When this fall's road construction in downtown Scottville caused daily detours for cars and trucks, MCC's Director of State and Federal Programs Angela Taylor was worried about several busy intersections where students crossed walking to and from school.
Angela turned to Chrysten Gregory, the Public Safety & Protective Services instructor at the Summit Tech Center, the West Shore ESD's CTE program.
Soon, three of Chrysten's MCC students in her class volunteered to serve as official school crossing guards before and after school to respond to the problem.
From their training with Chrysten with day one, the three young men discovered law enforcement and promoting public safety was a noble profession.
"I couldn't be prouder of these fine young men," said Chrysten, "They were dependable, vigilant, and their active presence made those busy intersections safer for pedestrians of all ages."
On November 6, school leaders from MCC and Summit Tech, along with officials from MDOT and the City of Scottville, joined Mason County Sheriff Kim Cole and several deputies to recognize MCC junior Noah Gonzales, MCC senior Landon Angst, and MCC junior Kaden Kane for their outstanding work.
The three students agreed that their five-week stints serving as school crossing guards were both beneficial and eye-opening.
(L-R) Noah Gonzales, Landon Angst, and Kaden Kane
"It was surprising how many drivers don't care about following the rules," said Noah. "I'm glad we were there before and after school, particularly for the littlest kids."
Landon concurred. "I saw how a lot of drivers don't like it when they have to change up their normal routines, and aren't as accommodating as you'd expect," he said.
"Each one of us had our own adventures with nearly getting hit by cars," noted Kaden.
"In every class at Summit Tech, students obtain a significant amount of real-world, hands-on experience to go along with the credentials and skills they earn," said Chyrsten. "This experience was another valuable one for the students."
"We appreciate how these three young men from the Public Safety program stepped up to help make our town's road construction situation much safer," said Angela. "You can't ask for a better result than this."
(L-R) MCSO Sergeant Adam Lamb, MCSO Chief Deputy Oscar Davila, MCC/MCSO School Resource Officer Deputy Luke Postma, CTE Para Educator Amanda Sniegowski, CTE Principal Chad Riffle, MCC junior Kaden Kane, City of Scottville DPW Justin Coolman, MCC senior Landon Angst, MCC junior Noah Gonzales, MDOT Keith Campbell, CTE Public Safety Instructor Chrysten Gregory, MCSO Sheriff Cole, MCC Superintendent Jeff Mount, and MCC Director of State and Federal Programs Angela Taylor