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.

 

Tessa Czajkowski is #1 in the state in Floral Design

Floral Design student Tessa Czajkowski is number one in her field after winning the state championship in floral design at the New York State SkillsUSA Competition in Syracuse April 25-27.

Criminal Justice student Tyler Reinemann and Electrical Trades student Derek Struck took second place in the state in criminal justice and residential wiring, respectively.

Culinary Arts student Rachel Gauthier brought home a statewide third place award in food and beverage service.

Also at the event, two officers of Career & Tech’s Schoharie campus SkillsUSA chapter were elected SkillsUSA National Delegates. READ MORE

 

 

Students get fueled with facts about clean energy, power-full careers

Clean energy, efficient transportation and power-full career opportunities were the lessons of the day on May 10, when 27 students, their teachers, teaching assistant and staff from the Capital Region BOCES Career & Technical School visited National Grid’s Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) fueling station and vehicle maintenance facility at 1125 Broadway in Albany. They also witnessed the power of 7,000 volts in a live line demonstration. READ MORE

In photo above: Philip Mackey, a Commercial Construction/Heavy Equipment student who also attends BKW High School, is interviewed during a visit to National Grid's Compressed Natural Gas station in Albany.  READ THE NEWS RELEASE     VIEW THE YNN TV NEWS STORY       READ THE TIMES UNION ARTICLE

 

 

 

Lessons teach more than technique in Cosmetology class

When Cosmetology students at Career & Tech's Albany campus learned about thermal pressing of African American hair recently, they gained more than technical knowledge of how to style while protecting hair health and beauty. The high school juniors also learned about one of the first African American millionaires of the 20th Century, Madame C.J. Walker, a pioneer in beauty product development, sale and education. READ MORE

 

 

 

Upcycling in color:

Student's stained glass project turns trash into art

With a bit of colored glass, some silicone and grout, Career & Tech Carpentry Services student Robert Ganley of Scotia turned a discarded wooden window into a luminous work of art he can now display in his home. "Some call it recycling, others upcycling, but Robert used both recycled glass and a discarded window to make something creative and functional rather than throwing it out" said Carpentry Services Teaching Assistant Sue Ruscitto. READ MORE

 

 

 

Career & Tech and Mohonasen High School partner to offer new manufacturing & machining class

Advancing technology and the retirement of experienced workers are creating acute labor shortages in high-paying manufacturing and machining jobs in our region and beyond.

At the urging of local employers and with the support of area colleges, Capital Region Career & Tech and Mohonasen Central School District have partnered to offer Tech Valley Manufacturing and Machining Technology, a new course for for high school students beginning next fall. READ MORE .    visit the Tech Valley Manufacturing & Machining webpage .

 

 

Building a better beehive

Build a better beehive: That was Eli Martinez’s goal. And build it, he did. Martinez, a student in Paul Robert’s Carpentry Services class at Career & Tech’s Albany campus, is interested in raising his own food and living green. Beekeeping is a natural fit with both of his goals. READ MORE

 

 

 

 

 

“The Red Coats are coming!” - Students receive $24K grant

Career & Tech students and staff received a giant check for a giant cause on April 17, when New York State SkillsUSA Coordinator Bruce Potter presented them with a $24,000 Lowe’s/SkillsUSA Community Rebuilding Grant for use in repairing two Schoharie County parks and a cemetery damaged by tropical storms Irene and Lee.

Career & Tech was one of just two schools that were awarded grants from more than 100 applicants nationwide. At the grant award ceremony, Village of Schoharie Mayor John Borst, surrounded by students dressed in crimson SkillsUSA blazers, noted, “It’s not a coincidence they are carrying out this work at the same time as the 300th anniversary of the founding of the Schoharie Valley, because again, ‘the Red Coats are coming!’” READ MORE

 

 

Insider's view connects CNT/IT class with high-tech New York State Office For Technology

Students in Dave Patzarian's Computer & Network Technician/Information Technology (CNT/IT) class recently got an insider's tour of the New York State Office For Technology (OFT), learning about levels of support, OFT's testing lab and specialized uses of Telecommunications cables, as well as engineering and disaster recovery considerations for mainframes. The students also engaged in an open discussion with OFT employees about their careers. READ MORE

 

BOCES video features Alt Energy & Advanced Construction Tech

Alternative Energy & Advanced Construction Technology teacher Paul Roberts and his students are featured as part of a new video about the many services offered by the Capital Region BOCES. The clip is posted along with the class's overview- take a look HERE.

 

Middle States Team concludes positive visit to Career & Tech

An accreditation evaluation team from the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools concluded a very positive, weeklong visit to Career & Tech on March 23, including both campuses of the school, the Adult Health Careers Center at Rosewood Plaza and the off-campus New Visions programs.

