Tools of the Trade Spring 2010

CONTENTS

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Tools TradeA Publication of the Southern Westchester BOCES Center for Career Services

Spring 2010

of the

SWBOCES Classrooms theModel for 21st CenturyLearningWhen Dr. Clement Ceccarelli, supervi-sor of the Advanced Career and Techni-cal Education program at the SouthernWestchester BOCES Center for CareerServices, came on board in 2006, hetook on a momentous task: upgradingthe campus’s technology infrastructure.

Dr. Ceccarelli developed a planwhere teachers would not only teachtheir students how to use technology,

but use instructional technology tools such asSmart Boards, new software and computers toteach and prepare students for the technology-dri-ven global marketplace that awaits them.

“Our point of view, our philosophy,” he said, “isthat we are the Tech Center; we are the [center]hub for 33 districts, and we should be the modelfor all of our districts on technology. It is importantthat students who leave their home school to at-tend our Center have the same, if not improved,technology opportunities. We are always lookingto upgrade and stay current.”

Technology campaign

When Dr. Ceccarelli arrived at the campus, hesaid, teachers had a computer in the classroom,but no way to do something as simple as recordattendance information into a central student in-formation system. Attendance was recorded onpaper and sent to the main office, where a secre-tary would scan the information into a database.

That was the starting point for Director LindaSuarez and Dr. Ceccarelli to campaign for a21st century learning environment –— a place,he said, “where there is a seamless exchange ofideas and communication using state-of-the-arttechnology.”

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A Message from the DirectorDear Friends,

Spring represents new beginnings. As we embrace this specialtime of year, we need to take a minute to evaluate all of thenew “beginnings” that you will be anticipating as the schoolyear comes to a close.

Perhaps you will be graduating and preparing to go to a newschool in the fall. Maybe you will start a new profession that you have been preparingfor at the Career Services Center. Some of you will be returning to the Center in thefall, and are planning to participate in a job internship over the summer that relates toyour training. Whether you are working or going to school, taking the time to evaluateyour career goals and objectives is important.

This is the time to assess your career path as well as the skills and education needed tosuccessfully transition into the world of work and post-secondary education. Talk toyour parents, teachers and guidance counselors to get as much information as you canto help you make decisions about college opportunities, job and industry trends andthe financial support you will need to move forward with your career goals.

The technology boom is changing education and the workplace on a daily basis. Youwill need to acquire “transferable skills” to be considered globally competitive in thefuture. Learning about other nations, including their customs, cultures and languages,will enhance your ability to become a global citizen.

Your future is bright! Now is the time to develop a solid plan that will lead you tosuccess in your chosen career.

If I can be of assistance, please contact me at 914-761-3400.

Linda Maria SuarezDirector, Southern Westchester BOCES Center for Career Services

Going to College? Get Credit . . . . . . . . . . . . .3Earth Day Coverage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4-5Open House . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6Campus Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7Cookbook Funds Honor Society . . . . . . . . . . .9Cosmetology Students AttendInternational Beauty Show . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Tools Trade

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A Publication of the Southern Westchester BOCES Center for Career Servicesof the

Through the Lower Hudson Regional InformationCenter (LHRIC), the SWBOCES technology armthat provides administrative technology assistanceto school districts, Dr. Ceccarelli and Ms. Suarezpurchased an updated information system andnetworkedteachers’ com-puters to it sothey could sharestudent informa-tion and recordclassroom data,includingattendance,assignmentsand grades.

Dr. Ceccarellipushed on to up-grade serversand classroomcomputers, andpurchased MACcomputers forclassroomswhere art andfashion designcourses aretaught.

Then he went for the gold, coordinating with theLRIC to purchase and install SmartBoard interac-tive whiteboards for all classrooms.

Blackboards and chalk are relics of the past —by September 2010, every classroom on theCareer Services campus will be equipped with aSmart Board, which uses a projector connectedto a computer to produce an image of the com-puter screen on the Smart Board. By touching theSmart Board’s interactive screen or using apointer, the user can highlight text, drop anddrag items and access the Internet.

Students can even respond to quizzes or ques-tions in the classroom by texting answers to theSmart Board from either a remote device or theircell phones. The responses are known only to theteacher, so no one is embarrassed by giving thewrong answer in front of classmates. “Teacherscan determine who is getting it and who’s not,”Dr. Ceccarelli said, “and they can triage theones who are struggling.”

Immediate, interactive learning

The Smart Boards — the jewel in the campus’scrown — help make learning immediate, interac-tive and relevant to today’s students, whoare already “plugged in” to technology andquickly become bored with such outdated modesof instruction as textbooks, handouts and rotememorization.

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SWBOCES Classrooms the Model...

Auto students, for example, can click on links onthe Smart Board to see images of auto parts, orwatch an online demo of how to repair a carbu-retor on YouTube while they’re sitting at theirdesks. “You have the whole World Wide Webfrom which to pull,” Dr. Ceccarelli said.

Textbooks, for that matter, also will become relicson campus as, over the next three years, instruc-tional material is downloaded onto laptops givento each student to use in the classroom and even-tually at home. “Instead of giving them loose leafnotebooks, they’ll be getting computer note-books,” he said.

