New Jersey vo-tech schools expand AI career pathways (NJBIZ)

A column by Jackie Burke, executive director of the New Jersey Council of County Vocational-Technical Schools.

As artificial intelligence reshapes the global economy, New Jersey’s county vocational-technical schools are embracing a unique challenge. The schools are helping staff use AI as administrative and teaching tools as well as integrating the technology throughout their various career programs. Such broad awareness is essential among the schools that prepare students for a range of future career endeavors, from construction trades to the health sciences and even AI itself.

In early 2025, the New Jersey Department of Education awarded Mercer County Technical Schools and Middlesex County Magnet Schools each an “Expanding Career Pathways in Artificial Intelligence” grant. The funding was established to expand the state’s career and technical education (CTE) pathways to include new programs that blend AI and robotics.

Mercer County Technical Schools leveraged funding to partner with the Engineering and Computer Science departments at The College of New Jersey. The collaboration resulted in the launch of a three-course CTE sequence that is the foundation of the school’s new AI and Robotics program, with each of the courses offering students dual enrollment with TCNJ.

Charles Powell, assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction at MCTS, said the grant supported a thoughtfully developed program that is “rigorous, relevant and directly connected to industry needs.” In addition to the professors at TCNJ, the school tapped industry experts to weigh in on the curriculum.

Curriculum development

“We simply could not have built a future-proof curriculum without deep partnerships,” Powell noted. “We collaborated with several incredible businesses and professionals who provided essential input on everything from course content to identifying industry-valued credentials (IVCs).”

Key partners have included: Moonbird.Ai; Nagy Group – MagicEdX.ai; QiMeta; and Croda, a global specialty chemical company, demonstrating AI’s broad reach beyond just tech companies.

“Professionals from these businesses helped us identify the critical knowledge gaps and future skill demands. Based on their feedback, we also selected the certifications students would pursue to ensure they graduate with credentials that are immediately valuable to employers,” Powell added.

In just their first year, MCTS AI and Robotics students can participate in the Certified Artificial Intelligence Prefect certification program. The course provides a strong foundation in AI, robotics, machine learning, deep learning, augmented and virtual reality, and Python programming. This certification equips students with the skills needed for future coursework, internships and emerging careers in AI-related fields. Students concurrently enroll in Computer Science Principles, where they explore computational thinking, data analysis, algorithms and programming, enhancing their problem-solving abilities through hands-on projects, digital portfolio creation and an in-depth understanding of computing’s impact on society.

Partners in AI

Middlesex County Magnet Schools also relied on strategic partnerships to develop a new AI and Robotics program. MCMS Director of Career and Technical Education Lee Neamand wrote the curriculum with feedback from HP, SHI and MRA International professionals. She also worked closely with Kean University’s Patricia Morreale, professor and chair of the Department of Computer Science and Technology, to focus the curriculum around the ethical and responsible use of AI.

They focused on five ethical principles: AI enhances rather than replaces human teaching and learning; educators and students maintain agency and control; AI use is transparent and explainable; student data is protected; and AI tools promote equity and access for all learners.

“AI should be a thought partner, never a substitute for critical thinking,” explained Neamand. “Using AI without critical evaluation perpetuates biases and inaccuracies. Students need both technical skills and ethical literacy.”

Neamand said that the program would fail students if it simply taught them how to use AI tools and focused too much on tasks that will become automated. She emphasized, “We’re preparing students for the jobs of the future; we’re teaching them how to create AI, manipulate AI and solve problems using AI.”

Solving problems

As students progress through the program to complete four years of high school, they will finish with a capstone project that challenges them to identify a problem in the community and use AI to solve it in a systemic way. Neamand said this type of coursework can prepare students to make a real impact in their community. She offered the example of how AI tools have increasingly been used to detect cell deformity before humans can see it.

MCMS students will further benefit from opportunities throughout the program to learn from industry experts with support from an Advisory Committee that formed organically as Neamand sought input on the curriculum.

“Through these experiences, students will collaborate on real-world AI projects with business partners, allowing them to practice their technical skills and business application,” explained MCMS Superintendent Jorge Diaz. “This collaboration creates meaningful career pathways, connecting our AI-literate students with employers seeking their skills while ensuring all students, regardless of labels and zip codes, have access to emerging tech opportunities.”

Industry feedback

MCMS also will look to these business partners and its advisory committee to provide timely feedback on students’ knowledge and level of preparedness to guide program adjustments.

“Relevance is our biggest challenge moving into the future, but it’s one we planned for,” said Powell of Mercer’s AI and Robotics program. “We also established a CTE Program Advisory Committee for our Artificial Intelligence program with our business partners and TCNJ faculty. This Advisory Committee will meet on an ongoing basis to review new advancements in AI, share best practices and constantly provide recommendations to update the curriculum materials. By formalizing this feedback loop with both academia and industry, we ensure our curriculum is reflecting the state-of-the-art industry needs and preparing students not just for today’s jobs, but for the jobs of tomorrow.”

Not just for students

Powell said developing the new AI and Robotics program has prompted the district as a whole to examine its own use of AI. Starting last spring, MCTS implemented AI professional development for all instructional staff and recently completed a District Approved Policy on Acceptable Use.

“This ensures that the responsible and ethical use of AI is woven into every classroom, not just the CTE program,” Powell emphasized.

Burlington County Institute of Technology has emerged as a leader among New Jersey’s county vocational-technical schools in preparing staff for using AI professionally. At the start of this school year, BCIT launched a districtwide AI Task Force made up of educators, administrators, students and industry partners. Led by Director of Curriculum and Instruction Danielle Hartman, the group takes on a range of AI-related topics involving ethics, guidelines for use in the classroom, district policy development, and best practices for both administrative and instructional use.

“We want to help our colleagues leverage this technology as a thought partner and also a time-saver,” explained Hartman.

BCIT recently held a full day of professional development for staff led by Thomas Semko, a talent development expert, education consultant and adjunct professor at The College of New Jersey. This latest training focused on prompt engineering, guiding instructors on creating prompts using Chat GPT or Gemini to produce impactful learning opportunities for students.

Spanning industries

Hartman explained that a plumbing instructor may prompt AI to simulate a problem in the field that a student needs to troubleshoot. The instructor can input a plumbing codebook to give the AI tool specific information to pull from when both creating the problem and evaluating the student’s solution. Instructors may also prompt the AI tool to quiz students on an input codebook or safety manual.

BCIT Assistant Superintendent Eder Joseph said the district’s focus on training staff to use AI is strategic: Instructors must first become adept at using AI before they present it as another tool for students to use in their chosen career.

“Even masonry is using AI now to simulate what a job will look like before one brick is even put into place,” Joseph said.

He added, “AI will impact many of our career programs and also will change the programs we offer here at BCIT. Some careers may become obsolete, while others emerge. We’ll constantly evaluate our program offerings and how we teach these programs to best support our students.”

Ashanti Holley, superintendent of BCIT, added, “Artificial intelligence is redefining how the world learns and works, and leadership will determine whether that future creates broader access or deeper divides. At BCIT, we lead with intention and clarity so that technology expands possibilities, strengthens human potential and positions every student for meaningful success in a rapidly changing world.”

This article originally appeared Nov. 24, 2025 in NJBIZ.