February is CTE Month! CTE Month is celebrated nationally every year as a public awareness campaign to celebrate the value of CTE and the achievements and accomplishments of CTE programs across the country, and our city. As a district, we are planning activities throughout the month. 

As in previous years, many schools use CTE Month as an opportunity to highlight CTE teachers and students through activities such as demonstrations, screenings, hands-on-activities, guest lectures, etc. For more information on CTE Month at City Schools, please contact, Shanae Fant (SKFant@bcps.k12.ms.us) and Celina Acham (CAAcham@bcps.k12.md.us). 

Mytara Hazelwood, a Senior at Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy, has been working as a youth apprentice in the Women’s Oncology Unit at Sinai Hospital since the beginning of the school year. After school two days a week as well as on Saturdays, she reports to work under the direct supervision of her Apprenticeship Maryland mentor, Megan Schwartz, R.N. By June, she will have completed 450 clinical hours on the job and receive course credit for the experience. 

Mytara shares that her apprenticeship has allowed her to learn invaluable clinical skills that will give her a marked advantage as a nursing student after graduation. “I absolutely plan to attend Nursing School and become an R.N.,” she shares with a confident smile. 

Mytara has learned how to perform finger sticks, bladder scans, and deliver exceptional, compassionate care to women undergoing a wide range of treatments in their battles against cancer. She has also been given the opportunity to assist charge nurses with the complex task of managing a busy unit, a skill she says she could not have learned anywhere else but on the job. Interacting with and communicating with patients’ families during a challenging time is another skill she has had the opportunity to observe via her mentor.

BCPSS is grateful for the pioneering efforts of the Lifebridge Health Workforce Development Team: Anita Hammond, Manager, and Kimberley Grade, Coordinator. Anita shares that “We are invested in Apprenticeship Maryland because we want to see these students stay with Lifebridge for the duration of their careers in healthcare.”

According to Mytara, “I have learned so much about what it takes to be a nurse…and at the same time, everyone on the floor treats me not only as an employee but also helps me in my learning. They look out for me as if I were their own daughter.”

Mervo senior Jekai began his youth apprenticeship with MDOT-SHA in the fall and is learning and earning on the job in the role of a technical building services apprentice. As part of Jekai's apprenticeship, he has a mentor and coach that works with him 1:1 to build the technical skills needed to launch his career at MDOT-SHA.

On February 6th from 9 am to 12 pm, selected Western Students were able to interview with BGE for a High School Summer Internship Program. This internship Program is focused on students who are pursuing technical trades like automotive technology, electrical, engineering, carpentry, etc. The internship will occur from June 24th to August 2nd. The Western Doves did an amazing job during their interviews and were able to practice their soft skills for their career success! 

City Schools currently has five high schools that offer its seniors an opportunity to prepare for their life after high school through employability and career readiness modules and a 13-week internship experience. 

Seniors, instructors, and employers alike have asked for an internship fair to have an opportunity to meet the person behind the organization/resume and provide more connection for seniors to potential internship host sites. 

In December, the WBL team did just that and hosted its first internship fair. The fair included networking bingo, alumni speakers, internship employer speaker Kendra Moore from Baltimore City Department of Recreation and Parks, speed internship pitches from our internship host sites, and lunch and chats between seniors and employers. 

Seniors begin their internships on February 12, 2024.

December was Roberto's (Forest Park High School) official signing day at Efficiency Enterprise as their newest diesel mechanic youth apprentice. 

During the event, Efficiency Enterprise's President, Richard Barbato, Jr., discussed the importance of youth apprenticeship as a talent strategy for the transportation and logistics industry. He emphasized Efficiency's commitment to expand youth apprenticeship roles and partnering with City Schools in providing training resources for more students to gain the technical skills as a diesel mechanic.

True career connected learning requires education and employer partnership like Efficiency and City Schools.