CRTC+ Experience:

Two Students, One Career Passion, 33 College Credits


Two CRTC students from two different CRTC programs are spending part of their senior year together taking welding classes at Manchester Community College, where they are on track to earn more than 30 college credits between them - before they graduate high school.

Automotive Technology completer John Mazgelis (left in photo) and Construction Trades II student Josh Blye (right in photo) are part of the CRTC+ program, which allows motivated second year students and program completers to customize their schedules with on-campus college courses, robust internships and deep work-based learning experiences.


“The CRTC+ program really helped me to have a more meaningful senior year,” said Josh Blye, a Concord High School student. “Instead of finishing up my high school credits taking a pottery class or something, I’m getting the chance to do something that’s really helping me to jumpstart my future.”


Customized Senior Year:

Josh completed Construction Trades I in his junior year, and is using CRTC+ to pack his senior year with courses aligned to provide him with a competitive edge as he moves beyond his high school graduation. This school year, he is taking Construction Trades II, the CRTC Career Communications English course, and six MCC Welding Technology program courses, which will earn him 18+ credits toward an associates degree.


“I can get my first year of college done while in high school, and it’s going to save me a ton of time,” Josh said. “It’s not only giving me a head start, it also cuts my tuition costs way down.”


John Mazgelis, a Concord High School senior, completed the CRTC Automotive Technology I program as a sophomore, and the Auto Tech II program in his junior year, along with an internship at Banks Chevrolet, in Concord. This school year John is taking five Welding and Automotive Technology courses at MCC, which will earn him 15+ credits. John also is earning high school English credit by taking CRTC Career Communications, a course designed specifically to help students to sharpen professional reading, writing and speaking skills aligned to their chosen career pathway.


Why CRTC+?

CRTC+ uniquely connects seniors to their future hopes and ambitions by allowing them to work within a structured support system to self-design a senior year that connects them in tangible and meaningful ways to on-campus postsecondary education and on-the-job work-based learning. CRTC+ allows students to take a deeper dive into their career choices and ambitions, before they make expensive college decisions. 


The students in our CRTC+ program chose early in high school to challenge themselves to take on an intense, career-focused education, a pathway that has allowed them to use their senior year to springboard into future ambitions.


“Applying to the CRTC was the best decision I made in high school,” said Josh Blye. “If you have any idea of what you want for a career, the CRTC is going to show you how to make it happen.”


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