Dr. Ceccarelli also is researching, along withCulinary Arts teachers Peter (Chef T) Tomaskovicand Gerard Murphy, a computerized touch-screen system for the school’s two trainingkitchens that will automate food orders and keepcontrol of inventory. “The students will usethe system just like they do in a restaurant diningroom,” he said.

Dr. Ceccarrelli uses a Smart Board, a tool every Career Services classroom will haveby September 2010.

While the technology overhaul keeps SWBOCEScurrent and able to serve the districts, this is onlythe beginning of a cycle of change that will fullycatapult the campus into a 21st century learningenvironment.

Going green

The Center’s 10-year plan, revised every two tothree years because technology changes soswiftly, also includes a green campus initiative.In the fall, a green committee was formed to lookfor opportunities where green-oriented projectsand programs can be put in place on campus.Among the projects are:

• incorporating green-themed lessons inevery course;

• adding lessons on hybrid engines in autoprograms;

• training carpentry and electrical students insolar panel technology and green buildingconstruction;

• building wood boxes for classrooms forgarbage, paper and bottle recyclables;

• installing 30-gallon receptacles for plasticoil bottles left over from auto classes;

• publishing yearbooks online rather thanprinting them to save money and reducepaper use;

• initiating a program for recycling used cellphones; and

• growing an herb garden for use byCulinary Arts students.

Green-based projects naturally tie in with suchnewer technology as hybrid and electric enginesand green building construction — all of whichDr. Ceccarelli wants to expose SWBOCESstudents to through new lessons built into thecurriculum.

“Giving our trade students entry level skills andan awareness of the latest technologies informstheir decisions about post-secondary training incollege and gives students a step up in the jobmarket against anyone who has never attended aBOCES,” he said.

“Industry drives what’s on our campus, and wehave to always step up because of the world ourstudents are going to face out there in the future,”he said. “It’s about making kids understand thatit’s not about working harder, but smarter, andfinding faster, more efficient ways to accomplishtheir goals.”

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Wood birdhouses built by BOCES students for thefarm at the Pegasus Therapeutic Riding Center inBrewster, N.Y.

Going to College? Earn Credit for itSouthern Westchester BOCES students already planning ahead for collegeand further vocational training should keep in mind that the Center for Ca-reer Services has established articulation agreements with 14 state technicalinstitutes and colleges for every Career and Technical Education program.

Articulation agreements allow stu-dents to earn from 3 to 12 collegecredits while enrolled at the Center,

giving them a head start at the post-secondaryschool of their choice. “It’s all about helpingmove students from high school to college,”said Eileen Bloom, supervisor of AlternativePrograms.

Earn While You Learn

Mercy College, a private school withcampuses in Dobbs Ferry, White Plains, York-town Heights, the Bronx and Manhattan, hasgone a step farther with the High SchoolAchievement Program for students enrolled inCareer Services’ Multimedia, CommercialArt and TV Production programs.

Students who have chosen to earn abachelor’s degree at Mercy can earn collegecredit after the completion of one or two yearsof study in these programs. The credits canbe transferred without having to registerfor courses until students are ready to enrollat Mercy.

At the end of the senior year, Mercy will ac-cept a high school transcript indicating suc-cessful completion of one or two years inMultimedia, Commercial Art or TV Productionwith a grade of C or higher. Students also mustprovide a portfolio of class work samples.

Big Savings

Students also may receive credit for a courseon a Mercy College transcript that can betransferred to another institution by purchasingthe credit at greatly reduced tuition prices.

Currently, the charge to purchase a MercyCollege credit is $50 per credit, or $150 fora three-credit course. Mercy’s normal tuition is$672 per credit — more than $2,000 for asingle three-credit course.

Westchester Community College also offers acredit transfer or credit purchase option. Thecost to purchase credits is presently $50 per

credit. WCC’s regular tuition is $160 percredit, or $480 for a single three-creditcourse. There are credit agreements forFashion Design (3 credits), TV Production(3 credits), and Emergency Medical Services(5 credits).

The High School Achievement Programreduces the number of credits needed tocomplete a college degree and lowers tuitioncosts over the long-term. “It reduces the courseload in the first or subsequent semesters andtranslates into great financial savings,”Ms. Bloom said.

Other Ways to Earn Credit

In an academic partnership program withWCC, the Center for Career Services hasbegun offering college-level courses, includingComposition and Literature I, an introductorycourse required of incoming freshman(3 credits).

Next school year, Career Services will addCollege Success, an elective course designedto help students develop the essential skillsrequired for academic and personal success(3 credits). The school is also seekingapproval to offer Biological Science, anintroductory course in biology for students witha limited science background (4 credits).

WCC’s Advanced College ExperienceProgram (ACE) enables high school students toenroll in college-level classes and earn credit.

The ACE courses are an alternative toAdvanced Placement courses and help highschool students make a smoother transitionto college-level work.

For more information, contact Eileen Bloom,supervisor of Alternative Programs, at914-761-3400.

