Capital Region Career & Technical School

Career & Tech is a Middle States accredited and NYSED approved school offering more than 40 programs of study for high school and adult students at campuses in Albany (Colonie) and Schoharie and several off-campus locations.

Students take their knowledge to another dimension

3D printer a unique and valuable tool for Alternative Energy & Advanced Construction Technology class

Students in Paul Roberts' Alternative Energy & Advanced Construction Technology class at Career & Tech's Albany campus are taking their projects, and their knowledge, to another dimension as they prepare for college and career.

The students use a three-dimensional (3D) printer to take their designs from a computer screen and paper to an actual model, a process known as rapid prototyping. The printer is the one of just a few of its kind available to students in the region, giving them a valuable head-start in their preparation for college and career. Read more

 

 

Students pack Schoharie campus college and career fair

9 colleges, more than a dozen businesses showcase pathways to future success

A college and career fair presented through a partnership of the Capital Region Career & Technical School and the Schoharie County Chamber of Commerce drew capacity crowds of students from Career & Tech's Schoharie campus and high schools in Duanesburg, Schoharie and South Kortright on May 20.
From 9:30 a.m. until 1 p.m. that day, representatives from nine colleges and 14 businesses and community organizations provided information, answered questions and guided the students toward potential pathways to their future. read more

 

 

SkillsUSA champs credit CTE teachers for their success

State Education Department features Career & Tech videos on website

The New York State Education Department was seeking video testimonials by students in honor of Teacher Appreciation Week, and Career & Tech answered the call. HVAC/R student Cody Largeteau spoke in front of the camera about how teacher Frank Ando is preparing him for success in career, college and even competition: Largeteau is ranked number one in New York state in his field of study after winning the recent SkillsUSA competition.

Culinary Arts Tech Prep student Rachel Gauthier spoke about her teachers, Chefs Paul Dolan and Mark Brucker, and how they prepared her for success in career, college and competition. Gauthier won the 2013 New York State SkillsUSA competition in Restaurant Service and will compete nationally. She is a senior at Career & Tech and Colonie Central High School. Through Career & Tech, she is enrolled in and earning a semester of credits in Culinary Arts program at Schenectady County Community College. View the videos on the State Ed website

 

 

Students bring home 6 SkillsUSA state championships

Six Career & Tech students returned home from Syracuse as state champions on Friday, April 26, after taking first place in the 2013 New York State SkillsUSA competitions in basic vehicle maintenance, CNC milling, criminal justice action skills, floral design, heating/ventilation/air conditioning (HVAC), and restaurant services. Career & Tech students also brought home three second-place and one third-place award. Read more

 

 

These students can take the heat

As the saying goes, if you can't take the heat, stay out of the kitchen. For Schoharie's Culinary Team, it made no difference that the heat was generated by hundreds of competing students and the kitchen was the National ProStart Invitational® in Baltimore, Md.  The students kept their cool at the April 19-21 event, exhibiting professionalism, knowledge and skill while proudly representing their state. Read more

Sign up now for high-tech, high-fun Career Pathways Summer Camps!

Career & Tech will again be offering SEMI High Tech U, a unique day camp for teens, this summer. Camp will run July 23-26, with a parent/guardian night on July 22. Locations will include the Center for Nanoscale Science & Engineering at U-Albany, TEC-SMART and more, where campers explore the cool worlds of  nanotechnology, semiconductors and more.

The camp is sponsored by the Tech Valley Career Pathways Consortium through funding provided by the federal Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Improvement Act of 2006 and the New York State Education Department. SEMI High Tech U Camp is also sponsored by Applied Materials, the Center for Economic Growth, GlobalFoundries, National Grid, NYSUT, TEL and Rick Cataldo, director, Tri-City Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee, Inc.

Tech Valley Summer Camp returns for teens as well, running from July 8-12. Locations include SUNY East Campus, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and more. Hands-on activities will focus on biotechnology, nanotechnology, advanced materials, alternative energy, aviation, information technology and robotics.

