Voc-Tech looks ahead to new century

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WESTFIELD – This was quite a year for Westfield Vocational Technical High School (WVTHS).
In 2011, the school, formerly the Westfield Trade School, celebrated 100 years of vocational education. A gala celebration marked the anniversary where the first two alumnae were inducted into the new WVTHS Hall of Fame.
The honorees, David Brill and Raymond Salois, were both thrilled to be recognized as the very first inductees.
Brill, who graduated in 1966 from the school where he studied auto mechanics, said the school had a profound effect on him.
“We were trained in a hands-on fashion and spent one week in the shop and one week in classes,” Brill said. “In the classroom we had regular academics, but it was geared toward our shop, such as the science of automobiles.”
Brill said once he was in the workforce, he used the skills he learned in high school every day.
“As time went on, I realized what a difference this had in my life,” Brill said.
To pay back some of what he received from WVTHS, Brill joined the advisory committee in 1974 and was an integral part of the committee until 1988 when his business became busier.
He was part of the expansion of WVTHS to include the old Westfield High School.
Brill said WVTHS is a great place for students to learn a trade and gain skills to get them jobs right after high school.
“College isn’t for everyone,” he said. “Vocational training gives those kids the skills to go out into the job market, or even on to college if they choose.”
Brill’s advice to young people today is to find something they enjoy doing and make that their career.
“You spend most of your life working and if you like what you do, it makes life a lot easier,” he said.
Salois graduated in 1964 from the manufacturing program and through the school’s co-op program, landed a job at Westfield Tool and Die, which he would later own.
Over the years, Salois continued his ties to WVTHS and employed many graduates and trained numerous students through the co-op program. He served on the advisory committee when it received an award from the Department of Education and said there were several memorable projects over the years.
“A man came in one time looking for a rosary bead machine,” said Salois. “He had the plans to build the machine, but no one to do the project. So, we looked at it and the students made him two or three machines,” said Salois.
While WVTHS’s manufacturing program is arguably one of the best around, Salois said vocational schools overall are not able to give the same kind of education they did when he was a student.
“Vocational education is very important,” said Salois. “Everybody pushes college, but not everybody is cut out for college.”
Although WVTHS spent some time looking back this year, it is definitely preparing its students for the future.
One way the school is doing this is through the purchase of a robotic arm. While that may seem like science fiction to some, Department Chairperson Clement Fucci said the technology is being used today, right here.
“They use robots at Berkshire Industries and at B&E Tool in Southwick,” said Fucci.”In precision manufacturing, robots are a big part of the industry.”
Fucci said he wants to expose his students to the technology and will purchase a robotic training arm, using funds from a recent golf tournament, as well as other funding sources.
WVTHS is also setting the pace in its manufacturing program and received a visit from math majors from Westfield State University.  WSU students in Dr. Julian Fleron’s geometry class were intrigued by a demonstration of the manufacturing program’s new laser scanner and upgraded rapid prototype machine.
Manufacturing Technology Department Chairman Clement Fucci said the equipment was purchased through a life science grant.
“There were 34 schools that received the grant, including 17 vocational schools,” said Fucci. “Our grant proposal was very unique because we took it from the side of medical manufacturing. We proposed the laser scanner because I wanted to introduce the kids to medical manufacturing.”
The grant was for $84,000.
In addition to numerous vocational technical programs, WVTHS also offered an afterschool music program this past year, another collaborative effort with WSU.
Westfield State student Rachel Ryan works with 13 students in an afterschool program for two hours Monday through Thursday. Mondays and Tuesdays are devoted to singing, while Wednesdays and Thursdays are for band, or rock band, more specifically. Though Ryan works with 13 loyal band members and singers (or vocalists, as Ryan likes to call them), she said many students drop in for a lesson or two just for fun.
In 2011, WVTHS joined SkillsUSA and showed off its students and their kills at a regional conference this past fall. SkillsUSA is a national organization for students in career and technical education programs. Its mission is to help its members become world-class workers and responsible citizens.
WVTHS Principal James Laverty said he has been involved in Skills USA for more than a decade through previous positions. He said he wanted WVTHS students to have the opportunity to show off their skills and become part of SkillsUSA.
“The first step is establishing a viable chapter and these folks are the ambassadors,” Laverty said of the six students who attended a leadership conference Nov. 20-22 in Marlboro.
Sophomores Megan Ilnicky, manufacturing technology; Catherine Oleksak, graphic arts; and Anotonio Rivera, construction technology, along with juniors Justin Tomasini, electrical; Evelyn Beckett, culinary arts; and Ben Gillespie, computer networking, represented the school at the conference.
State-wide winners may receive scholarships and tools. Laverty said the gold medal winner in the state culinary competition receives a four-year scholarship to Johnson and Wales University. He and Gomes said the competition is a substitute for the MCAS.
“We train people to be craftsmen,” said Laverty. “SkillsUSA is the gold standard in the nation for career tech education.”
WVTHS proved it is a viable, thriving school in 2011 and 2012 looks just as promising for its students.