Click above and start at the 14:29 mark to hear Jackie Burke, executive director of the NJ Council of County Vocational-Technical Schools, discuss the value of a career-focused high school education for all students – those headed to college or right into the workforce. She is the third interview with Mark Bonamo on the April 21 New Jersey Now segment aired on My9 NJ.
The value of a career-focused education should be celebrated year-round. Across New Jersey’s 21 county vocational-technical schools alone, more than 12,000 students participate in work-based learning annually and more than 4,500 earn industry-valued credentials. These students are taking purposeful steps to enter and immediately contribute to an industry.
Megan Bock said attending the Bergen County Academies taught her how to think critically, be creative and not shy away from difficult problems. “These are all cardinal principles of my career today,” said Bock, a systems engineer for NASA.
Natalie Borbone is the owner of Emerald Sky Hair Studio in Tinton Falls and is a Cosmetology educator. In both roles, she gains energy and enthusiasm out of interacting with and helping others. Borbone said the education she received at Monmouth County Vocational School District helped develop her passions into a thriving career.