Students Treat NestingBirds to New HomesA few lucky woodland birds will besinging sweetly this spring when theymove into new homes constructed bystudents in the Basic Construction Tradeprogram at the SWBOCES Center forCareer Services.

Valhalla junior David Cloke and EricaWithus, a junior at Westlake HighSchool, built six pinewood birdhouses

for the farm at the Pegasus Therapeutic RidingCenter in Brewster, N.Y. The Center providesequine-assisted activities and therapies to childrenand adults with physical, cognitive and emotionaldisabilities.

Teacher Bob Wolgast searched online for bird-house plans for cardinals, blue jays and finches.“Each type of bird requires a different size holeand floor space,” Mr. Wolgast said.

The students adapted the plans to include remov-able roofs so the houses can be cleaned out. Thesturdy birdhouses should last for six to eightyears.

David and Erica built the houses in two days, aproject that allowed David to do what he lovesbest: “Work with my hands,” he said.

�

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Mother Nature, Students Put on aGood Show for Earth DayMother Nature turned out in all her finery for Earth Day, celebrated around theworld on April 22.

Complete with a bright blue, sun-filledsky and flowers and trees in fullbloom, the day couldn’t have been

better for students at the SWBOCES Center forCareer Services, who honored the planetwith an outdoor Earth Day Festival showcasingprojects they had worked on to demonstrateways humanity can keep the earth healthy forgenerations to come.

The festival was the culmination of a number ofgreen projects the campus has undertaken thisyear. English teacher and Green CurriculumCoordinator Rick Grizzuti planned the eventmonths in advance with teachers and studentsfrom every program. “It was a labor of love,”Mr. Grizzuti said. “Everyone jumped on board.The idea is for everyone to really connect withthe Earth and to help the kids understand theirrole in taking care of our planet.”

The first Earth Day was held in 1970 and wasdesigned to inspire awareness and appreciationfor the Earth's environment. It is now celebratedby 175 countries around the world. An EarthDay video was created by students in theSWBOCES TV and Video Production program,and shows the efforts on the entire campus,led by students and teachers, to protect theenvironment.

feel,” he said, passing around a container ofodorless compost for the students to smell.

Other projects were set up outdoors along thecampus lawn. Students in the Auto Trades pro-gram recycled used car tires, turning them intogarden planters. Other students were collectingused cell phones to send out for proper recycling.

And Fashion Design students recycled old bluejeans, turning them into new outfits (including ajean coat for a dog), that were modeled onmannequins. The highlight was a bridal gownfive students fashioned out of 10 pairs of jeans.“Everyone brought in jeans and made at leastone garment or accessory,” teacher CarmenGaliano said.

A Lifestyle of Health and Beauty

Encouraging a healthy lifestyle, EmergencyMedical Students took visitors’ blood pressure.At a nearby table, Culinary Arts students servedup a tasty low-cal treat of fruit salad, scrambledeggs on blue corn tortilla chips with salsa, and amix of mini jalapeno and cheese corn muffins.

Outside the Cosmetology classrooms, studentslined up for haircuts, hair extensions, eyebrowwaxing and manicures offered by students in theprogram. The hair clippings were donated toMatter of Trust, a San Francisco-based non-profitcharity that collects hair from salons across thecountry and turns them into hairmats that are used

How Does Your Garden Grow?

A new vegetable garden on the campus’s backlot, recently dug and planted by students, wasthe festival centerpiece. Here, fresh herbs werealready taking root, soon to be followed bytomatoes, squash, peppers, corn, green beans,spinach and lettuce. (See sidebar story).

Master Gardener Frank Lederman, from theCornell University Cooperative Extension Pro-gram, was on hand to teach students and visitorsabout composting — how to do it, why compostenriches soil, and how that’s good for the envi-ronment. “Every day is Earth Day; that’s how I

Master Gardener Frank Lederman passes around a container of homemade compost on Earth Day.

Auto Trades students turned old tires into planters. Fashion Design students recycled jeans into new out-fits, including a stylish dog’s jacket.

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Earth Day...

to soak up oil spills. Last year more than 2,600oil spills occurred in the world. Because hair is soabsorbent (it absorbs shampoo and conditioners),it easily soaks up oil.

The students also raised $130 from the haircuts,manicures and donations, which will be used by

Students Break Ground on SchoolVegetable GardenIn honor of Earth Day on April 22, students at the SWBOCES Center for Career Services brokeground for a campus vegetable garden on April 8. The Cornell University Cooperative ExtensionProgram, under the direction of Master Gardener Frank Lederman, partnered with the school toprovide garden design and construction input, guidance and curriculum ideas.Armed with shovels, the students dug up a 10-by-20 plot, located on the campus’s back lot.Among the crops to be planted are tomatoes, squash, peppers, corn, green beans, spinachand lettuce that will be used in the Culinary Arts program. Some vegetables also may be

donated to local food banks.Staff will tend the garden over the summer inanticipation of a harvest of lettuce and spinachin June, and beans, squash, tomatoes, peppersand corn in August and early September.Students involved in the project included ToninSyqu, Michael Portnoy, Brooks Goss, NicholasMiozzi McLean, Agique Anderson, JermaineHewan, David Cloke and Marquis Lloyd.The garden is one of the several green projectsthe school has undertaken this year. Englishteacher and Green Curriculum Coordinator RickGrizzuti, who organized the groundbreakingwith teacher aide Carol Zalenski and BasicConstruction Trade teacher Bob Wolgast, saidthat the garden “connects students with theplanet and to the importance of using the Earthwisely. Growing food connects students tothe cycle of life.”

