Angela Leef: Greenbrier West High School
Career and Technical Education classes have come a long way since most of us were in high school. Thanks to innovative programs and enthusiastic teachers, today’s students have the opportunity to graduate with more than a college-preparatory general education—in fact many are ready to run a business.
Greenbrier West High School teacher Angela Leef is leading such a group of young entrepreneurs. The chemistry and CTE (career and technical education) teacher utilizes a model created by the West Virginia Department of Education to create a simulated workplace for pre-engineering students who not only create actual items for sale, but also manage their own business, the Cavalier Sweatshop.
Leef is careful to point out that the use of the term “sweatshop” is not meant to be derogatory. “We say ‘sweatshop’ as meaning sweat equity,” she says. “I have a team of eight students who manage and run our business like a real-world business. We have a mission, an employee handbook, policies, etc., just like businesses do.”
GWHS senior Kenley Posten, who is the Sweatshop’s project manager, says she’s learning more than just technical skills. “Our business is made to be as real-life as possible. We focus on teamwork and leadership while aiming to give people the very best.”
The Cavalier Sweatshop produces items such as banners, posters, and prints vinyl artwork on T-shirts, their customers ranging from other students to local businesses. Currently, participants are designing and creating plaques to honor all service personnel in the Greenbrier County School system, a 300+ item order placed by Superintendent Jeff Bryant. Last year, they designed and printed all of the sponsorship banners that were placed on the football field. All informational banners in the school’s hallways are produced by the Sweatshop, along with their own special posters at the entrance to the learning lab which predominantly feature large-scale renderings of Chuck Norris memes (“When ghosts sit around the campfire, they tell Chuck Norris stories.”).
The Cavalier Sweatshop students participate in all aspects of running their business, with job titles include project manager, director of graphic design, HR director, engineering director, safety officer (“I make sure everyone keeps their fingers,”), and director of human relations.
As for Leef, she mostly stays out of the way, allowing the students to take the lead on their projects. “I operate as a facilitator who helps direct the learning process,” she says.
The use of the word facilitator, as opposed to teacher, is deliberate, and is used in CTE Simulated Workplace programs across West Virginia schools. Simulated Workplaces don’t function like traditional classrooms where the teacher lectures and the students learn. This approach is more collaborative – students function as partners in the program, learning valuable ”soft” skills that lead to success in the work world: leadership, communication, and confidence, qualities that industry leaders in the Mountain State have been asking for.
Posten, who is planning to go to Bluefield State College to study to become a registered nurse, says the Sweatshop has made her ready for the workplace. “To be an RN, you have to interact with people and be able to communicate, to be part of a team. I learned that here.”