The camps are offered at no cost due to scholarship support. To apply for either camp, visit http://summercamp.questar.org/

 

 

New Visions classes rally for Mental Health Matters

New Visions: Health Careers students recently took part in Mental Health Matters Day in Albany, where they rallied and met with state legislators, including state Senator Cecilia Tkaczyk, about suicide prevention initiatives. The day's aim was to at remove the stigma, fear and misinformation that surround mental health issues. Read more

 

 

Floral students offer their designs throughout the school year

 Floral design students create and sell their designs throughout the school year, including arrangements for birthdays, weddings, holidays and other special occasions. The program is open to both high school and adult students and is offered during the school year at the Albany campus of Career & Tech. To learn more, visit the floral design program page.

 

 

 

 

 

BOCES partnership expands choices for students in 7 counties

Central to the BOCES mission is to cooperatively provide learning opportunities for students that their individual schools may not be able to offer on their own. It is in this spirit that the Capital Region BOCES, which serves Albany, Schoharie, Schenectady and southern Saratoga counties, and Questar III BOCES, which serves Rensselaer, Columbia and Greene counties, are partnering to offer wider career and technical education options for all of their students.

While the two BOCES have made their New Visions programs available to all of their seniors for several years, the new effort expands the number of courses offered jointly to provide students in all seven counties with even wider pathways to college and career readiness. The courses include Auto Body Collision Repair, Aviation, Aviation Maintenance Technology, Careers in Health Care, Diesel Technician (Medium/Heavy Duty Truck Repair), Floral Design, Global Fashion Studies, New Visions: Health Careers, New Visions: Journalism & Media Studies, New Visions: Law & Government, New Visions: Science, Technology, Engineering & Math (STEM), New Visions: Scientific Research & World Health, and New Visions: Visual & Performing Arts. READ MORE

 

Check out our latest New Visions program guide

Doctor, lawyer, journalist: just three of dozens of careers students are getting a jump on through our New Visions classes for college-bound high school seniors. These off-campus programs are offered in Health  Careers, Journalism & Media Studies, and Law & Government.

Make the most of your senior year. Read more in our latest publication, New Visions: The College Advantage. And be sure to save the date for our New Visions open houses in February and March.

 

Now available: 2013-14 Careers Without Limits course guide

The 2013-14 school year Careers Without Limits course guide is now available. It lists programs of study and provides lots of useful information about our school. A pdf may be downloaded by clicking on the cover image at left or under quick links. Printed copies are available at both Career & Tech campuses, and also may be requested by contacting Career & Tech's communications office via email at monique.jacobs@neric.org or by calling 862-4754.

 

HVAC alumnus keeps GlobalFoundries clean rooms within a few degrees of critical operating temperature

Focus, investing time wisely, and learning at a “world-class” school: These were Career & Tech alumnus Anthony Lewis’ three keys to success. A 2011 graduate of the HVAC Certification & Training program for adult students, Lewis helps keep GlobalFoundries clean rooms within a few degrees of critical operating temperature, helping to ensure the smooth operation of the world's newest and most advanced computer chip fabrication foundry, located in Malta.

Lewis returned to school at Career & Tech to learn a new career that would better provide for his family. He attended class from Aug. 2010-June 2011, paid for his own tuition, and said it was “the best investment I ever made, career-wise.” At Career & Tech, Lewis earned nationally recognized professional certifications in HVAC, as well as how to succeed in a competitive job marketplace. READ MORE

 

Career & Tech Education boosts graduation rates

Career & Tech has partnered with WMHT-TV for the American Graduate program, a national broadcast and outreach effort dedicated to engaging our country around the dropout crisis. Career & Tech is boosting graduation rates by making learning relevant and students college and career ready. Interviewed for a Sept. 22 broadcast at the WMHT studio were Director of Career & Technical Education Terry Swett; Gaming, MultiMedia & Web Design program and Internet Applications program teacher Heather Bigelow; and Ms. Bigelow's and Career & Tech Alternative Education alumnus Cameron Wallace of Niskayuna. Wallace, now in college, said he would not have graduated high school if he hadn't attended classes at Career & Tech. WATCH THE WMHT STORY [note: scroll to the segment titled "engaging & Relevant curricula"]