Katie O’Neill, an EMS student, takes teacher DamianPowers’s blood pressure.

Matter of Trust to transport hair booms — tubesmade from recycled nylons, stuffed with hairand tied together to surround and contain aspill — to the Gulf Coast to help with the recentoil rig spill there. “This was a great communityservice project for our students,” Cosmetologyteacher Tina DiPrinzio said.

Green Revolution

General Motors and New York Power Authoritybrought the next generation of autos to campus ---an electric Mini Cooper and the GM Fuel CellEquinox, which is still in the research and devel-opment phase. The Equinox runs off hydrogenand will need no liquids other than coolant andbreakline fluid when it goes into production, likelysometime in the next five to10 years, the GMrepresentative said. “It will have 90 percent lessmoving parts” than current vehicles, he noted.

Students in the Computer, Electronics, Roboticsand Networking (CERN) Technology programshowed visitors how a wind turbine they madeusing a turbine, magnets and coil, generateselectricity, in this case “just enough to operate abattery,” said junior Jalen Santos.

And Evan Yavne from Solar Alchemy, a KiameshaLake, N.Y.-based company specializing in

renewable energy systems for residential,commercial and industrial buildings, spoke toElectrical Construction students about the needfor clean energy, helping them to understand thenature of renewable energy and encouragingthem to consider training in the field. “You’re atthe opening of the door to the Green Revolution,”he told students. “The planet is overwhelmedand…we are at a scary moment right now with

how we…have to make achange.”

Learn More

For more information aboutEarth Day 2010, the coreissues facing the planet today,and how you can help, visit:http://www.earthday.org.Visit Matter of Trust at:http://www.matteroftrust.org

(Right) Students turned in old cellphones to recycle at a table

manned by teacher Tom Burgess.

Students break ground on the campus vegetablegarden.

CERNstudentJalen Santosstands nextto a windturbinemade inclass.

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Career Services Open House a Showcase forVocational Programs, Student TalentFor high school students beginning to explore career paths, Open House night atthe SWBOCES Center for Career Services on March 25 gave them some excitingoptions to consider.

Prospectivestudentsand their

parents stopped in tocheck out the schooland its career pro-grams, talk with teach-ers and staff, and seethe work of current stu-dents, who also cameout for the event withtheir families. “Parentscan walk around andsee what their kidshave been doing, andparents of future students can learn all about us,”said Colleen Murray, Introduction to CareerTrades supervisor.

Ms. Murray and staff welcomed parents and stu-dents unfamiliar with the campus in a conferenceroom set up with information tables and studentwork from each program. They also could take alook at the three-hour online assessment test stu-dents take to help identify career interests. “It’svery in-depth,” Ms. Murray said.

A Star-studded Turnout

Even Lady Gaga attended the Open House,along with fellow pop star Avril Lavigne and

celebs Anne Hathaway and Penelope Cruz.

Just kidding. The stars weren’t really there, buttheir lookalikes were. Cosmetology studentsshowed off their skills by giving classmates amakeover so they looked (almost) like the famouswomen. After sitting in the make-up chair formore than an hour, the ladies were ready to posefor visitors and their parents, who snappedphotos on their phone cameras.

The stylists used “hair design and correctivemake-up techniquesto transform the stu-dents,” said Cosme-tology teacher TinaDiPrinzio. Learnedand practiced in theclassroom, the tech-niques help studentsto understand facialbone structure and tomake hairstyles andmake-up enhance dif-ferent face types – allnecessary training forprint and magazinephotography styling.

Participating studentswere: Krista

Fiumafreddo (as Avril Lavigne), stylist YemaOtto-During, make-up by Kalena Alvarez; AlyssaPeccarella (Anne Hathaway), stylist JessicaNewton, make-up by Chelsie Preston; NicoleOgden (Lady Gaga), stylist, Jessica Maldonado,make-up by Emily Billington; and Marina Men-doza (Penelope Cruz), stylist Maria Santillin,make-up by Evelyn Vargas.

One flight down, in Cosmetology teacherYolanda Lopez’s classroom, the late Mexican-American singer Selena came briefly back to life.Student Sandra Martinez, styled by classmateViridina Abarca and outfitted in a bluejean jump-suit reminiscent of those the singer wore, posedlike a pro in front of the lens.

To recreate Selena, Viridina pony-tailed Sandra’slong black hair, then roller set and gelled it into acurled bun on the top of Sandra’s head and lether sit under a dryer for a couple of hours. Virid-ina also did Sandra’s make-up, rimming her eyeswith black eyeliner and brushing on red lipstickjust like Selena did. “Selena sings the music weboth like,” Sandra said of the girls’ choice ofcelebrity.

