What’s Right With Our Schools: Catoosa Career Academy Graduation

CATOOSA COUNTY, Ga. (WDEF) – Graduation days are always a time for celebration. Catoosa Career Academy recently graduated its first class. Many of them are ready to contribute to the workforce. That’s a timely example of what’s right with our schools.

Denia Reese is on the board of Directors for the College and Career Academy.

She explains, “We’re extremely excited about the success of the College and Career Academy. Opening this year in August, and now ending the year with 150 students actually receiving certificates of in industry and to receive their courting. The interesting thing about these students is, when we started this journey to open the College and Career Academy, many of them were in sixth grade. So, these are middle school students that we have watched grow and develop into young people that are going to be contributing citizens here in our community.”

Reese continues, “Just seeing them walk across the stage to be recognized today for their hard work. And their faith in us to leave their high school and attend the College and Career Academy.”

Chance Nix is the Superintendent for Catoosa County Schools.

He adds, “When you look at this place, it looks big, and it looks you know amazing. But people don’t realize how much work and how much detail goes into a college and career Academy. This is not your old school woodshop, but it is a high tech, uh high performance job creating economic development machine. And that’s what’s happening here on a daily basis.”

Grant Wilson is a senior at Heritage High.

He says, “The first Year’s junior year, the end of junior year that I realized that I was going to be coming over here. To the CCA and I I was I was very ecstatic. And there’s a new facility all new equipment, all new stuff going on, and amazing teacher that I met; we started going through these classes and I realized how much I really wanted to be in the healthcare field. And how amazing uh this field is. God is good.  He treats… I mean you reap what you sow. You put in the work in, and you you’re follow on the right path. You will see the outcomes will come through, and that is it is huge.”

Denia Reese concludes, “Well, this dream began seven years ago. It’s a little overwhelming and emotional to see it all come into reality, because you have a dream, but you know and you know how you want it to turn out, but then to see it exceed your expectations and even what you could dream about, is very overwhelming and emotional.”