Urbana High School Career and Technical Education

Wishing a very happy retirement to Mr. Stickelmaier!

Thank you for your years of dedication, leadership, and the wonderful energy you brought every day. While we will greatly miss your expertise, we might miss your legendary college wardrobe collection just as much! 👕🎓

We wish you all the absolute best in your retirement.

As we celebrate this milestone, we are also signing off for summer. See y'all in August! Have a safe and wonderful break, everyone. 👋☀️

Off the Clock: Honoring a Journey of Dedication and Success.
Daniel Stickelmaier's Next Chapter Starts Now!

When thinking back to his very first day at Urbana High School 5 years ago, Daniel will never forget the unique mix of excitement and nervous fear he felt stepping through the doors. It’s a vivid memory that marks the beginning of an incredible journey with USD #116.

For Daniel, the absolute best part of the job has always been the people. What he will miss the most are the students and staff at Urbana High School, noting that everyone throughout his time here has been incredibly kind and supportive.

Daniel’s top advice for new teachers and staff members starting out is rooted in a simple but powerful truth: treat the kids with respect, and they will give it right back to you. It's a philosophy that served him well throughout his career.

Forty years in education is a monumental milestone. Daniel shares that on his first official day off, he is going to simply relax and look back with pride on the four decades of hard work he poured into his career.

Daniel’s retirement is going to be the perfect blend of family and adventure. He is looking forward to focusing on his favorite things: making memories with his wife, daughters, and grandkids, and enjoying some high-energy fun riding dirt bikes.

Four decades of hard work officially in the books, and we are so proud to have been the home of your final 5 years. Thank you for everything, Daniel—we wish you nothing but joy, relaxation, and wonderful family time in this next chapter!

Our Culinary Arts students turned up the heat for our unit on low-and-slow barbecue! 🍖 They mastered the art of the dry rub, with each chef-in-training crafting their own signature blend of spices to build that perfect savory flavor. 🔥

Talk about rising to the occasion! 🎂
Our incredible Scholars in Baking and Pastries just crushed their final exam, creating stunning multi-tier cakes with smooth buttercream icing. This project is always the ultimate test of measuring precision, time management, and pure patience. But this semester, our scholars faced an extra twist: they had to pivot and complete all of their icing in a completely different classroom due to high kitchen demands and the foods 2 lab practicals happening simultaneously. Talk about grace under pressure! We think every single one of these creations looks absolutely delicious and professional. Amazing job, everyone! 🎉👩‍🍳👨‍🍳✨

Our Work-Based Learning Advisory Council met recently to continue building the bridges that connect our students to their bright futures! 🏗️✨

We are incredibly grateful for the representation at the table, including experts from the University of Illinois, Parkland Community College, current students, Urbana School District Staff, a wide variety of community entities and local companies. 🤝🏾

This powerhouse collaboration ensures that our curriculum stays aligned with industry needs and that our students have access to the best possible internship and career opportunities.

By bringing together voices from higher education and the professional world, we are creating a roadmap for success that is grounded in real-world experience. A huge thank you to all our council members for their time, insight, and dedication to our students! 🌟

🙏🏾✨

🎉 HUGE congratulations to our 2025-2026 CTE Interns! 🎉

This year, our incredible students didn't just learn—they did. Collectively, they logged over 1,050 hours of real-world experience across an amazing variety of fields, including:

🧮 Accounting

🩺 Medicine

🧠 Psychology

🎭 Theater Production

🏗️ Engineering

📜 History

📈 Marketing

🐜 Entomology

The results speak for themselves: 100% of our interns reported being glad they participated in the program! 🌟

Internship programs are the vital bridge between the classroom and the "real world," and we couldn't do it alone. A massive thank you to all of our dedicated community hosts and for the continuous support from the district. We also want to thank families who have been the support system behind the scenes for years.

Together we are helping shape the workforce of tomorrow!

The first-ever Cooperative Education Work-Based Learning Retreat officially embarked this year, marking a major milestone for our students! 🚀

This transformative experience was designed to help students gain clarity and awareness about their post-high school goals by connecting them with real-world experiences and invaluable perspectives from working adults. 📈

The energy stayed high during our Panel Discussion, where students participated in an informal, interactive Q&A with guest speakers from a wide range of professional fields. 🎤

We want to thank everyone who came in that day to pour into our students 👏🏾

This diverse representation ensured that our students were exposed to multiple pathways and the authentic, real-life experiences they may encounter after graduation. We are so proud of these students for taking charge of their futures! 🌟

Shout out to Ms. Brown for organizing such a memorable event! 🐾

It was an inspiring day of exploration as Ms. Atkins and Ms. Warman-Neal took our FCS students on an exciting tour of Illinois State University! 🎓

The group spent the day diving into the world of Family and Consumer Sciences, specifically visiting Turner Hall to get a firsthand look at the cutting-edge facilities and vibrant academic community that ISU offers.

A huge thank you to Ms. Atkins and Ms. Warman-Neal for organizing such a meaningful experience and helping our students envision their future as Redbirds! 🔴⚪🐾

During the visit, students explored the impressive lineup of FCS Majors offered at ISU, including:

Fashion Design and Merchandising 👗

Food, Nutrition and Dietetics 🥗

Human Development and Family Science 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦

Interior Design 🏠

FCS Teacher Education 🍎

🏁 Friday Fun: The Great Inflatable Face-Off! 🦞👶
TGIF!

During Teacher Appreciation Week staff wore their inflatables. Ms. Perez-Rosser and Mr. Irvin decided to take "going above and beyond" and race on the football field after school. Although we did not win, we had fun!

🎤Thanks to Ms. Lueth for providing the inflatables and joy!

We want to send a huge thank you to the Urbana Rotary Club for their 53rd year of honoring our incredible Work Based Learning students. It was an honor to have their families join us to celebrate these achievements! 🤝🙌

The students recognized today represent three impactful programs:

COOP (Cooperative Education Program): Empowering students age 16+ with real-world experience. 💼

STEP (Secondary Transition Experience Program): Helping students with unique abilities transition successfully into employment and their community. 🌟

Executive Internship Program: Providing non-paid internships to explore dream careers. 🚀

Congratulations to our honorees:
🎉 Treyvion
🎉 Nev
🎉 Calleese
🎉 Mariana
🎉 Kariah
🎉 Arelly
🎉 Valentina

We are so proud of your hard work and dedication! 👏✨