Cosmetology students made up as singer Avril Lavigne, actress Anne Hathaway, popstar Lady Gaga and actress Penelope Cruz.

Culinary Atrs teacher Peter (Chef T) Tomaskovic showsa visiting student how to use an icing bag.

Continued on page 7

Employable Skills

In the Building Maintenance and Renovationclassroom, a lumber motorcycle shed built bystudents took center stage. The students installedwindows and interior lights in the shed, skillstaught by instructor Richard Thomas and teaching

Sandra Martinez, left, as the late Mexican-Americansinger Selena, with her sylist Viridina Abarca.

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Career Services Open House...

assistant Skyler Kranz, a former Manhattanbuilding project manager.

“The students in the program get familiar withtools, and learn how to identify and use themproperly,” Mr. Kranz explained to a parent.“The kids come out of school with a skill that’semployable.”

In the Culinary Arts teaching kitchen, instructorPeter (Chef T) Tomaskovic demonstrated toprospective students how to add icing to minicupcakes using an icing bag. Port Chester

A motorcycle shed built by Building Maintenance andRenovation students was on display.

sophomore Alex Enright, who was visiting theCenter with his parents, said he was hoping to

follow in the footsteps of family memberswho work in the food trade. “My dad usedto work in a deli, and my uncle is in thefood business,” Alex said. “I would like tobe a chef and maybe a restaurant owner.”

Planning Ahead

Eighth-grader Cassandra Batten and hermother attended the Open House to seesister Ambrosia Batten, who is enrolled inthe Cosmetology program, at work in herclassroom. But Cassandra also made abeeline for teacher Damian Powers’s Com-mercial Arts classroom to find out about theprogram. Cassandra, her mom said, has atalent for drawing and is interested in art.

The two-year Commercial Arts programseemed the right fit for Cassandra, who still has acouple of years to go before she can enroll. Theprogram includes instruction in figure drawing,illustration, animation, advertising, marketing, arthistory and portfolio development, as well ascomputer software instruction in Photoshop,Illustrator, Flash and Quark Express.

Mr. Powers pointed out the program’s two othergreat benefits — students can earn up to sixtransferrable college credits and learn how tobuild a print and electronic portfolio. “Theavenues students have now to [show] their workout there are rapidly expanding,” he said.

Eighth-grader Cassandra Batten stopped by the Commercial Arts classroom to learn about the program fromteacher Damian Powers.

Campus Notes

Westlake Middle SchoolStudents Visit SWBOCES Centerfor Career Services

Ninety-two sixth-grade boys from Thorn-wood's Westlake Middle School got theVIP treatment from staff and students at theSWBOCES Center for Career Services whenthey spent a morning on campus recentlylearning about the many career programsthe Center offers.

Each boy had chosen two programs of inter-est to visit and, after getting an overviewfrom instructors, the fun began.

The boys got to work one-on-one with thehigh school students, who taught them how tomake pizza in the Culinary Arts kitchen, tobend pipe and wire a light bulb in the Electri-cal Construction training room, to tightenbolts on a car wheel in the auto shop, and totake fingerprints in Protective Services. Theboys also visited the TV/Video Production stu-dio, the Carpentry shop, and the Multimediaand Emergency Medical Services classes.

One young visitor said that the trip was “re-ally fun” because he and his fellow studentsgot to interact with older students “to figureout what we want to do when we grow up.”

Visits to schools like the Center for Career

A Westlake Middle School student learns howto roll pizza dough.

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Campus NotesServices allow youngsters in grades six toeight to gently explore various career pathsand have hands-on experiences that piquetheir interest.

"By the tenth grade, a lot of our students aremaking a decision about what they'll do for acareer," said Westlake guidance counselor BillKeogh, who accompanied the boys on the tripwith fellow Westlake guidance counselorKathy Ilardi. "BOCES has been so good aboutworking with us and allowing our students tocome here and learn about their options."

The visit, the second for Westlake MiddleSchool, was arranged by Center for CareerServices guidance counselor Martin Sommer.

“Our sixth-grade students had such an amaz-ing time learning about different career areas,”said Ms. Ilardi. “They loved the hands-on expe-riences in all of the classes.”

New York Power Authority VisitsCareer Services Center

Kerry-Jane King, a senior electric transportationspecialist with New York Power Authority,shared some intriguing news with students inthe auto and electrical construction programsat the SWBOCES Center for Career Services:hybrid-electric vehicles (HEV) and electricvehicles (EV) will be the norm on the road bythe year 2020.

The students got a close look at the electricand hybrid-electric engines of two cars Ms.King and her colleagues had brought withthem on a March 23 visit to the campus -—an electric Mini Cooper and a prototypehybrid-electric Ford Escape.

EVs operate on electric batteries, which last for acertain time and mile range and are recharged ina matter of hours using household electricity. HEVengines use both electricity and gasoline. Amongthe benefits EVs and HEVs offer is less tailpipeemission (none with EVs), cheaper maintenance,quieter engines and a reduction in dependenceon foreign oil.

