CTE Month, Celebrate Today, own Tomorrow! - Staff Highlight Mr. Kenny Smith
Have you heard about Winchester High School’s booming CTE programs? (CTE, or Career and Technical Education, is what was once known as vocational education for those of you who have made more than a few trips around the sun!) February is CTE Month® and all month we plan to highlight our fantastic CTE programs and teachers, starting with the newest: Mr. Kenny Smith.
No one is more surprised than Mr. Smith that he is teaching this year at WHS! Over the summer of 2019, the stars aligned and Mr. Smith was brought on board to revitalize the woodshop at WHS. This is his first year as a teacher at WHS (or anywhere else) and he considers it one of the weirdest jobs he has ever had right alongside his job as a corrections officer.
Mr. Smith is no stranger to these halls, however, as he is a 1999 WHS graduate who grew up in “good ol’ Winchester.” If he could go back to those days, he would definitely tell himself, “Don’t be a jerk to teachers!” now that he knows what it is like on the other side of the desk.
Despite being in classrooms the majority of the day, Mr. Smith enjoys being outdoors hunting and fishing. His favorite places that he has traveled to include Florida and Nebraska for fishing and turkey hunting. His love for the outdoors shines in his personal motto: “It’s hard to soar like an eagle when you’re surrounded by turkeys”.
Mr. Smith has overcome many challenges, but figuring out what he wanted to be when he grew up was the greatest challenge of them all. When facing challenges, Mr. Smith gains inspiration from his father and his son and daughter. His family is the one thing (besides oxygen) that he cannot live without.
We may think that we know everything there is to know when it comes to Mr. Smith, but there is one thing that he claims will surprise everyone: “I am not as grouchy as I look.” Whether or not that is true, he cannot resist peanut butter cookies, so keep some handy.
