Student of the Year

Each year the Mid Rivers Tech Prep Consortium selects a Student of the Year. The Tech Prep award recognizes students who have excelled in technical courses and who have a commitment to continuing their education in their program area after high school graduation. The award winner from the Mid Rivers Consortium is honored, along with other regional winners, in March at an awards ceremony and reception at the State Capitol in Jefferson City.

To be eligible a student must be a high school senior, must demonstrate a personal commitment to vocational-technical education, success in their core academic courses, personal character and leadership qualities, involvement in career-technical student organizations, involvement in school/community activities and a commitment to a post-secondary career-technical program.

Applications for this award are available during October and are due in mid November with the winner announced in January. For more information on this, students should visit with their high school counselor or call the Mid Rivers Tech Prep Consortium office at 573-485-3220. Mid Rivers Tech Prep Student of the Year Announced

Mid Rivers Tech Prep Student of the Year Announced

Again this year, the Missouri State Tech Prep Grantees selected Tech Prep Student of the Year Award winners. Each Tech Prep consortium from around the state selects their winner and all were honored at an awards ceremony and reception in the State Capitol on March 3rd.
	Mark Warner flanked by Walter Logan (left), Tech Prep Coordinator, and Mark Ward (right), his Computer Maintenance Technology instructor at Lewis & Clark Career Center in St. Charles, on the State Capitol steps

Mark Warner Jr flanked by his mother and father, Denise and Mark Warner Sr. on the steps of the State Capitol.

The Mid Rivers Tech Prep Consortium Award and scholarship winner this year is Mark Warner, Jr., a senior at Orchard Farm High School. Mark is the son of Mark and Denise Warner of Portage Des Sioux. The panel of judges selected Mark from a field of worthy applicants from high schools in Lincoln, Pike, and St. Charles Counties.

The Tech Prep Student of the Year Award is a way to recognize students who have excelled in technical courses and who have a commitment to continuing their education in their technical program area after high school. In Missouri, Tech Prep is a combined secondary and post-secondary education program which builds student competence in math, science, and communications through a sequential course of study; provides technical preparation in at least one field of Arts and Communications; Business, Management and Technology; Health Services; Industrial and Engineering Technology; or Natural Resources; leads to a post-secondary certificate or degree; and leads to employment in their field of study.

To be eligible for the Tech Prep Student of the Year Award, high school seniors must demonstrate a personal commitment to career-technical education, success in their core academic courses, personal character and leadership qualities, involvement in vocational-technical student organizations, involvement in school/community activities and a commitment to post-secondary career-technical program.

Mark is a second-year student at Lewis & Clark Career Center in St. Charles. During his junior year he completed their one-year Computer Maintenance Technology program and this year he is in their one-year Computer Information Systems class. Sheryl Larkin, Mark’s English teacher at Orchard Farm and who nominated him, says “Mark’s work ethic and determination to do a good job make him an excellent candidate for this award.” She goes on to say that “he is always determined to achieve, to do what is necessary in order to reach his goals.”

Mark receiving his state "star" award from Shawn Brice, State Director of Tech Prep with DESE in Jeff City

Mark receiving plaque from Walter Logan, Coordinator of the Mid Rivers Tech Prep Consortium

During his high school years, Mark has been involved in Skills USA, Boy Scouts, A+ tutoring, football, golf, track, counselor at 5th grade camp, mission trips building shelters for homeless, building a pavilion and gazebo for his home town and helped with highway cleanups. He has earned numerous honors including becoming an Eagle Scout, officer in Skills USA (recorder and president), honor roll, perfect attendance, Editors Choice Award from Poetry Magazine, Employee of the Month at Blanchette Place Care Center, and was named Lewis & Clark’s Most Outstanding Student in Computer Maintenance Technology last year. Outside of school, Mark repaired and built computers for a small computer business.

Mark plans to attend Lindenwood University and major in Computer Sciences. His career goal is to work for Intel and design chipsets and other internal computer components.

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