Also speaking was Sobeida Cruz, NYPA’sdirector of public and government affairs for theLower Hudson Valley area, who told the studentsabout NYPA’s work as the nation's largeststate-owned electric utility and supplier of cleanelectricity. She noted the company’s exceptionalemployment opportunities and invited thestudents to apply for an internship

NYPA is a frontrunner in the clean mass trans-portation movement, and has been instrumentalin introducing the clean-fueled EVs and HEVs tothe New York City transit system. The companyhas also initiated a multi-million dollar citywideschool bus emission reduction program; pur-chased electric postal trucks to replace the dieselversion for use in New York City; and developednumerous hybrid pilot programs for large fleetvehicles, from heavy-duty utility trucks and shuttlebuses to electric trams and forklifts.

Visit www.nypa.gov for more information.

N.Y., on March 12, to attend the 10th annualHudson Valley Construction Career Day.

The daylong event, attended by high schoolstudents from Rockland, Westchester, Orangeand Putnam counties, exposed students to thetrades they’ve been training for, got them facetime with private employers and local unionrepresentatives, and gave them an opportunityto work side-by-side with the pros in mini les-sons on everything from pipe bending andwelding to painting and plumbing.

The students also participated in hands-ondemos in bricklaying and masonry, heavyequipment operation, carpentry, ironworking,

electricalwork andother con-struction-tradeactivities.

Junior JohnTilson, a first-year electri-cal student,was inspired

by what he saw and learned. “What peopledo out in the field, I can do, too,” he said.

John plans to start his career after BOCESby attending trade school and doing athree-year apprenticeship in the field. “Butmy real dream,” he said, “is to own my ownbusiness. Being here, I feel like I’m closer nowto doing it.”

Speakers Sobeida Cruz and Kerry Jane-King fromNew York Power Authority.

BOCES Students Attend AnnualConstruction Career Day

SWBOCES carpentry, electrical and buildingmaintenance students left their tools behind in theclassroom, boarded a school bus and traveled toRockland County Community College in Suffern, Continued on page 9

Capentry students, l-r: Kevin Jaramillo, VinnieDirenno, Edwin Matailo, Pat Pierson, Alex Grieco,Pasquale Lupo.

SWBOCES electrical student John Tilson gets alesson in operating heavy equipment.

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Campus NotesStudents Get Live AnatomyLessons from St. Louis UniversitySchool of Medicine

Students in the Career Services EMSprogram and those studying forensics intheir BOCES science class participated inthe St. Louis University School of Medicine’sAdventures In Medicine and Science(AIMS) program in April. AIMS is a compo-nent of Practical Anatomy and SurgicalEducation at the School of Medicine’s Cen-ter for Anatomic Science and Education.

The program provides anatomy, health andscience education outreach to students ingrade school through high school. In avideoconference with a physician from themedical school, BOCES students got a liveanatomy lesson that included a look at theinterior of the heart, the pulmonary systemand other organs.

Summer Camp Experience forMiddle School StudentsThe SWBOCES Center for Career Serv-ices is offering middle school students a“Summer Camp Experience” in July.Each three-hour morning camp sessionwill run Monday through Friday at a rateof $225 per week.Students can choose from several differentCareer and Technical Education optionsto experience.Registration ends June 4.To register your child, contact Dr.ColleenMurray at 914-761-3400, ext. 222.

Students participate in a videoconference with aphysician from the St. Louis University School ofMedicine.

BAKED COCONUT SHRIMPMake Apricot Sauce (right)¼ cup all-purpose flour2 tablespoons packed brown sugar¼ teaspoon salt

dash of ground red pepper (cayenne)1 large egg1 tablespoon lime juice1 cup shredded coconut1 pound uncooked peeled de-veined medium

shrimp, thawed if frozen (about 40)2 tablespoons butter or stick margarine, melted

Heat oven to 425°.Spray rack in broiler pan with cooking spray.Mix flour, brown sugar, salt and red pepper

in shallow bowl.Beat egg and lime juice in another shallow bowl.Place coconut in third shallow bowl.Coat each shrimp with flour mixture.Dip each side into egg mixture.Coat well with coconut.Place on rack in broiler pan.Drizzle with butter.Bake 7 to 8 minutes or until shrimp are pink and

firm and coating is beginning to brown.Serve with sauce.

Amy Michaud-Wells

Cookbook Sales toFund Honor SocietyGot a big meal to plan anddon’t know where to start?Help is just a recipe awayin the pages of the “Centerfor Career Services HonorSociety CollaborativeCookbook.”

The cookbook, com-piled with contributionsfrom the staff of the

Southern Westchester BOCESCenter for Career Services, is a fundraiserfor the Center’s chapter of the National Technical Honor Society.

The funds raised by the sale are earmarked for student graduation stoles and theinduction ceremony, said English teacher Amy Michaud-Wells, who collaborated on the cookbookwith teacher aide Maria Jones-Mulligan.

