BOCES offers different paths to success

Tompkins-Seneca-Tioga (TST) BOCES has a rich and complex history since it was originally formed under the larger BOCES organization in the late 1940s in an anticipated response to the belief that New York State would move from a small district structure to a county district structure. In order to manage a restructure the State Legislature formed “Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES)” under the direction of a District Superintendent of Schools in order to monitor and assist districts. Of course, county districts never materialized in New York, but there was still a need for monitoring, as there are too many districts for the State Education Department to handle. TST, along with other BOCES, have held strong and grown to offer a large variety of services to school districts, alternative educational programs, and adult educational programs, just to name a few.

Currently, TST component districts include Dryden, George Junior, Groton, Ithaca, Lansing, Newfield, and Trumansburg in Tompkins County, Candor in Tioga County, and South Seneca in Seneca County. One of the many programs BOCES has is the Career and Technical Education (CTE) program, which is offered to students in grades 11 and 12. Classes are provided for the entirety of the academic year, and include animal sciences, auto body and technology, computer technology and cybersecurity, cosmetology, criminal justice, culinary arts, digital media, early childhood, heavy equipment, nurse assisting and health occupations, sports conditioning and exercise science, and welding. According to BOCES, “Career & Technical Education provides a high school schedule with an academically enriched pathway to high school graduation that helps prepare them for college and careers.”

While preparation for entry into post-secondary education is an important aspect of this program, what is of particular value, as we face a national crisis of a lack of entry into careers in trades, is the opportunity the program provides to choose a variety of paths, including vocational or two-year schools, or direct entry into the workforce. In skilled labor, the number of people entering the workforce does not come close to replacing the number of baby boomers retiring and others who are changing jobs or advancing in their careers, not to mention accommodating job growth. According to the New York State Department of Labor, “from 2014 to 2024, the combined total job count in the skilled trades in New York is expected to grow by 116,270, Or 17.0 [percent]. In addition, the skilled trades in New York State are expected to offer almost 25,000 openings each year, including 11,780 due to employment growth and 13,110 due to replacement need.”

As we have pushed students toward earning four-year and master’s degrees as the only path to success in life, we have endangered our pool of skilled labor; vital services such as plumbing, electrical, welding and beyond, which are essential to our daily lives. This is nothing to say of the quality of life individuals experience when they are pushed toward college and careers that do not interest them. As a society, we undervalue careers that we can be passionate about and engaged in because they are considered second-class careers. This, in spite of the fact that trade careers can be not only mentally and economically rewarding as careers requiring a college degree. We have traded short-term classroom, on the job training, and paid apprenticeship programs for high student loan debt, with very little increased income often associated with post-secondary degrees.

We have also perpetuated the stigma about vocational programs and working in the trades, something BOCES struggles against. According to MaryKay Lalonde from BOCES CTE, the stigma is getting better and is directly related to the success of the students. “We are always fighting the stigma, but kids often tell us they are much more comfortable here than in their home school. The kids that come like working with their hands, that’s the way they learn. Many of them succeed more easily in our program than they do back in their home school in a traditional classroom setting. They look forward to being at BOCES and the style of learning we provide.”

Cindy Walter, Director of Career and Technical Education adds, “there is still a stigma that this is ‘where the dropouts go,’ however, CTE provides opportunities for anyone, whether you are looking at higher education, trade school, or going directly into the workforce. Students may feel like a failure in a traditional setting, they come here and for the first time they feel like a superstar.”

On BOCES end, to help fight the stigma they “have a much stronger presence on social media, promoting successes in a variety of pathways. To me, success means you can be independent and love what you are doing,” said Walter.
BOCES holds open board meetings, with the next meeting today, Wednesday, May 1 from 6 to 8 p.m. in administrative building A board room. There will be a presentation about the successes of the CTE program. Those interested in learning more about the program are welcome to attend.