Program gives students a head start
BOCES’ Early College program develops future career skills
Max Dwyer has saved precious time and considerable money by finding out what he doesn’t want to pursue after graduating from Schuylerville High School next year.
It’s one of the biggest lessons he’s learned in a BOCES-related Early College Career Academy program, held at SUNY Adirondack’s Wilton campus.
Dwyer gained a great deal of practical experience by taking business and entrepreneurship classes, but discovered it’s not what he’s cut out for. He’s more interested in writing and the national political scene, which could lead to a career in journalism.
By taking the business program, however, he still gained college credits and was exposed to the demands of a more challenging curriculum.
“It was super helpful,” said Dwyer, a high school junior. “It really gave me a look at what college life and the workload is like. It’s much different than high school. College is the real deal. You can’t put things off. You’ve got to get your work done.”
More than 120 BOCES students from throughout the region take Early College Career Academy classes at SUNY Adirondack’s Wilton and Queensbury campuses. Courses are also available in advanced manufacturing, information technology and new media, which involves photography and graphic design.
This is the first year business and entrepreneurship was offered. Students spend the morning at SUNY Adirondack, taking classes taught by BOCES instructor Sue Stone and a college professor, before returning to their home high school for regular studies in the afternoon.
The schedule is quite demanding.
“I think the whole time management thing has been eyeopening for them,” Stone said.
Students learned valuable information in college-level courses such as personal finance, marketing and business management, while gaining practical experience by developing a business plan for a real-life iced tea product called Serenetea. In April, Stone’s class won first place in a “Pitch-It” competition during a high school Business Day at SUNY Adirondack’s Queensbury campus.
They’re also participating in a similar event at Siena College.
BOCES student Trevor Jeffords, of Queensbury High School, said making presentations to competition judges helped developed his communication skills. Students also learned the importance of teamwork when developing a project, which they’ll need in real-world business situations some day.
Next year, Dwyer plans on taking more classes that could prove helpful to a budding journalist such as English, writing and history. Like many young people, he gets most of his news online, while turning to print versions of The New York Times and The Washington Post to follow national events.
“Social media is really good on one hand,” Dwyer said. “It gets information to young people they might not get otherwise, and keeps them informed. But at the same time, you don’t know the credibility of the source. So a lot of times you don’t know who’s putting that information out there.”