 

Career & Tech students & staff in the media

Students consider taking flight (Daily Gazette.com video, 4/28/13)

Plane ride gives students a taste of aviation careers (Daily Gazette, 4/28/13)

SkillsUSA: culinary competition (Times Union High School Blog, 3/18/13)

SkillsUSA Champions at Work 2013 (Times Union High School Blog, 3/18/13)

BOCES students shine in SkillsUSA competition (Times Union High School Blog, 3/18/13)

Photo gallery for SkillsUSA competition (Times Union High School Blog, 3/17/13)

BOCES is part of the solution (NYSUT Communications - February 12, 2013)

Engaging & Relevant Curricula: Career & Tech boosts graduation rates/American Graduate Day (WMHT-TV 9/22/12)

WAMC reports on New Visions students' 9/11 observance (WAMC radio, 9/11/2012)

CBS 6 interviews Adult Education Principal Kim Brizzell speaks about the BOCES GED program  (WRGB TV/CBS 6, Albany, 9/6/2012)

See more coverage! Go to our Students in the Media page

 

Honors & Awards

Students are honored for achievement, attendance and good citizenship

We are proud of our students' successes here at Career & Tech. Visit our Honors & Awards On Campus page for the names of some of our honored students.

 

Adult Ed is Training Tech Valley today

Adults interested in training for recession-proof careers should check out our Nurse Assistant for Adult Students program and our Practical Nursing for Adult Students program. Classes are offered at our Health Careers Center in Colonie. Visit the linked page or call (518) 862-4709.

Read more about: Adult Health Careers & Services, Welder Certification for Adults, HVAC Training & Certification for Adults, Machining and Welding for KAPL engineers, MSSC Certified Production Technician, free GED and ESOL classes, and more.

 

Serving others in our community

Community service is a big part of the learning experience at Career & Tech. Our students have built houses, helped area veterans, participated in charitable events and fund-raised for a variety of good causes. Faculty and staff also set a positive example, both in leading students and on their own. Click on the headlines below to learn more.

Fashion students 'show' what it's all about, and gain experience, too

Retail, Transition students raise more than $1,000 for several charities

Caring blooms as Floral teacher helps hurricane victims

Teacher lends a hand and a hose during Sandy recovery

SkillsUSA students have an eye-opening experience helping others

Global Fashion Studies class presents benefit fashion show to fight domestic violence

 

new visions News

Read how New Visions students make the most of their senior year.

 

 

Why study here? Read our students' Top 10!

who goes there? see our enrollment stats

 

 

Career & Tech remembers

 

Thank you Mr. Kivort

Career & Tech and Capital Region BOCES lost a staunch supporters of education and opportunity for all upon the January 2013 passing of Stanley Kivort, past president of Kivort Steel in Waterford, N.Y. Kivort was an active member of Career & Tech's Business & Education Partnerships Advisory Committees, providing valuable guidance and perspective to school faculty and administration for many years regarding programs, careers and community service opportunities. Kivort was central to the establishment of the Capital Region Maritime Center on land he donated in Alplaus and where BOCES offered programs centered around boat building. He was well-known for his service to others through community and volunteer activities.

Thank you Mr. Todd

Career & Tech and the entire BOCES community mourns the August 2012 passing of former Welding & Metal Fabrication teacher Mike Todd. Todd retired in June after 10 years as a respected teacher, role model, innovator and creative leader at the Albany campus. He taught both high school and adult students and established the latest orbital welder technology, used in high-tech and clean-room environments, into the Career & Tech curriculum. He will be dearly missed by his students, alumni, Career & Tech colleagues and many friends and associates.

