Dear Parents/ Guardians:
We look forward to welcoming everyone to the 2023-2024 school year! We hope you are having a fun and restful summer. The Center for Career Services staff is thrilled to welcome back our new and returning students. The excitement of a new school year can also bring a little nervousness as our students are about to begin so many new experiences. Rest assured, we stand ready to help your child start the school year on a positive note.
The Center for Career Services’ main goal is to prepare students for the world of work and/or post-secondary education. Students will be provided with a variety of project-based learning experiences as well as authentic work experiences through their programs and the Work-Based Learning Department. These opportunities help in creating well-rounded students who are prepared for the 21st century workplace.
Another important focus for the Center for Career Services’ staff is to provide social and emotional support to all our students. This support is important as our students transition into the workforce and/or post-secondary education. The guidance team and school social worker will support students to ensure these services are delivered.
We look forward to another successful school year and are excited to work with all stakeholders involved in educating the students who attend our programs.
We are very pleased that your child has decided to take advantage of our offerings. Please reach out to us any time you have a question or concern. We are looking forward to seeing everyone on Tuesday, September 6, 2023.
Sincerely,
Dahlia Jackson, Director
Evangelo Michas, Principal
Philip Donohue, Assistant Principal
Animal Science
Architecture
Automotive Technology
CISCO
Collision Technology
Commercial Art
CISMAA
Construction/Plumbing
Cosmetology
Culinary Arts
Electrical Construction
Emergency Medical Services
Fashion Design & Merchandising
Nursing Assistant
Pre-Engineering
Security, Law & Policing
Sound Production
TV/Video Production
The Center for Career Services campus, 65 Grasslands Road in Valhalla, will host a Fall Open House and Back to School Night on Thursday, Oct. 12, 2023, from 6-8:30 p.m. The event will begin with a light dinner offered in the Building D Cafeteria followed by opportunities to meet the teachers of our 18 Career and Technical Education programs. On-campus parking is available.
A resurgence of summer weather allowed the CTE campus's student check-in process to move outdoors as buses rolled in Wednesday from a handful of districts. Over the next few days, more students will arrive, and the CTE campus in Valhalla will be in full swing following the summer pause.
“We are thrilled to be back and to see so many new and returning students eager to settle into their programs,” said Director of Career Services Dahlia Jackson. “Their presence is proof that the word is out in our region about the value of the vocational programs we offer.”
CTE students took advantage of the chance to explore potential jobs during an on-campus Job Fair on May 25. Representatives from several industries in the region shared job opportunities and training requirements during the daylong event.
“This is the first (career fair) we’ve had since before COVID,” Principal Michas Evangelo said. “We have a lot of different opportunities for students. It’s an opportunity to expose students to what’s open to them.”
Seniors in the Cosmetology program returned to the Career Services Campus in Valhalla Wednesday for a special training arranged by Teacher Theresa Galitello in different types of hair extensions. As a bonus, participating students were also able to receive certifications to use the products professionally on clients upon completing their New York State Cosmetology license. Ms. Galitello, fellow teacher Laura Mirabel, and Teaching Assistant Tes Giorgio were on hand to assist the students and help with future endeavors. Jessica Gallo, a National Education Technical Director from California, taught the class.
The Southern Westchester BOCES Center for Career Services hosted morning and afternoon ceremonies to honor students who completed Career and Technical Education programs at our Valhalla Campus.
Valedictorian Ariel Novominski and Salutatorian Jadyn Washington gave addresses, as did Deputy Superintendent/COO Brendan Lyons, Ed.D., Assistant Superintendent for Educational Services James Gratto, and Principal Evangelo Michas.
Scholarships were awarded two Ms. Novominski and Mr. Washington as well as students David Nunez, Samantha Perkaj, and Jose Luis Medina by the Southern Westchester BOCES Education Foundation. Certificates were presented by Dr. Lyons, Mr. Gratto, Board of Education President John Filiberti, Principal Evangelo Michas, Social Worker Eileen Yip, and school counselors Anna Macchia, Monica Mann, and Kevin McAllister. Director of Career Services Dahlia Jackson gave the closing address.
Congratulations and best of success in the future to all our students!
Eight Southern Westchester BOCES Commercial Art students were honored with Exemplary Awards by the Lower Hudson Region of the New York State Media Arts Teachers Association (NYSMATA).
The award winners, all student of Teacher Damian Powers, are: Arianna Hoover Lluesma, Emma Rincones-Parra, Mina Rincones-Parra, Alianna Martinez, Eve Uribe, Yaeliz Berga, and Isabella Rodriguez. Their entries show can be seen here: 2023 Exemplary Online Exhibition.
Students in Carmen Galiano’s Fashion Design & Merchandising class punctuated the school year by staging an exhibit of their own original street fashions.
The class partnered the TV/Video Production program to produce a video component aimed at marketing their designs. Street fashion was an easy choice for this culminating project, their instructor says.
“They were in the mood for everyday clothing,” teacher Carmen Galiano said. “Where do you go for street clothes? You don’t see it so much in the suburbs.”
Representatives from the New York State Education Department heard from expert consultants who provide academic support Southern Westchester BOCES Career Tech students.
Presentations were made at the Career Services campus in Valhalla May 15 as part of a tour by NYSED officials of BOCES programs in the region. State CTE representatives Kelli Grab, Nicole Hadsell and Cily Rueda heard from consultants who work to assist students to thrive and to help teachers whose students who may need special considerations.
“I have a sense of pride for how far we’ve come,” Assistant Superintendent for Educational Services Jim Gratto said. “This whole process has been great for our students.”
