Students Offered Path to an Associates Degree

POUGHKEEPSIE – Most of Wally Garcia’s family does engineering work.

“I kind of want to do that, as well,” the Poughkeepsie freshman said. “It’s cool, you get to play with modern stuff. It’s something that’s going to be needed in the future.”

Through a groundbreaking program launched by Dutchess BOCES in association with several area school districts, Garcia can finish his four high school years qualified to work as an electrical engineer.

The Dutchess BOCES Pathways in Early College High School, or P-TECH, program allows students to earn not only a high school diploma but also an associate degree in electrical technology.

The inaugural cohort began with 24 students who come from several area school districts, including seven from the Poughkeepsie City School District. An eighth Poughkeepsie student is joining next week. While other P-TECH programs have previously existed, this is the first in New York to condense the training into four years rather than five or six.

During a tour of the program at Roy C. Ketcham High School in Wappingers Falls earlier this month, Dr. Eric Jay Rosser, superintendent of schools, encouraged the students to make the most of the opportunity and resources available. He acknowledged the unintended plug for the Poughkeepsie district before telling them, “We look to you as the Pioneers for the program,” eliciting a laugh from other school officials on the tour. “Please make sure that you learn from one another, that you support one another. Being the first cohort, you guys have a great responsibility of showing how beneficial this program will be for students who come after you.”

The students will attend Ketcham in the Wappingers Central School District during freshman and sophomore years, while the coursework centers on traditional high school learning. The second two years of the program will be hosted at Dutchess Community College’s Fishkill Center of Excellence for Industry and Innovation.

The students are taking core classes this year, including two years’ worth of English classes, Living Environment, and either Geometry or Algebra, in addition to taking Drawing and Design Principles with Kevin Yahn. Through his course, Yahn hopes to “give them a foundation as they move forward in the program.”

“They’re very eager to learn. Right now, we’re practicing drafting, which is important in any technical career.” Later in the year, students will gain experience with hand tools and computer drawing.

Some courses students can take at DCC include DC Circuits, Intro to Programming for Automation, AC and Electronic Circuits, Pneumatics, Hydraulics, and Mechanical Drives, Digital Fundamentals and more.

Camila Juarez, another Poughkeepsie district student, said her father always encourages her to pursue good opportunities when they present themselves. When she learned about P-TECH, she thought it may give her a better future.

“I find electrical technology interesting because tech is part of our everyday lives. It’s so fascinating how something so small can be so complex and have so many functions,” she said. “I know that if I put in the effort in this program, I will be able to have a better future.”

With a $2.95 million New York State P-TECH grant over five years, the goal is to be a model and secure additional funding to continue the program after the grant is complete. The hope is for the second cohort to include 50 ninth-grade students next fall. Any eighth-grade student interested in joining can visit the P-TECH site to apply or reach out to Dr. Janety Encarnacion, Poughkeepsie director of college readiness and workforce education, to learn more.

In addition to meeting each other and learning about the program, students have already taken field trips to Onsemi, a semiconductor manufacturing company and industry partner, and DCC.

Garcia said a summer bridge program allowed the students from different districts to “connect, because most of us didn’t know each other.” On the tour to Onsemi, which is housed on part of the former IBM property in East Fishkill, the students “got to know more about how P-TECH can help us get an internship at Onsemi or work at Onsemi.”

Administrators who met with students earlier last month reminded them while the course load for the program may be daunting, there are supports in place if they reach out for assistance and guidance.

Rosser left the students with three charges: “Enjoy the program, let your friends know about the program, so they can be part of the cohort for next year … and then also appreciate the adults who are here to support your education.”

Rosser also thanked Dutchess BOCES for spearheading the program and Wappingers Superintendent Dwight Bonk for volunteering to host its opening years.

“As Dr. Rosser said, you’re all Pioneers,” Bonk told the students, eliciting his own round of laughs. “He’s truly right because you’re going to set the foundation for the success of the program.”