Comstock Park East Grand Rapids Godwin Heights Kent City Kent ISD Sparta

Exploration & excitement: students get to know Kent Career Tech Center

August 18, 2025

_{New Kent Career Tech Center students talk about the career paths they plan to explore this upcoming school year}

Kent ISD — The Kent Career Tech Center was buzzing with energy recently as new students toured the building, met their instructors and got a first look at their chosen programs.

During the Aug. 11 open house, several students shared with School News Network about the programs they’re joining, why they chose them and what they’re excited to learn in the coming year.

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Joanne Bailey-Boorsma

Joanne Bailey-Boorsma is a reporter covering Kent ISD, Godwin Heights, Kelloggsville, Forest Hills and Comstock Park. The salutatorian for the Hartland Public Schools class of 1985, she changed her colors from blue and maize to green and white by attending Michigan State University, where she majored in journalism. Joanne moved to the Grand Rapids area in 1989, where she started her journalism career at the Advance Newspapers. She later became the editor for On-the-Town magazine, a local arts and entertainment publication. Her husband, Mike, works the General Motors plant in Wyoming; her oldest daughter, Kara, is a registered nurse working in Holland, and her youngest, Maggie, is studying music at Oakland University. She is a volunteer for the Van Singel Fine Arts Advisory Board and the Kent District Library. In her free time, Joanne enjoys spending time with her family, checking out local theater and keeping up with all the exchange students they have hosted through the years.