February is Career and Technical Education Month® (CTE), a time to celebrate our schools, programs, staff, and students who are working to develop the essential skills required for today’s workforce. Students choose a different type of education when they choose CTE; more hands-on, physical, and career focused.
With our country facing a significant skills gap, these students are stepping in to fill the void. A CTE program not only prepares them for a successful career but also ensures our workforce remains competitive and resilient.
Join us as we highlight and celebrate all things CTE this CTE Month. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube, and LinkedIn to learn more about our programs and our students.
Questar III BOCES Automotive Technologies student Chase Maxon is a senior at Robert H. Gibson Technical School from New Lebanon Central School District. Chase has loved cars since he was a small child and realized it could become a career.
“When I got to an age where I started to want to learn more about cars, and wanted to get dirty under the engine, it just made sense to come here,” Chase shared. “That, and I know I do better with hands-on learning. When I heard about the program my freshman year, I knew I needed to get in so I could learn more before I got out of high school.”
And there’s no shortage of learning. Auto Tech students are prepared to become ASE certified, an industry standard certification. They learn the hands-on skills required for several automotive-related careers and work hands-on daily in their classroom garage with the guidance of their teacher, Mr. Rogers.
“Mr. Rogers is great,” Chase said. “We’ve been doing a lot this year and working on real cars, not just practicing on shop cars. It feels like a real garage here with all the cars we have coming in. It gives us a real objective, instead of just taking apart shop cars and putting them back together. Mr. Rogers really knows what he’s talking about, I can trust him to help me and teach me.”
Chase had an opportunity to intern at Bell’s Garage in Stephentown. This offered Chase some different insights into automotive repair that, at the time, he hadn’t yet experienced.
“It was a cool experience,” said Chase. “It wasn’t just oil changes and tires, I got to do some other fun projects, too. We put a motor into a pickup truck; I had never done that before! It also gave me a foot in the door. Even now, I’ll stop into the garage to see what kind of projects they’re up to.”
Outside of the hands-on technical skills related to their program, Auto Tech students also take a year of math, science, and English over their two-year program. While Chase shared that he sometimes struggled in a traditional school setting, he did not have the same struggles while taking these courses here.
“I think it’s easy, and it’s easier to keep my grades up,” Chase said. “I really struggle with math, but here, it was things like learning how to fill out a time sheet, write a check, balance a checkbook. It’s more applicable to real life.”
In English, students build a portfolio, learn to write a strong resume, and master the steps required to land a job. On top of these career readiness skills, Chase shared that the program helped him develop many other skills, too.
“We learn about teamwork and how to communicate with colleagues, or classmates in our case,” Chase said. “You’ve gotta have that collaboration of working together, in case you’re working a job where you need an extra set of hands. You need to be able to work independently, but you have to be able to work with other people, too.”
Last summer, Chase attended NASCAR Technical Institute’s Summer Ignite Program in Mooresville, NC, just outside of Charlotte, NC, which is famously known in the racing world as the NASCAR capital. The three-week summer program allowed Chase to experience the campus and what it might be like to attend school there.
“I had a great time,” said Chase. “It was similar to the work I did here, but faster paced, and I picked up a few different skills. After being on campus for a few weeks, I was like, yeah – I really want to go to school here!”
Chase was accepted into their two-year program and will be attending next fall. He hopes his school connection can lead him to a career with a NASCAR race team.
“If anyone wants an automotive career, or they just want the knowledge for themselves, it’s a great program to join,” Chase said. “I just love getting dirty and fixing stuff.”
