For the Whitney and Norris families, a full-circle moment came to be at last spring’s Fairfield Career Center Senior Recognition ceremony.
It was a moment more than one year in the making once recent graduate Brooke Whitney said “yes” to Eastland-Fairfield Career & Technical Schools. For Brooke, her family, and her lab instructor, the 2023 Fairfield Career Center Senior Recognition ceremony allowed two families to share an extra special, full-circle moment that began manifesting nearly 25 years ago.
Brian Whitney began teaching at Eastland Career Center in the Commercial Art (now Graphic Design) program in the fall of 1998. Two years later, a student named Chelsea Norris entered his classroom.
“I was a student that needed structure and needed to learn a trade because I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with my life,” she said.
Norris said Mr. Whitney provided that structure and remains to this day one of her favorite teachers, citing his knowledge, calmness, and patience as qualities she remembers best.
After graduating in 2002, Norris traveled and worked as a product trainer and salon manager. Today, she owns a salon — Center Street Salon in Carroll — but still felt like she had more to give. So she returned to Eastland-Fairfield in 2019 as the instructor of the Nail Services program, at the time located at Fairfield Career Center (FCC).
There and then, the cycle gained momentum.
Upon her return to the classroom, Norris learned that Mr. Whitney was still teaching. Additionally, Trisha Whitney, Mr. Whitney’s wife, had also joined the Eastland-Fairfield team in recent years as a Pre-Nursing instructor at Fairfield Career Center, just two halls away from Norris. A web of guidance and mentorship began to form. Norris began working to establish herself in the world of education and leaned on Mrs. Whitney as a source of support throughout her first few years as an instructor.
Norris said, “It was a comforting feeling having her as a mentor. I always knew I was in good hands as a student with Mr. Whitney, and then as an instructor with Mrs. Whitney.”
Norris shared that some of the very qualities Mr. Whitney embodied have helped her become the instructor she is today. With her teaching career established and on solid ground, who should walk into Ms. Norris’ Nail Services classroom but Brooke Whitney, the couple’s youngest child. Immediately, she stood out.
“There was always something different and special about Brooke. She is the type of student every instructor wants. She stands out because of her work ethic, kindness, and the way she helps everyone around her,” said Norris. “The fact that I was trusted by one of my former instructors to help in her educational journey is an insanely good feeling.”’
Last spring as Brooke walked across the stage during FCC’s Senior Recognition Ceremony, the Whitneys watched their star pupil hand their daughter her career passport, creating a near-perfect snapshot of the influence an educator can have on multiple generations of students.
Brooke is pursuing two E’s: Education and Entrepreneurship. She is now attending to Bob Jones University in South Carolina where she is following in her mom and brothers’ footsteps by studying nursing. By taking her education at her own pace through the Ohio Virtual Academy and thanks to the opportunities through Eastland-Fairfield and the College Credit Plus program, Brooke will begin her college career with sophomore class standing and that much closer to becoming a registered nurse. The Carroll native has also started her own business, BB Nails, and will continue to use her skills to support herself during college.
The Whitneys are thankful for Ms. Norris and the way she cultivated Brooke’s artistic side and helped her hone her leadership skills. Becoming a nurse has always been Brooke’s main goal, but her training that led to becoming a certified nail technician allows her to blossom her creativity, continue to do something she enjoys, and potentially foster an additional income.
“You never know where life will take you. Eastland-Fairfield provided Brooke with a great opportunity to gain a second avenue for earning money, or if she doesn’t like nursing, a great backup plan,” said Mrs. Whitney.
She’s right; you never know where life might take you. Maybe one day we’ll be telling a story about how Brooke is impacting yet another generation, be it in a medical facility, salon, or perhaps following in the footsteps of an incredible set of mentors like the Whitneys and her mother.
About Eastland-Fairfield Eastland-Fairfield Career & Technical Schools is the seventh-largest career and technical education district, geographically, in the State of Ohio. We serve more than 5,000 students in 16 school districts throughout Franklin, Fairfield and Pickaway counties. Eastland-Fairfield provides more than 40 programs to over 1,400 high school and adult students. The district has two main campuses — Eastland Career Center in Groveport and Fairfield Career Center in Carroll, with satellite locations at four of our associate high schools: Gahanna Lincoln, Groveport Madison, New Albany, and Pickerington North.
Founded in 1969. Eastland-Fairfield Career & Technical Schools’ mission is to engage, enrich, and equip students every day in every experience. We prepare students to pursue their life’s next E: Employment, Enlistment, Entrepreneurship, and/or additional Education. Visit us online at www.eastlandfairfield.com and follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and LinkedIn for regular updates, fun content and information.