Next week, nearly 30 high schoolers from around the Capital Region will get a head start on the new school year and their futures at the new Capital Region Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH).
During a week-long summer bridge program — held at both the Mohonasen High School (P-TECH’s West Campus) and Watervliet Junior-Senior High School (P-TECH’s East Campus) — incoming students will get to know their new classmates, meet the school’s business and education partners, and take an active hand in developing the new school’s culture.
In the process of such heady-work, students will get a better understanding of the unique program they are embarking on, through which they will simultaneously earn a high school diploma and an associate’s degree in a science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) field at no cost to themselves or their families.
P-TECH is a new innovative high school program led by Capital Region BOCES in partnership with business and industry, higher education and K-12 education. It is designed to help address two issues that adversely impact the regional economy — rising student loan debt and employers struggling to find qualified workers.
Funded through a seven-year, $2.5 million New York State Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH) grant, the new P-TECH High School partners area schools with Schenectady County Community College, Hudson Valley Community College and area and national businesses including Dell, Cisco, GreaneTree Technology, MVP Health Care, Linium Recruiting and Albany Can Code. The Capital Region Chamber will serve as the liaison with P-TECH business partners to help create an education-business ecosystem that will benefit students and employers throughout the region.