L to R – Dr. Lee Burket – Director, Pennsylvania Department of Education, Career & Technical Education; Tom Wolfe – LCCTC Brownstown Campus Principal, Sam Betancourt – LCCTC Painting/Ceramic Tile & Vinyl Instructor, and Matt Stem – PA Deputy Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education.
BROWNSTOWN, PA – Lancaster County Career & Technology Center’s (LCCTC) Brownstown Campus was honored on February 13, 2020, as one of eight PA Career and Technical Education (CTE) schools to receive the 2019 Career and Technical Education Excellence Award from the PA Department of Education. The award was presented last evening during the CTE Celebration dinner that is part of the Pathways to Career Readiness Symposium held at the Hershey Lodge and Convention center.
Schools receiving this honor met a particularly demanding challenge during standardized, end-of-program technical assessments. Seventy-five percent or more of all the students in these schools scored Advanced during their assessments. LCCTC’s standardized assessments are the NOCTI tests, held in March. NOCTI tests are high-quality technical competency assessment products and services for secondary and post-secondary educational institutions around the world. Strong NOCTI scores on the individual level proves that a student demonstrates verifiable mastery of a given skill set, a reliable indicator of employment readiness. Strong NOCTI scores on the institution level shows that a career and technology center is producing students with the skills and knowledge needed to be “job ready”.
Administrative Director, Dr. Stuart Savin, praised the faculty for their dedication to their students and their programs and praised the students for their drive toward mastery of their skill sets.
“Our students and faculty deserve every accolade we can offer,” he said. “This recognition is a testament not only to their determination. It is also praise for the parents and sending school districts to raise up such remarkable young people.”
James Brunken, Principal of the LCCTC Willow Street Campus, was Brownstown Campus’ principal during assessments in 2019. He said that the success that the students achieved was a team effort made possible by the dedication of an exceptional LCCTC instructional staff, IU13 support staff, and our business and industry partners. “We also recognize the hard work of the students, their families, and their sending districts, because without them this would not be made possible,” Brunken said.
Brownstown faculty members were unanimous in placing the campus’ testing success firmly at the feet of the students. Interactive Media and Web Design Instructor, Jamie Redcay, said that his program was new so 2019 was the first time it undertook assessment testing.
“What struck me was that the students really reach beyond the specific skills tested in NOCTI. They have a drive to develop a mastery of those fundamental skills and use them as a springboard to more advanced techniques,” Redcay said.
Commercial Art Instructor Christiaan Baird said, “The wonderful thing about the NOCTI exam is not just the value it might have on a resume, but it’s also a record of proof in the leap of student skills from the beginning of their programs to the end. They don’t just learn about their field, they show that they can do the job before they leave.”
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