Students at the SWBOCES Center for Career Services had the opportunity to put the skills they’ve learned to the test during the annual Classic Car Show, which drew hundreds of visitors to the Valhalla campus on Sunday. The show, which was supported by the Rock ’n’ Rods Car Club of Yonkers, provided a chance for the curious to browse decades-old cars and gave proud car owners the occasion to show off their vehicles, which were each refurbished to mint condition.
If professional hockey was plan A for Ray Sulla, and a storied career in the NYPD was plan B for the Bronx native, then teaching Security, Law & Policing at Southern Westchester BOCES’s Career Services campus the last 15 years has been an unexpected but rewarding plan C. He retires for good in a few weeks, leaving a legacy of excellence and countless students who've gone on to careers that benefited from his influence.
“Career and Technical Education is a unique area for a teacher because it requires industry-level expertise and the ability to impart knowledge and understanding to students,” Director of Career Services Dahlia Jackson said. “Mr. Sulla embodied what it takes to succeed as a CTE instructor. We will surely miss him but wish him the very best.”
Southern Westchester BOCES Career and Technical Education student Ariel Novominski won the Silver medal for Related Technical Math at the prestigious SkillsUSA Leadership and Skills Championships in late April.
That very statement was also true one year ago when the then-junior from Edgemont first accomplished the feat.
"As a CTE student who excelled on stage and emerged victorious after competing with my peers, the feeling of accomplishment was indescribable," she said. "It is imperative that we realize that there are no limits to what we can achieve and that we set our goals as high as possible."
Culinary Arts instructor John Damiani turned to Commercial Art instructor Damian Powers to make his students' food truck challenge project a reality. Students from the two programs at the Career Services campus in Valhalla are collaborating to come up with the best original concept.
Each Culinary Arts student must develop a business plan, including coming up with an artistic design, logo, menu, pricing plan and social media marketing plan. In the end they will apply their culinary skills to a cook-off challenge.
Besides excellent cuisine, Culinary Arts is also about the business side and all that it takes to succeed in a competitive industry. That’s what Chef Damiani prepares his students to do. A food truck is a great way to build a successful business from the ground up.
“This is yet another opportunity for our students to gain real-world-type work experience,” Mr. Powers said. “These chefs are the clients, and it’s the responsibility of my designers to meet their needs. That’s a valuable lesson.”
An annual hair coloring project staged by the Cosmetology program at SWBOCES' Careers campus allows students to showcase their mastery of the hair coloring techniques they learn as part of the curriculum.
More than an assignment, this is a contest wherein second-year students are judged by their first-year peers next door. As expected, competition brings out the best from all who take part.
“Every year we are pleasantly surprised at how well each and every one of the students work to achieve that final look,” Theresa Galitello, one of the Cosmetology instructors, said.
For a student who embraces challenges that take courage, Brianna Osorio admits she had trepidations about running for president of the statewide student organization she joined last fall.
A student in the Emergency Medical Service program, Brianna plans to become a paramedic after high school. Long-term, her ambition is to become a trauma surgeon. Fear clearly does not dictate her choices. The presidency of New York HOSA, however, was an intimidating prospect.
“Hearing everybody else give their speeches, everybody’s so smart. They sound so confident. I thought I wasn’t going to make it,” the White Plains High School junior said. “When I made it, I thought, don’t let the fear control you.”
HOSA Future Health Professionals, formerly Health Occupations Students of America, is an international career and technical student organization. Brianna was elected president for the 2023-24 school year at its Spring Leadership Conference in Syracuse last month.
Our students met with top state officials, were featured on the front page of the newspaper, shined at statewide skills competitions, and went to work for major local employers. Read all these stories and more in the latest Tools of the Trade newsletter from our Center for Career Services.
Students in the Emergency Medical Services program returned from the prestigious New York HOSA Spring Leadership Conference in Syracuse with an impressive haul of awards in the statewide skills competitions.
In the Emergency Medical Technician competition, Emily Ferraro and Lisanne Rattery won first place while Alyssa Carrasquillo and Amara Osei came in second. In the NY Achievement Awards, the winners were students Laurel Lowenthal and Kieran Mullin and Teaching Assistant Anchelle Allen as advisor. Meanwhile, Brianna Osorio of White Plains was elected president of New York HOSA for the 2023-2024 school year.
Commercial Art students Julian O., Vinny Castagnozzi and Elijah Haynes, and Architectural Design student Jonny Lopez of New Rochelle (all pictured here) show off some of their classwork that is on display for the Center for Career Services’ Spring Open House Media Show and College/Transition Fair. The March 23 event featured an exhibit of student work from the Commercial Art, Architectural Design, and Fashion Design and Merchandising programs. Visitors had the opportunity to meet the guidance team, administrators and teachers, who explained how CTE programs directly link to college and career opportunities. College representatives and transition providers discussed exciting options for students as well.
Our Career Tech programs rely on cutting-edge technology and tools to ensure our students are prepared for the world of work as it looks now and how it develops in the future. Here are two examples. Students in Mr. Nelson’s Automotive Technology class at SWBOCES' Career Services campus in Valhalla are learning about hybrid cars—notice the battery below the engine. Meanwhile, Mr. Schwartzott’s Auto Tech students work with a brake simulator to understand the intricacies of proper brake maintenance and repair.
8:25 AM to 10:55 AM
Buses leave CCS at 11:00 AM
11:55 AM to 2:25 PM
Buses leave CCS at 2:30 PM
