High school pupils from the Stirling area who completed the School-College Opportunities to Succeed (SCOTS) programme, were presented with certificates this week to recognise their achievement.
At the special event held at Forth Valley College’s Stirling Campus on Monday 26 March, more than 50 pupils were joined by their parents, College staff – including Ernie Romer FVC’s School Provision Coordinator and Fiona Brown FVC’s Vice Principal Learning and Teaching - school teachers and Kevin Kelman, Chief Education Officer at Stirling Council, who were all keen to celebrate the successful programme.
Award winners on the day were Kym Sharp (16) from Bannockburn High School, who won the Inspire Award, Matt Tulloch (16) from the Ballinkinrain School who won the Outstanding Personal Achievement Award and Kinga Obajtek (15) from Wallace High School who won the Student of the Year Award.
The ground-breaking partnership between Forth Valley College and Stirling Council, allowed mainly fourth year pupils to attend college one afternoon per week to experience eight different subjects including: Construction Crafts, Science, Healthcare, Early Education and Childcare, Business, Hospitality, Salon Services and Creative Industries and to work towards SQA employability units throughout the course.
Within the local schools, the young people involved worked with teachers to improve their skills for learning, skills for work and skills for life. They also developed employability skills such as - researching for jobs, creating a CV, preparing for interviews and also learning more about the “taster” subjects they were undertaking within Forth Valley College.
Matt, said: “I feel very happy to have won this award and I never expected it at all. I really enjoyed the SCOTS course and would recommend it to anyone.”
Kym, said: “I was shaking when I realised I had won an award and thought I was going to cry. I loved the SCOTS course. I thought I would go into Childcare, but it was the SCOTS programme which really inspired me to go for it. I am now coming back next year to do my Foundation Apprenticeship.”
Kinga, said: “I was really shocked to have won the award and was not expecting it at all. The best bit for me was the Hospitality section, which has really opened my eyes up to what I want to do and I have applied to come back here and study. My advice for any student thinking about doing the SCOTS programme is to go for it as it really shows you what opportunities are out there at college.”
Forth Valley College Principal Dr Ken Thomson, said: “This is the fourth Stirling SCOTS graduation and each year I am bowled over by how the SCOTS programme has managed to inspire and encourage pupils, who may well have left school without any experience of the opportunities available to them at college. I was delighted to celebrate the completion of their course along with them and can’t wait to see many of them return in the future on other courses the we offer here. We hope they found SCOTS to be worthwhile and of great benefit in helping them make up their minds as to which study route they might want to take in life.
“The SCOTS programme has certainly been a great success and an excellent example of the close working partnership between Forth Valley College and Stirling Council. We are already looking forward to welcoming our next cohort of learners who will be able to experience the benefits of the SCOTS programme at Forth Valley College.”
Councillor Susan McGill, convenor of Stirling Council’s Children and Young People Committee, said: “We are delighted to see so many of our pupils from across all our secondary schools graduate from the SCOTS programme as they look to take their next steps in life.
“Stirling Council wants to see our young people grow and develop and the SCOTS initiative is an excellent way to help set them on the right path for future success.
“Congratulations to all involved and we hope their progress will encourage others to engage with this joint initiative between the council and Forth Valley College to build for a brighter future.”
Kevin Kelman, Chief Education Officer at Stirling Council, said: “I really enjoyed the event. It was wonderful to see young people from Stirling graduate from the SCOTS course at the Forth Valley College Stirling Campus. The SCOTS programme is a fantastic opportunity for fourth year pupils in Stirling to explore the range of opportunities available to them. It is great to be able to work in partnership with Forth Valley College to expand the horizons of local youngsters.
“We are extremely proud of the school pupils who completed the course this year. They have learned new skills which have prepared them for life and work and we are very pleased that they are being recognised for their efforts.”
