Friday, October 21, 2022
All students have challenges, yet how often do they overcome them to be named best in the nation in something? This story is about Taylen Kowalski, a senior at Stevens Point Area Senior High this year, who won Top Gold in her career and technical student organization (CTSO) event at the national conference in San Diego last summer, and along with it, a scholarship to Sullivan University in Louisville, Kentucky.
While this story is about a hard-working student, it’s also about caring, supportive, and inspiring teachers along the way and the CTSOs that often have an outsized role in developing students’ passion in a career area.
An easily distracted student when she was young, Taylen had good teachers. She credits her 5th and 6th grade teacher, for example, with “making a difference” in her life by setting clear expectations and requiring her to be accountable. Her teacher also demanded that Taylen be more organized, talk less, pay attention, exert self-control, and take on challenges.
With an increasing ability to focus, Taylen really enjoyed Family Consumer Science (FCS) classes. She says the FCS teachers were inspiring and really mentored her, especially Brett Lesniak, who remains a role model for her. Taylen took many FCS classes. And because her sister, who is older by five years, had been an FCCLA member, Taylen “felt comfortable” with FCCLA and understood the competitive events. And, says Taylen, her advisors’ expectations for her were to assist other students and look beyond behavior and provide mentorship.
Like other CTSOs (DECA, FBLA, FFA, HOSA, and SkillsUSA), FCCLA is a national organization that helps students develop life-long skills such as interpersonal skills, teamwork, and setting and achieving goals. Membership also fosters and develops positive leadership skills—planning, problem-solving, and decision-making. FCCLA is for students in FCS education in public and private school through grade 12 and is the only CTSO with family as its central focus.
Taylen says she especially liked FCCLA’s community service projects, including making and donating Halloween capes to the local children’s hospital, selling dirt cups to raise funds, and making and donating Christmas wreaths to area nursing facilities.
She admits sheepishly, “during the pandemic it was easy to hide behind a mask.” Nevertheless, “I’ve grown in my ability in public speaking and connections in showing passion to others,” adds Taylen in amazement at her increased confidence.
“Competitive events strengthen skills, forge friendships, and make a positive difference in today’s world,” she says. And they made a huge difference to Taylen.
Last year, she became interested in being a teacher and competed in FCCLA’s Teach and Train, an individual event that recognizes members who demonstrate their ability to explore and experience the career of teaching or training. Participants prepare a portfolio of the teaching/training career, execute a complete lesson/workshop plan and an oral presentation, and complete a shadowing experience of a “best practices” educator. Taylen created a sequence of three lesson plans in personal financial literacy and won at the regional level.
Then, she brought home the Top Gold in Teach and Train from the national competition.
With her history, is it any wonder that she wants to teach FCS at the middle/high school levels?
—Submitted by Diane Ryberg, Education Consultant and FCCLA State Advisor, Career and Technical Education Team, Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction