CareerTech Recognizes State Leaders with Distinguished Service Award

The Samuel Noble Foundation, Sen. Susan Paddack and House Speaker Chris Benge received the Oklahoma Association of Career and Technology Education Distinguished Service Award at the 41st Annual CareerTech Summer Conference. The conference was held Aug. 4-6 in Oklahoma City at the Cox Business Services Convention Center.

The Distinguished Service Award is one of the most prestigious awards given by the Oklahoma ACTE, the professional organization for the state's CareerTech administrators, teachers and staff members

This award recognizes individuals or organizations outside the field of career and technology education for meritorious contributions to the significant statewide improvement, promotion, development and progress of career and technology education.

“We recognize these Oklahoma leaders with the Oklahoma ACTE Distinguished Service Award for their commitment to partnering to benefit the lives of Oklahoma students and the Oklahoma economy,” said Phil Berkenbile, CareerTech state director.

The Samuel Noble Foundation has provided significant contributions to Southern Oklahoma Technology Center during the past several years, according to Berkenbile.

“The Foundation has made monetary contributions for the construction of the Seminar Center, the reconstruction of the Oklahoma School of Science and Math wing, extension and renovation of the Health Building,” he said. “Most recently, SOTC was awarded partial funding to extend biotechnology by increasing the size and making it a two-teacher program.”

Elected in November 2004 as the state senator for District 13, Paddack serves as a democratic whip and co-chair of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Education. In addition, she serves on the full Appropriations Committee, the Education Committee, Energy and Environment, and Finance. She represents Oklahoma as a board member on the Southern Regional Education Board, a commissioner of the Education Commission of the States, a board member of the Oklahoma Educational Technology Trust, a board member on the Healthcare Workforce Resources Center Board, and serves on the Governor’s Elimination of Health Disparities Task Force, the Task Force on Achieving Classroom Excellence, the State Coverage Initiative to reform healthcare in Oklahoma and the Governor’s Catastrophic Health Emergency Planning Task Force. 

“With a passion to promote both education and healthcare in Oklahoma, Sen. Paddack has successfully authored landmark legislation in these areas and was principal author of the 2005 legislation, Rx Oklahoma, to make the Prescription Assistance Program available statewide,” Berkenbile said.

That same year, she authored legislation creating a physician assistant scholarship program to help ensure rural communities have greater access to medical care and was also instrumental in passing legislation to create the Health Care Workforce Resource Center to help identify shortages in nursing and allied health as well as develop strategies to address those gaps.

“Sen. Paddack authored laws to ensure that schools provide information about meningococcal meningitis to parents of students in grades 6-12 and to require vision screenings for elementary students,” Berkenbile said. “Another bill she authored gives lawsuit protection to healthcare providers who provide charitable medical services to medically indigent persons in a free medical clinic setting.”

Speaker Benge has also championed health and education-related causes for the people of Oklahoma.

Serving in the State Legislature since 1998, Speaker Benge held the chairmanship of the House Appropriations and Budget Committee for three years prior to being elected House Speaker this past legislative session. He also has served on the Banking and Insurance and Retirement subcommittees during his legislative tenure.

“During his time in the Legislature, Speaker Benge was the House author of the bill that created the OSU Medical Authority and has remained dedicated to stabilizing the medical program at the school,” Berkenbile said. “This year, he has fought to keep the OSU medical school open in Tulsa, allowing it to continue to be a pipeline of doctors to the entire state.”

Record investment in education and Oklahoma’s roads and bridges were made a priority under Speaker Benge during his time as chairman of the budget committee and continued this year in his current role. Speaker Benge fought to get a $300 million roads bond package this year to make our state roads and bridges safer for Oklahoma families for years to come.

He also has worked to shore up the state’s retirement systems and to provide tax relief to all Oklahomans. Throughout his time in the legislature, Speaker Benge has been committed to increasing government incentives, including efforts to attract more engineers to the state, and led the effort to launch the state’s nanotechnology initiative.

“Speaker Benge has made public safety a budget priority and continues to push initiatives that ensure Oklahomans have access to quality health care while also emphasizing personal responsibility,” Berkenbile said.

Shown from the left are Southern Oklahoma Technology Center Superintendent David Powell, SOTC Assistant Superintendent Nyoka Rogers, Noble Foundation Director of Public Relations Adam Calloway, SOTC Biotechnology Instructor Fiona McAlister and SOTC Fulltime Programs Director Jayne Huffman.
House of Representatives Speaker Chris Benge
Sen. Susan Paddack

Posted August 21, 2008

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