Friday, January 24, 2025
The Uniondale school district is part of the New York State Pathways in Technology, or P-Tech, program, which helps reshape educational opportunities for students in underserved communities by offering a unique pathway to careers in science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM, fields.
Uniondale has a grant from the state for the program, Christine Lopes, the district’s coordinator of state and federal grants, explained, but the Freeport and Wyandanch districts are part of the program as well.
“There are 60 students, or 20 per district,” Lopes said, “and those students receive classes in their high school. So they stay with their cohort, and their classes are specifically tailored to things that have to do with the degree pathway, so it’s more specialized.”
The district’s P-Tech model is structured to include students starting in ninth grade and moving through graduation, allowing them to progress alongside their peers while simultaneously earning college credits. There are two degree pathways students can choose: animation and digital graphics or electronic engineering technology.
Participants then attend Vaughn College, in Queens, for two years to earn associate’s degrees in their chosen pathway. They remain connected to their high schools, because the program is designed to ensure that they are fully supported by their school districts and communities, with access to tutors, mentorship and guidance from industry professionals.
Participating students are introduced to the program in middle school, Lopes said.
“When we recruit them in eighth grade, we work with the teachers and guidance counselors there to find students who are specifically interested in the areas of math and science,” she said.
Two Uniondale High School juniors, Kenneth Duenas and Mark Benjamin, are part of the P-Tech program, on the electronic engineering technology pathway.
“I had no idea what I wanted to do with my future, and I already had some experience with construction, because my dad works in construction anyway,” Duenas said. “So honestly, I didn’t know what to do with my future, so I just gave (the program) a shot, and I love it.”
“When you have a cohort, since we take a lot of classes together, it’s just nice to have people to rely on,” Benjamin added. “Let’s say you need help with homework, or you don’t understand something. You have a reliable group of people that you can count on to help you out with anything you need.”
In addition to an adjusted curriculum, the school district has partnered with companies to help students understand what careers in architecture and engineering entail. The partnerships include workshops at Uniondale High, like resume building for juniors, as well as field trips to facilities for team-building exercises and educational opportunities.
“The purpose of P-Tech is to introduce students to STEM careers,” Karla Blanco, learning and development coordinator at H2M Architects & Engineers, in Melville, said, “usually with some vigorous workload of being able to shadow professionals, going to see what onsite looks like, to see what the people in the STEM career actually do.”
Once or twice a year, students visit the H2M corporate office, where they meet professionals and participate in “A Day in the Life” sessions. Students hear from architects, engineers, environmental engineers and even the CEO of the company, Blanco said, and learn about the tools, software and education required for these professions. They also have the chance to shadow professionals to see what their workday is like.
In addition to these career-focused experiences, the program introduces students to hands-on activities designed to develop their skills and spark their interest. They take part workshops like the marshmallow challenge, in which they compete to build the tallest structure out of spaghetti, sticks, tape and string on top of which a marshmallow can be balanced. Blanco said the students learn “communication and collaboration skills, how to plan out an actual structure and just working together in general.”
Another popular activity is Drone Day, on which students from the participating school districts gather at Uniondale High to learn how to operate drones. In this activity, introduced in March, students created promotional P-Tech videos using drones, combining STEM skills with video production and marketing.
“It was really fun just controlling the drones and seeing what they could do,” Benjamin said.
Blanco, who grew up in an underrepresented community, evidenced her passion for showing students that college and career opportunities are within their reach.
“I want them to see that there’s opportunity out there for them, that college may seem overwhelming … but that there are opportunities for them,” she said, “(and) there’s people that you can connect to that can help you throughout your life as well.”
