Hamilton County students earn Future Ready ambassador certification

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) — Students from 13 different Hamilton County high schools got trained on becoming ambassadors for their Future Ready Institutes Friday.

Hamilton County Schools have set up 20 different career focused programs in 13 high schools.

The first group of students in the program earned National Career Academy Coalition certifications as they continue on a path to better their futures.

“It’s a great opportunity to explore new careers, like if you don’t know what you want to do in college,” said Adrieanna Mansapha, who’s studying building and design at East Ridge High.

“I’m just trying to push myself to my limit, because I know what I can do. I just got to do it,” said Nick Starling, who’s studying aviation at Brainerd High.

One hundred Hamilton County high school freshman sat through a six hour session to learn how to talk about their future ready institute and how it’s impacted their education.

“The student ambassador is so important because we need students to be able to tell their stories to other students about how their experiences in Future Ready Institutes are unique,” Future Ready Institute Director Blake Freeman said.

The programs are unique — with specialized courses, mentors and guest speakers, all in relation to a certain career field.

“Oh, it’s teaching me how to be a better leader – not just take over, actually listen to my peers around me,” said JaMaal Macon. Macon attends Howard High for the Erlanger Institute for Healthcare and Innovation.

“Future Ready has given me the opportunity to better myself, just to get me ready for anything that comes near me when college comes up,” Starling said.

“I thought it would be nice to have a change in scenery, from being a shy little kid to being out there. I thought I could try to be better in my family by going to a better school,” said Sharon Kotouc, who attends both the International Baccalaureate and Architecture and Engineering program at Ooltewah High.

Registration for the next class of Future Ready students is February 1st through March 15th.

For more information on the programs offered and how to apply, visit Future Ready Institute’s website or follow them on Twitter.

Categories: Chattanooga, Education, Featured, Hamilton County, UTC

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