The team's visit was the culmination of a multi-year effort by BOCES' CTE division to pursue re-accreditation. While the team told CTE staff they would be making such a recommendation, their findings and report must first be fully reviewed by the Middle States Commission on Secondary Schools. READ MORE

 

Heavy Equipment & Construction students will really dig this grant

Amidst some blustery snow showers on Friday, March 9, students at Career & Tech's Schoharie campus joined with school staff, administration, BOCES Board of Education members and Faith Takes, President and Founder of the Faith Takes Family Foundation for a special ceremony to unveil a bulldozer purchased with the help of a $17,000 grant from the foundation to replace one lost to flooding by Tropical Storm Irene. Schoharie Mayor John Borst, Assemblyman Pete Lopez and Congressman Paul Tonko spoke at the event, praising the teamwork of Career & Tech students, BOCES and the Schoharie Valley community. READ MORE, SEE PHOTOS

 

Alternative Energy & Advanced Construction Technology course prepares students for cutting-edge careers while giving them a jump on college

Hands-on and high-tech - the future is here

Robotics, solar and wind energy, 3-D design and automated manufacturing, next generation battery power, green construction - students in Career & Tech's Alternative Energy & Advanced Construction Technology program explore all of this and more in an exciting new course where they also earn college credit. read more          view a videoclip of class

 

New Metal Fabrication and Machining class offered for adult students

The Capital Region BOCES Adult Education program and Career & Tech are now offering Metal Fabrication and Machining, a 100-hour course that will equip adult students with skills sought by area employers. The program combines technical shop work with classroom theory to teach basic knowledge of the metal lathe, milling machines, basic sheet metal layout and fabrication, as well as welding and cutting processes. Classes begin in April and will meet Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 5 - 8:30 p.m. at Career & Tech's Albany campus, a part-time, evening study schedule that accommodates the needs of adults. READ MORE

 

 

Liberty Bell, Constitution Hall, Al Capone's prison cell among Philadelphia sites visited by New Visions: Law & Government students

Career & Tech's New Visions Law & Government class traveled to Philadelphia in January, where they visited Independence Hall, Congress Hall, the Liberty Bell, the National Constitution Center and the Eastern State Penitentiary, known for reforming prisons to places of rehabilitation. The students, all of whom are college-bound seniors, also met with officials from the Philadelphia District Attorney's office. Through the Apple Hostel in the Old City
section of Philadelphia, they became acquainted with their peers from Brazil, England and Thailand.

 

 

Floral Design class offers arrangements special occasions

Bloomers, a flower shop run by students in Ms. Bugler's Floral Design class at Career & Tech's Albany campus, takes orders for holidays and special occasions. Call during schooldays: (518) 862-4780.

 

 

 

 

 

Anthony Lewis launches new career at BOCES, lands job at GlobalFoundries

Making semiconductor chips is a precise process. It's so exacting, in fact, that the clean rooms in GlobalFoundries’ new Malta facility cannot vary in temperature by more than a few degrees. Just hired as an HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning) Technician, Anthony Lewis of Troy will help to keep the chip fab’s facilities up to standards, using the education and professional certifications he earned in the HVAC Certification Program for Adults at the Career & Tech. full story

 

 

WMHT-TV's American Graduate project explores why students drop out

It is not uncommon for students to tell us that their positive experiences at Career & Tech kept them in school and inspired them to move forward with their lives. Learning a career, working hands-on, having a fresh start, meeting students from other schools, sharing experiences with their peers, learning in smaller classes - all are factors cited by successful students in our Career & Technical Education and Alternative Education programs. With this in mind, Career & Tech participated in WMHT-TV's American Graduate Town Meeting the evening of Nov. 10 at the WMHT studios in Troy, which was broadcast on Nov. 17 and available on the web. watch the Town meeting   LEARN MORE

 

Career & Tech students & staff in the media

Utility plans for future fuel shift (Times Union, 5/11/12)

BOCES students visit National Grid (YNN TV news, 5/1/12)

Schoharie school receives check for $24K (WNYT-TV, 4/17/12)

School receives grant (YNN TV news, 4/17/12)

Family's gift helps Schoharie BOCES replace bulldozer (Daily Gazette,3/10/12)

Lowes gives $24K in grants to Capital Region BOCES (WNYT-TV, 1/27/2012)

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

What others are saying about career & tech education, the trades, society

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]

 

Honors & Awards

Congratulations to our honor roll and perfect attendance achievers
Perfect Attendance Award winners, Honor Roll and High Honor Roll achievers for third quarter have been announced for Career & Tech's Albany campus: Visit our on-campus honors and awards page

 

Adult Ed is Training Tech Valley today

Health careers are recession-proof - and we've been teaching them for decades

Certified Nurse Assistants (CNAs) enjoy careers that are both rewarding and recession-proof. Career & Tech's Health Careers Center has openings in its full-time and part-time, evening study Nurse Assistant courses for adult students. NEWS RELEASE PDF

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 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

Cuisine Magic is a Culinary cause

Students in Career & Tech's Culinary Arts programs have become a key ingredient in the success of the annual Cuisine Magic fund-raiser for the Eddy Visiting Nurse Association. Working with their chef-teachers and teaching assistants, they help prepare for and staff the event and are recognized for their professionalism and energetic volunteerism. READ MORE [photo courtesy of the Times Union]

 

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.

 

Cuisine Magic is a Culinary cause

Culinary Arts team lent a hand and a spoon to raise funds at Culinary Cornucopia

Cosmetology students raise funds, awareness for breast cancer research

Teaching Assistant collects coats for Schoharie kids

Career & Tech, BOCES help hurricane victims

Culinary students team up to help NE Regional Food Bank

Cosmetology, Culinary, Floral Design students help make prom Very Special

Building Trades students raise $200 for Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

Cosmetology students raise more than $1,100 for Devon LaPrade

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

 

 

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.

 

Check us out on Twitter

http://twitter.com/careertectweets

 

Looking for a past story? Go to our home page archive/ current school year, home page archive 2010-2011 or news archive

 

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!