CRTC Compass Magazine

  Instagram Takeover Week   Tune in to our Instagram this week as our social media ambassadors take over our account to share stories and highlights about their CRTC experiences.   Visit our Instagram page often and see the latest visual stories of our students in action. Of course, with our more creative students in charge, we’re looking forward to some interesting and entertaining posts. Don’t forget to comment, share and follow us! Social Media Ambassadors: Education & Behavioral Science: Kasey Czarnecki (Hopkinton Middle High School) Culinary & Pastry Arts: Graham Jacques (Bow High School) Cosmetology: Khia Blankenship and Carlie Saltmarsh (Merrimack Valley High School)  Graphic Design & Creative Media: Julia Dion (Pembroke Academy)  Health Science: Alyssa Woodman (Merrimack Valley High School), Katherine Kennedy (Concord High School), and Sydney Ferland (Bow High School)

  Refer A Friend, Get A Gift Card All CRTC students now have a way to both help us recruit new students for the 2021-22 school year and pick up a coffee and a donut - on us. The new applicant referral program starting this week awards a Dunkin Donuts gift card for every student you persuade to apply to the CRTC. The CRTC is hoping to recruit 450 new students for the next school year. But with COVID restrictions keeping us from holding traditional assemblies, program preview day and open house events, we need every student to think about recruiting a friend, classmate or family member to apply for next year’s program classes. And to sweeten the pot, so to speak, we’re offering a $4 Dunkin Donuts gift card for each freshman, sophomore or junior student you motivate to fill out an application. You already know how the CRTC is helping you to explore your career interests and passions, so you have a good story to share with other students about what we offer and the doors we can open. Not o

From The Director's Desk We’re in the middle of our most challenging CRTC recruitment season ever, and are getting creative in our efforts to reach out to 9th-, 10th- and 11th-grade students throughout our region to educate them about our 40 year tradition of connecting students to their college and career ambitions, and to tell them how to apply.  Last spring we toured about 1,000 students through our 11 Career Pathway programs during our annual Program Preview Days event. This year, due to COVID restrictions, we were forced to conduct a virtual event where teachers and student ambassadors made use of program videos and laptop cameras to provide remote tours through shops, labs and classrooms, and to talk about the college and career preparation benefits of a CRTC education. Our goal is to recruit 450 students for next year's classes, and we are working with our nine sending schools to ensure that eligible students are aware of both who we are and how they can connect to get m

  CRTC Student Ambassadors: The Backbone of Our Recruitment Efforts  Oftentimes, a student’s first real engagement with the CRTC is through one of our student Ambassadors, who enthusiastically describe how their personal CRTC experience has helped them to focus their interests and ambitions into a viable career pathway plan. These firsthand endorsements have proven to be a valuable recruitment tool that both encourages prospective students and persuades parents to take a closer look at what we have to offer. “I love talking to students about the CRTC,” said Elizabeth “Alex” Flanagan, a senior in the Cosmetology program. “It’s always such a good feeling to inspire others to follow their dreams, and that’s just exactly what you do as an ambassador.”  Every fall CRTC teachers nominate a handful of their best and brightest students to become CRTC student Ambassadors. These students, from each of our 11 Career Pathway programs, are trained to talk to prospective students and their parents a

  Meeting the COVID Challenge: CRTC Automotive Technology COVID-19 has changed our lives in ways unimaginable just 11 months ago. And as we navigate this new reality, the students, teachers and staff at the Concord Regional Technical Center have been stepping up and sorting out the changes and challenges of providing a hands-on, career-focused education in the midst of a hands-off educational environment. Automotive Technology teachers Scott Mayotte and Jesse Gregoire have had a mix of online and in-person students in their classrooms and shops much of this school year, and have been aggressively using technology to bridge the two. “Technology and flexibility are the keys,” said Mr. Mayotte, who has been teaching the Automotive Technology program for the past seven years. “Dealing with multiple sending schools, we can have part or all of our class logging in remotely at any time, so we have to be prepared to transition quickly from live to remote, or to do both simultaneously.” When th

  Meet Our Teachers:  Valerie Koch, Education & Behavioral Science CRTC programs are a blend of rigorous academics and applied learning that provide students with the opportunity to explore their interests, talents and career ambitions. The lynchpin in these programs is the unique character of the CRTC teacher, who typically has years of industry experience before making the transition to the classroom.  Learn a little more about our Education & Behavioral Science teacher, Val Koch, by reading this month’s CRTC Teacher Q & A . How long have you been a Career and Technical Education teacher? I have been teaching at the CRTC for 20 years. In fact, I am an alumni of the CRTC Education program! What industry experience did you bring into the classroom with you? I was a part-time preschool teacher during college, and a special education teacher for three years at MVHS before I began teaching for the CRTC almost twenty years ago.  What excites you about being a CTE teacher? One o