Trade schools in the region work to build enrollment
Vocational programs see growth in students seeking certification programs
While school enrollment in some of New York’s counties is declining, vocational enlistment is on the upswing.
The Questar III Board of Cooperative Educational Services, overseeing 22 school districts in Rensselaer, Columbia and Greene counties, has seen an uptick in students enrolling in their trades programs, but a decline in student enrollment across its school districts.
“We have seen a decrease in enrollment in schools in our region the last 10, 15 years. However, we have not seen a decrease in enrollment in our trades programs,” BOCES District Superintendent Gladys Cruz said. “On the contrary, they’ve been very stable and growing.” Questar’s enrollment data showed its Rensselaer and Columbia Greene educational centers saw a combined 30 percent increase in enrollment for its trade programs from 2016 to 2021.
Other Questar figures showed the region’s total enrollment across school districts has steadily decreased during that period, going from 32,620 students in 2016 to about 30,000 in 2021.
Cruz said despite the ongoing pandemic, Questar’s vocational curriculum has continued growing and the unit will soon be opening a Science, Technology, Engineering and Math school and launching two new programs, including one at the University at Albany.
Elaine Hardman, coordinator of Student Services at the Capital District Educational Opportunity Center, and Adrienne Leon, a spokeswoman for the Capital Region BOCES, also said enrollments in trades program at their institutions are up. The EOC predominantly serves low-income and disadvantaged students.
Hardman confirmed seeing this subtle increase before the pandemic as well, but, that she wouldn’t say vocational admission rates rose because of it.
She instead said the EOC experienced a “close to 30 percent” participation drop because of COVID-related obstacles — closures and limited space — that thwarted students’ training.
Although better now, the EOC’s certified nursing assistant program sustained a pandemic-induced setback that made it difficult for students to get through the program. Since the track focuses on nursing homes, students couldn’t get in the training they needed, Hardman said.
“Vocational is difficult, if not almost impossible to teach remotely,” she emsaid. And since many EOC students have children, that made it even harder.
Gabrielle Harris, an EOC cosmetology student, started her program in 2021. She struggled to get to training because she is a single mother of three school-age children who did not have child care when her children had to learn remotely. But, she
made sure she didn’t miss a day. She’s hoping to complete her program and become a licensed cosmetologist.
Cruz and Hardman found there are more students seeking certifications in mechanical trades, but other programs, such as culinary and cosmetology have strong enrollment numbers.
Students opt to take the trade school route because they are self-paced and students can often be certified in a year or less in many cases, which permits them to enter the industry sooner, Hardman said.
The vocational courses can also be used for college credits if a student converts to a college track.
The EOC encourages students to obtain their high school equivalencies but leaves room for them to get a job first or take their time with the diploma.
“This is an important factor since the NYS graduate rate was only 84.8 percent statewide and drops to 78.1 percent for Black students, which is a large part of our population,” Hardman said.
Many of the skilled trade fields similarly lead to full-time jobs with salaries and benefits for students who may not have been as successful in high school or don’t wish to continue learning at a collegiate level, Hardman said.
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“We have seen a decrease in enrollment in schools in our region the last 10, 15 years. However, we have not seen a decrease in enrollment in our trades programs. On the contrary, they’ve been very stable and growing.”
BOCES District Superintendent Gladys Cruz