-Old Plans Mobile Welding Service for Local Farmers
The student debt crisis has pushed many families to rethink the traditional college path. Madison County High School senior Gavin Heath never had to rethink it. He's already on a different track entirely, building welding skills and business experience that will launch him into a debt-free career straight out of high school. The 16-year-old is…
HireSmart Cares Grant Brings Industrial Laser Cutter to Empower College and Career Center
Local machine shops have a problem: they can't find enough workers who know CNC plasma cutters and laser cutting technology. Jackson County's Empower College and Career Center has a solution. Thanks to a $4,439 grant from HireSmart Cares, students in Don Loggins' mechatronics program are now working with a commercial-grade laser cutter that cuts metal,…
HireSmart Co-founder Teaches Students the Power of Finding Their Voice
"When I got over my fear of public speaking, my income went up, my connections went up, life started to change for me," Anne Lackey told Madison County High School students. Now she's teaching them the same skills that transformed her career. Lackey, co-founder of HireSmart Cares, a local nonprofit focused on empowering the next…
HireSmart Cares Grant Gives New Wings to Thomson High School Drone Program
The first time students at Thomson High School pick up a drone controller, their hands are tense and uncertain. By the time they master complex flight courses, they realize they are learning much more than how to fly. They are uncovering career paths they never knew existed in their rural Georgia community. Under the guidance…
Fresh Ideas Take Root in West Jackson’s Garden Project
First-grade students at West Jackson Elementary School are using vegetables from their school garden for nutritious meals with the help of a $1,170 grant from HireSmart Cares to fund the creation of a mobile kitchen cart. The grant enables teacher Stephanie Westhafer to build "The Sprout & Spoon Cart," a portable cooking station that allows…
FCCLA Grant Opens Doors for Every Commerce High Student
When Lynn Booth arrived at Commerce High School last year, she saw untapped potential. As the new Nutrition and Food Science instructor, she was excited to guide students through the school’s three-course pathway — Food Nutrition and Wellness, Food For Life, and Food Science — which ranges from basic kitchen principles to studying food at…