 

 

 

 

What others are saying about Career & Tech Education, the trades, society

If You’ve Got the Skills, She’s Got the Job

[". . . Who knew? Welding is now a STEM job — that is, a job that requires knowledge of science, technology, engineering and math." ]

By Thomas L. Friedman, The New York Times, 11/18/2012

"St. Paul - Traci Tapani is not your usual C.E.O. For the last 19 years, she and her sister have been co-presidents of Wyoming Machine, a sheet metal company they inherited from their father in Stacy, Minn. I met Tapani at a meeting convened by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development to discuss one of its biggest challenges today: finding the skilled workers that employers need to run local businesses. I’ll let Tapani take it from here . . . READ MORE

Technician Shortage Highlights Technical Session at TMC (Technology & Maintenance Council of the American Trucking Association)

By Truck Parts and Service Staff, 9/12/2012

"One of the trucking industry’s biggest problems, the technician shortage, was center stage
Wednesday, Sept. 12 during the second technical session at TMC’s 2012 fall meeting in Pittsburgh. Moderated by David Foster of Southeastern Freight Lines, a six-team panel of technician educators, service managers and fleet maintenance managers gave their thoughts and advice on how to help service locations bring technicians into their business and keep them as employees." READ MORE/pdf

 

The key to high-tech jobs: Local schools give graduates instant credibility, panel says

By Larry Rulison, Times Union, 9/11/2012
"Whether you are young or old, the best way to get a job in the rising local high-tech economy may be through local educational institutions. That was one of the major messages to those who attended the Tech Career Expo Monday at the University at Albany's SEFCU Arena.
"The event, which was sponsored by the Times Union, the Center for Economic Growth, the UAlbany Alumni Association and Monster.com, drew hundreds of job-seekers. Dozens of local advanced manufacturing and technology companies exhibited . . ."  Read more

Serious shortage of skilled auto mechanics looming
By Chris Woodyard, USA TODAY
Today's tech-savvy high school students have an excellent opportunity to match a love of computers and skill with software with a rewarding and increasingly high-tech career: automotive technician. Impending retirements of master technicians and rapid changes in vehicle technology are creating a need for students trained in automotive and truck programs like the ones offered here at the Capital Region Career & Technical School. USA Today interviewed the teacher and students of one Los Angeles CTE program. View the video

Skilled workforce in high demand, yet jobs are going unfilled!
CBS Evening News reported on the need for Career and Technical Education (CTE) to fill key jobs and allow grads to earn higher salaries, in the face of further proposed cuts in federal funding. Air Products' John McGlade, who's also SkillsUSA CEO Champion of the Year, highlights the role of CTE in preparing a skilled workforce needed by employers. The story also notes that CTE involves academic rigor and results in postsecondary credentials. link to video

Mike Rowe, creator of the "Dirtiest Jobs" Discovery Channel cable TV show, testified before Congress about society's disconnect from skilled jobs in the traditional trades: link
[Note: Technology has transformed many jobs once considered 'dirty and difficult', but education and hands-on experience are still key]

 

This is your school: Keep it safe, healthy and clean

Parents/guardians needing to reach students should call the school office t 862-4800 for Albany, 295-3000 for Schoharie. The Health Careers Center for Adult Students may be reached at 862-4709. Cell phones (and other electronic devices) should be silenced during class time. And no smoking: New York State law prohibits smoking - by anyone - in schools and on school property.

 

 

weather-related closings

In the event of inclement weather, students and their parents/guardians should follow school closing information provided by their home high schools. Students' home school districts determine whether or not to transport students, end their day early or close their high school campuses.  Adult students should watch the media for school closings; their classes are cancelled if the Capital Region BOCES Career & Technical School is closed.

 

Check us out on Twitter

http://twitter.com/careertectweets

 

Looking for a past story? Go to our home page news archive/ current school year (July 2012-June 2013), or our home page archive/ 2011-12 school year, which includes links to previous years.

 

Tech It Out NY - hot careers right here in Tech Valley

Interested in Tech Valley's latest high-tech and advanced manufacturing careers? Visit the Tech Valley Careers - Tech It Out NY website

 

The Capital Region BOCES Career & Technical School offers careers without limits for students of all ages, abilities, interests, and backgrounds. In the 21st century workplace, careers have no gender. Start your future here today!