The cookbook sells for $10 and features 200 recipes covering appetizers, beverages, entrees anddesserts. Among the fan favorites are recipes for coconut shrimp with apricot sauce, and Cornishbread stuffing, “always a big hit at Thanksgiving,” said Ms. Jones-Mulligan.

To order, contact Amy Michaud-Wells at 914.761.3400 ext. 357, or bye-mail: [email protected]

APRICOT SAUCE3/4 cup apricot preserves1 tablespoon lime juice1/2 teaspoon ground mustard

Mix all ingredients in 1-quart saucepan.Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, just untilpreserves are melted. Refrigerate whilemaking shrimp.

Amy Michaud-Wells

CORNISH BREAD12 oz. creamed corn12 oz. nibblets corn8 oz. sour cream1 stick butter8 oz. box Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix

Blend together cream and nibblets corn.Cut up butter into mix.Add sour cream and blend together with

wooden spoon.Add contents of muffin package and mix.Fold into a 9x9 baking pan.Bake at 350º for 45 minutes or until golden brown.

Maria Jones-Mulligan

Check out these flavorful recipes:

Teacher Amy Michaud-Wells and teacher aide Maria Jones-Mulligan

hold up copies of the “Center for Career Services Honor SocietyCollaborative Cookbook.”

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10


Looking Good: Cosmetology Students Pick Up StyleTricks at International Beauty ShowTalk about a day of beauty.

Ninety-five excited Southern Westch-ester BOCES cosmetology students,armed with wallets full of cash, got a

taste of the glamorous life on March 9 when theyhit the road for Manhattan to attend the 2010International Beauty Show (IBS).

The annual show, held March 6-9 at the JacobJavits Convention Center, is the top trade showfor beauty industry professionals and beautyschool students. Professionals from around theworld attend the IBS each spring to learn aboutthe latest trends in the industry and to stock up onhair and skin care products, hair styling tools,make-up, nail polish, and spa and salon equip-ment from the industry’s leading manufacturers.

More than 53,000 professionals and studentsattended the packed show, stopping in at 500exhibitor booths to buy products at a discount,get lessons from make-up artists, and sit in onclasses to help them enhance their skills andgrow their business.

The students got a double dose of beauty extrav-agance at the International Esthetics, Cosmeticsand Spa Conference, which was co-located atthe Javits Center with the IBS. Experts in thefield of dermatology offered free seminars onspa treatments and massage techniques, and ex-hibitors sold skin care products, spa equipment,spa robes and slippers, jewelry and more at aspecial show price.

Great Exposure for Students

The highlight of the day was having anopportunity to watch platform and celebrity

stylists Nick Arrojo, Robert Cromeans, VivienneMackinder, Martin Parsons and others clip,shape and transform hair models at standing-room-only demonstrations.

“This show is great ex-posure for our students,”said SWBOCES cosme-tology teacher TinaDiPrinzio. “They get tosee amazing platformartists at work. Theylearn so much just byobserving.”

This was the twenty-second IBS Ms.DiPrinzio has attended,not counting those shewent to as a cosmetol-ogy student and later asa professional hairstylist.She was accompaniedby fellow cosmetologyteachers Yolanda Lopez

and Marion Pizzutiello, with whom she plansthe annual field trip, and SWBOCES scienceteacher Jean Vitarius.

Because working hairstylists usually must havetheir own equipment when they start out, thecosmetology teachers encouraged their studentsto purchase the best hairdryers, curling irons,flatirons and scissors money can buy — all at10 to 15 percent off retail prices, and sometimesmore with a little haggling.

For the future make-up artists, there were tablesloaded with eye shadows, blushes, powder,lipsticks, face serums and bags of lip pencils andeye pencils selling for just $5 each. Expensivemake-up brushes went for a fraction of the pricecustomers pay at the counter.

Shop ‘Til You Drop

The girls didn’t disappoint. They left the showwith bags stuffed with top-of-the-line hairstylingtools, hairbrushes, curlers, make-up and make-upbrushes, and hair care products like the popular(but expensive) Moroccan Oil, selling like

Student SandraMartinez getsstyled by a pro atthe InternationalBeauty Show.

Continued on page 11

Melissa DeSofie, foreground, checks outthe make-up selections.

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11



LookingGood: Cosmetology Students...

hotcakes at deeply discounted prices.

On the bus ride home, the girls showed off theirprize purchases. Senior Shatika Mitchell pickedup a brush and some Modern Basic make-up forherself and got free packets of the high-end AlterEGO Hasty shampoo and smoothing balm. Shealso got to witness a bikini wax in progress. “I’venever seen anything like it,” she said with a laughabout both the trade show and the bikini wax.

Senior Subreen Wazwaz and her mom NabilaAlbarghouthy, who was along on the trip as achaperone, brought home a treasure trove ofbeauty goods: a flatiron, curling iron, hairdryerand Moroccan Oil for Subreen’s curly hair, and aspa robe and slippers, body butter, eyeliners,

Mother anddaughter NabilaAlbarghouthyand SubreenWazwaz showoff their beautyshow bargains.

