Blue Hills hosts School to Careers breakfast
By GuestBy Judy Bass
The Chateau de Bleu student-run restaurant at Blue Hills Regional Technical School in Canton was full to capacity with guests on the morning of Wednesday, December 12.
School to Careers Director Katherine Touafek with student speaker Michael Glick of Canton (Photo by Judy Bass)
But this was no ordinary breakfast crowd. The people gathered there, including Norfolk County District Attorney Michael Morrissey, state representatives William Galvin and Walter Timilty, Blue Hills administrators and staff, representatives of high-profile businesses and other organizations, plus students and teachers from nearby local towns, were there for an exciting reason — to describe and celebrate the tremendous success of the School to Careers Partnership, which allows students from Avon, Blue Hills, Canton, Dedham, Milton, Norwood, and Randolph to learn firsthand about a host of careers by taking educational field trips and meeting professionals who are eager to share their knowledge and answer questions.
The experiences the participating students have in School to Careers are priceless. Several of them from many towns spoke at the breakfast, all with the same enthusiasm and gratitude for the chance to go out and actively explore burgeoning fields such as hospitality, engineering, health care, finance, and the performing arts.
Again and again, these young men and women passionately voiced their feelings to the audience: “These field trips opened up my mind,” said one. “It was the best experience ever,” gushed another.
School to Careers has business partners from every sector imaginable, like the Boston Federal Reserve Bank, South Shore Hospital, Children’s Hospital, the Rodman Theater for Kids, and the Neponset Valley Chamber of Commerce, just to name a few.
Thomas O’Rourke, president and CEO of the Neponset Valley Chamber of Commerce, was among the speakers. He explained that the chamber has formed an education and business committee to encourage a vigorous dialogue between schools and businesses. “It’s a great start,” he said.
The event opened with a welcome from Blue Hills Superintendent James P. Quaglia, who warmly thanked everyone for coming to the “finest technical school in the state” and noted the importance of what School to Careers does.
Master of Ceremonies Katherine Touafek, director of School to Careers, followed, noting proudly that the program offers a staggering 4,000 opportunities to students annually solely based on merit, not ability to pay. She also mentioned that School to Careers encompasses students of all ability levels with the aim of helping them achieve their career goal, whatever it may be.
“[The students] are looking for direction [with their future plans],” she told the throng. They certainly get it from School to Careers, which provides them with internships, mentors, and guidance they would not get anywhere else.”
Another distinguished speaker who similarly praised the partnership was Rep. Galvin, a longtime supporter of this endeavor.
Then, one by one, the students stepped up to the podium to describe the adventures they had enjoyed thanks to School to Careers — a trip to the Cape Cod Canal, a visit to a healthcare job fair, assorted symposia, a thrilling expedition to the Opera House in Boston to see the drama “War Horse.”
In fact, said Touafek, 300 students went to watch that popular Tony Award-winning play set in World War I England. She said that lots of them had never been out of their hometown or to Boston. They had orchestra seats at the venerable Opera House, too.
Touafek announced that she anticipates soon adding Holbrook to the list of towns that are part of School to Careers.
As one educator at the breakfast put it, “This is a model of what such a partnership should look like.”
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