https://www.alamo.edu/spc/news-events/news/2021/january/spc-partners-with-saisd-to-expand-p-tech-programs-in-sa/

SPC Partners with SAISD to Expand P-TECH Programs in SA

January 20, 2021

https://www.expressnews.com/news/education/article/San-Antonio-ISD-to-launch-3-more-P-TECH-high-15882164.php

San Antonio ISD to launch 3 more P-TECH high school programs

Andres PiconSan Antonio Express-News

Jan. 19, 2021Updated: Jan. 19, 2021 4:15 p.m.

The San Antonio Independent School District is partnering with several local colleges and businesses to add industry and career preparation programs to three more high schools starting in the fall, district leaders announced Tuesday.

The new partnerships will bring to five the number of P-TECH (Pathways in Technology Early College High School) schools in SAISD, giving hundreds more Bexar County students the opportunity to graduate with not only a diploma, but also an associate degree or certification and hands-on experience such as internships.

“This is a game-changer for our community,” said Robert Vela, president of San Antonio College, one of SAISD’s partners in the initiative. “This is just the beginning, and the launching pad that these students now have as a result of these credentials is tremendous.”

Edison High School is partnering with San Antonio College and H-E-B, Galan Graphix and Tacit Growth Strategies to launch the Edison P-TECH School of Business, where students will focus on business fields like marketing, finance and accounting.

Highlands High School is partnering with St. Philip’s College and TX FAME, a collection of companies including H-E-B, Toyota and CPS Energy, to start Highlands P-TECH for Aerospace, Engineering, Manufacturing and Welding.

Lanier High School is partnering with St. Philip’s College, the University of Texas at San Antonio and companies including Joeris General Contractors and Workforce Solutions Alamo to launch the Construction Science P-TECH at Lanier High School, where students will graduate with experience and certifications in several fields: construction technology, construction science and management, and power generation and alternative energy.

Sam Houston High School and Fox Tech High School started P-TECH programs in 2018 and 2019 for cybersecurity and health care, respectively. They were among the first P-TECH programs in Bexar County.

Education, community and industry leaders have touted P-TECH partnerships as an innovative way to offer a leg up to traditionally underserved or economically disadvantaged students while developing a future workforce for prominent local industries.

“We are launching career pathways that we know will create genuine success stories for every student that is engaged in these programs,” said Adena Williams Loston, president of St. Philip’s College.

Romanita Matta-Barrera, executive director of workforce development for the San Antonio Economic Development Foundation, said the initiative to make students career-ready straight out of high school became even more important during the pandemic, which has forced layoffs, delayed people’s plans to pursue degrees and canceled internship opportunities.

“COVID has disrupted the future of work, and it’s programs like this that are truly instrumental in changing generational poverty across our city and preparing the students to be ready for college and career simultaneously,” Matta-Barrera said.

Some schools with P-TECH programs qualify for incentive funding through House Bill 3, the comprehensive school finance overhaul passed by the Legislature in 2019.

Highlands and Fox Tech have each received P-TECH grants that run through June 2022, and Highlands received an additional $122,000 grant from the state’s Jobs and Education for Texans grant program to purchase manufacturing equipment, said Johnny Vahalik, SAISD’s senior executive director of college, career and military readiness.

The new P-TECH programs will begin next school year. Applications are open now for any Bexar County student entering the ninth grade in the fall.

andy.picon@hearst.com | Twitter: @andpicon

https://www.ksat.com/news/local/2021/02/12/saisd-partnering-with-alamo-colleges-utsa-for-student-construction-science-and-management-program/

For the past two years, high schoolers like Hector Martínez have been earning credits towards an associates degree as part of the Construction Science P-Tech Program.

“I came to school for this program,” Martínez said. “I love it so much. I’m proud to say that I’m in the construction program, and I think this program is helping me and many others.”

The Lanier High School senior has been taking courses to earn college credit, industry recognized certifications and get hands-on experience in construction science management, a trade with high-wage and high-demand in San Antonio and across Texas.

“We work with Habitat for Humanity and build the wall frames that they make for the houses,” Martínez said. “I know underclassmen are working on building little libraries for the community.”

The best part, according to Martínez, is the strong advantage he already has when applying for jobs in the workforce.

“I have been going to class to get the OSHA 30 certification. There are also the anchor certification,” Martínez said. “Jobs will see that you have these certifications and pick you over someone who’s just straight out of high school.”

The P-Tech Program is integrated to their curriculum, allowing students to remain on-campus when they take their college level courses with St. Philip’s College.

“I think it’s amazing because of the relationship we have with the teacher,” Martínez said. “We have such a close connection with them and it just makes the process so much easier (to get a) higher level education.”

Beginning in the fall of 2021, UTSA will also join forces to provide a pathway for students interested in a bachelor’s degree.

“UTSA is is focused on access and opportunity, and we know that there is still work to be done around the San Antonio community,” Abel Gonzales, director of instructional outreach programs for UTSA’s College of Education and Human Development said.

The purpose of the program is to help fill the gap in the workforce, according to Donlee Wilson. Wilson is the department chair at Allied Construction Trades with St Philip’s College.

“This is a driving force to encourage those students (that they) don’t have to just settle for that minimum wage job, (and remind them that) we’ve got programs that can help you,” Wilson said. “This gives those students those opportunities to gain that knowledge and those skills early on.”

Skills that provide a strong career pathway, according to Gonzales.

“If you look around just the downtown part of our city, there’s construction everywhere you go,” Gonzales said. “Our program focuses on building the next construction science management professional who will be leading a group or a team at a construction project or construction site.”

Students interested in the program can still register. For more information, click here.

Copyright 2021 by KSAT - All rights reserved.