After a day of beauty, cosmetology students get readyto board the buses for home.

hairstyling books and hair products for Ms.Albarghouthy. “The show was great,” saidSubreen. “They had products for every type ofhair — curly, straight, thick or thin.”

Classmate Joanne Leone got lucky with aprofessional 20-piece make-upbrush set she boughtfor the bargainprice of $50.A good set of

professional brushes, she knows, can cost $200or more retail. She also bought herself a t-shirtthat says it all about her future: “Rock Star Stylist.”

Rock star stylists in training: Shatika Mitchell andJoanna Leone.

SWBOCES Center for Career Services65 Grasslands RoadValhalla, NY 10595914-761-3400

Linda Maria Suarez, Director

Dr. Clement Ceccarelli, Supervisor, AdvancedCareer and Technical Education

Dr. Colleen Murray, Supervisor, Introduction toCareer Trades

Eileen Bloom, Supervisor, Alternative Education

Suzanne Davis, Newsletter Editor

Southern Westchester BOCES17 Berkley Drive

Rye Brook, NY 10573914-937-3820

www.swboces.org

Board of EducationPresident, Georgia RiedelVice President, Joseph WooleyJohn DeSantisNancy FisherRichard GlicksteinBeverly A. LevineJames MillerRobert Monson, Ph.D., District SuperintendentSandra A. Simpson, Deputy District Superintendent

Assistant SuperintendentsNancy A. Jorgensen, Ed.D., Human ResourcesStephen J. Tibbetts, Business and

Administrative Services

The Southern Westchester Board of Cooperative EducationalServices, its officers and employees, shall not discriminateagainst any student, employee or applicant on the basis ofrace, color, national origin, creed, religion, marital status,gender, age, handicapping condition or sexual orientation.This policy of nondiscrimination includes access by studentsto educational programs, counseling services for students,course offerings and student activities, recruitment, appoint-ment and promotion of employees, and employment pay andbenefits, and it is required by Title IX of the Education Amend-ments of 1972 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of1973, as amended and then promulgated thereunder, notto discriminate in such a manner.SWBOCES IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

Title IX CoordinatorMichael Gargiulo, Director of Human Resources

Section 504 CoordinatorThomas DiBuono, Director of Facilities and Operations

“The Mission of Southern Westchester BOCES is tocollaborate with school districts and communities tomeet their educational challenges by providing regionalleadership and cost-effective, high-quality services.”

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Students Compete at 2010 Skills USA CompetitionThey went, they competed, they won!

SWBOCES students took third place at the annualstatewide Skills USA competition, held in Syracuse,N.Y., April 14-16.

The students won in the Chapter Display contest, whichinterpreted this year’s Skills USA theme “Connecting theOpportunities.”

Nineteen students from seven different Career Services programscontributed to the display from inception to construction. Thedisplay conveyed the ways in which we connect with theworld around us and depicted how communication hasprogressed in this generation.

Six Carpentry students built a 4-by-6 base for the display, whichfeatured a 6-foot pencil (representing an early tool for recordingaccomplishments and expressing ideas) carved by students froma solid beam of wood. A pair of plastic hands, palm up, sup-ported a laptop computer that operated a robot assembled bystudents in the Computer Network Technology Program with helpfrom an Electrical Construction student. The display also featuredan iPhone to convey the new ways people communicate todayand to represent, with the robot, the future of technology.

The arms supporting the laptop were outfitted with sleeves designed by Fashion Design students andthe hands sported nail art by Cosmetology students in the Skills USA colors of red, white, blue andgold designed in the shape of a torch and orbital circles representing knowledge and technology.Office Skills and Commercial Art students collaborated on the design of a book documenting theproject’s construction. The display took 45 hours to build and was presented to the judges byCarpentry student Brandon Care.

Teachers Amy Michaud-Wells and Frank Mascetta were the lead advisors on this year’s competition,with support from Cosmetology teacher Tina DiPrinzio and Carpentry teacher Richard DiStefano,who led the project’s construction.

Students competing for their respective programs were: Arielle Young, Collision Repair; Chuck Gat-ley, Basic Vehicle Maintenance; Ismael Magallon, Automotive Technology; Leo Oliveira, Carpentry;Paola Carbone, Commercial Art; Nicole Odau, Cosmetology; Miriam Gonzalez, Cosmetology;Amy Cam, Cosmetology; Taylor Febus, Cosmetology; Kelci Kulik, Culinary Arts; Chris Macchi,Culinary Arts; M. Lazaro Domin, Culinary Arts; Nick Estatico, Electrical Construction; MiguelGarcia, Criminal Justice; Omar Oviedo, EMS; Victor Perez, Ornamental Horticulture; Alan Jones,Automotive Technology; Aaron Spencer, Multimedia; Brandon Care, Carpentry.

The SkillsUSA team traveled to Syracuse in mid-April for the annual competition.

The SWBOCES Center for CareerServices team won third place in theSkillsUSA Chapter Display competitionwith their interpretation of the 2010theme “Connecting the Opportunities.”

Tools of the Trade Spring 2010

Documents

Transcript of Tools of the Trade Spring 2010