HFM BOCES will implement adjustments to its Pathways in Technology Early College High Schools (PTECHs) for the 2020-21 school year. The changes, developed in collaboration with the superintendents of HFM BOCES component school districts, are designed to strengthen all of the programs and support every student’s path to high school and college completion.
In order to leverage efficiencies and opportunities for cooperation among the schools, the three programs will be co-located by grade-level. This reconfiguration will enhance and increase opportunities for students and ensures that all of the degree pathways currently offered to students remain viable.
Presently there are three separate PTECH schools in the region. The HFM PTECH at Jansen Avenue and the Foothills PTECH at Johnstown High School are aligned with degrees offered by Fulton-Montgomery Community College (FMCC). The Agriculture PTECH at D.H. Robbins School in St. Johnsville places students on a path toward degrees conferred by SUNY Cobleskill. The desired outcome for students in each program includes high school completion and the attainment of an associates’ degree within six years of enrollment in ninth grade.
Starting in July of 2020, the PTECHS of HFM BOCES will be organized into three “Pathway Clusters”.
- Pathways in Business and Advanced Manufacturing
- Pathways in Agriculture
- Pathways in Medical/Health Sciences and Computer Science
Grades 9 and 10 for all three pathway clusters will be located at the Jansen Avenue School in Johnstown. Grade 11 students in each pathway cluster will transition to HFM BOCES’ Main Campus and FMCC, which are directly connected.
Beginning in Grade 12, students enrolled in the Agriculture Pathways will attend SUNY Cobleskill and continue for two additional years or until they complete the requirements for an associate degree. Similarly, Grade 12 students enrolled in the Business and Advanced Manufacturing Pathways and the Medical/Health Science and Computer Science Pathways will begin to attend FMCC and continue for two additional years or until they complete the requirements for an associate degree.
“The motivation for implementing this structure is simple: provide the strongest possible path to high school and college completion to our students,” HFM BOCES District Superintendent David Ziskin said. “In addition to the benefits to students, streamlining our early college programs will allow us to operate more efficiently and helps ensure the long-term sustainability of the PTECH model in the HFM region.”
More information can be found in a question-and-answer document here.
