Worcester Business Journal

14 Worcester Business Journal | August 16, 2021 | wbjournal.com WBJ WEBCAST SERIES WBJ WEBCAST FORUMS WBJ WEBCAST FORUMS WBJ WEBCAST FORUMS WBJ WEBCAST SERIES A WBJ WEBCAST SERIES A roughout the crisis, Central MA nonprofits collaborated and rapidly innovated to keep their operations and, most importantly, their missions on track. eir creativity and resourcefulness and their ability to look beyond how they've always done things and embrace new ways of working and serving their clients has been astounding. is virtual event will feature a conversation with area nonprofit leaders discussing how they will continue to innovate and progress further than they already have not only in the ongoing waves of the pandemic, but also beyond it. Register at www.wbjournal.com/nonprofit Tuesday, August 24, 2021 11:30AM - 12:30PM COVID AND BEYOND: COVID AND BEYOND: Nonprofit Innovation Session Sponsors MODERATOR: Samantha McDonald Partner, Bowditch & Dewey WEBCAST PANELISTS: Stephen Kerrigan President & CEO, Edward M. Kennedy Community Health Center Grace Elton CEO, Tower Hill Botanic Garden Deborah Hall Executive Director, YWCA Central Massachusetts Ron Waddell Executive Director and Co Founder, Legendary Legacies From From College Graduate College Graduate to to Chief Financial Officer Chief Financial Officer Congratulations! Alyssa Glennon Alyssa Glennon 40 Under Forty, Class of 2021 40 Under Forty, Class of 2021 This recognition is well-deserved. This recognition is well-deserved. Your RCAP Solutions family could not be prouder of your achievements Your RCAP Solutions family could not be prouder of your achievements as you join the ranks of our growing number of award recipients! as you join the ranks of our growing number of award recipients! 800.488.1969 • www.rcapsolutions.org 800.488.1969 • www.rcapsolutions.org strong and interested in taking their vo- cational training on to college shouldn't be barred admission for doing so. Workforce development "It's frustrating and I think it finally came to the point where something's gotta be done," said Jeannie Hebert, Blackstone Valley Chamber of Com- merce president and CEO and the force behind the Northbridge-based Black- stone Valley Educational Hub. "ey've become elite schools, and that was not what was meant to be." Hebert said vocational schools have fallen from their original intent. Such programs were meant to teach students who weren't academ- ically stellar but who were inter- ested in learning trades, including those students who have learning disabilities and other special needs. Indeed, economically disadvantaged students and students with disabilities attend vocational schools at slightly higher rates than they do statewide, per February's report. However, in 2020, students of color attended vocation- al schools at a rate of 39% compared to 43% of schools statewide. English language learners attended vocational schools at a rate of 6%, compared to 10% across the commonwealth. e same BESE presentation indicated both students of color and English language learners apply to vocational schools at lower rates than their counterparts, with fewer acceptances and enrollment. College rates While vocational-technical schools have in some cases become magnet institutions, their occasional penchant for academic excellence has made them vulnerable to criticism their priorities are in the wrong place. e tension creates a double-edged sword: no one wants students at vo- cational institutions to fail, per se, but some argue excellent academic track records miss the point. At Blackstone Valley Regional Tech- nical High School, the only vocational school in Central Mass. sending students to college at a rate higher than statewide figures, the student body graduates at rates as high as 100%, with the lowest graduation rate recently recorded com- ing in at 98.4%, according to the school's 2020 District Report Card, maintained by DESE. Statewide the same year, grad- uation rates were 88%. At the same time, 78.7% of its 2019 graduates enrolled in post-secondary education programs, compared to 72% of students statewide, with 73.8% of Continued from Page 13 Jeannie Hebert, president & CEO, Blackstone Valley chamber

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