New Jersey county vocational-technical schools have set a record with 337 students from the Class of 2025 earning an associate degree while in high school.
That number is up 86 students from last year, reflecting the growing opportunities provided by the state’s county-based schools to give students a meaningful head start in their college and career journeys, according to Jackie Burke, executive director of the NJ Council of County Vocational-Technical Schools (NJCCVT).
“At a time when the traditional progression from high school to college to career is being examined, we are proud to showcase our county vocational-technical school model that enables students across New Jersey to customize their learning,” Burke said. “Our model is largely successful because of the partnerships schools have formed both locally and statewide to expand opportunities for students.”
Each of the state’s 21 county vocational-technical school districts has articulation agreements with their county college, and other two and four-year colleges and universities, that enable students to earn credit for college-level work as part of their high school career and technical education program.
“We are able to make college more accessible and affordable for students,” said Dr. James Pedersen, superintendent of Essex County Schools of Technology and president of the NJCCVTS.
“Students get to sample college-level courses with the support of our staff and work toward an associate degree – the equivalent of two full years of college,” Pedersen said. “They can earn these credits at a significantly reduced cost or even no cost in some districts and programs.”
At some county vocational-technical schools, students work with counselors to customize their own plan for earning an associate degree. Sussex County Technical School engineering student Owen Demeter worked closely with his counselor, Bina Varkey, to satisfy the requirements of his engineering program and earn an associate degree this year from Sussex County Community College.
“The head start I had by taking concurrent classes at my technical school was the biggest boost,” said Demeter. “I wouldn’t have been able to achieve this if I wasn’t getting as many credits from my high school classes.”
Varkey said Demeter used those credits as motivation to keep working toward the associate degree, even if it took some creative scheduling.
“He saw an opportunity and ran with it,” Varkey said. “It meant a lot to him to accomplish this, and he took pride in being able to relieve some of the burden of paying for college.”
Eric Mora Jimenez, who received an associate degree from Camden County College prior to graduating high school from Camden County Technical Schools (CCTS), said CCTS subsidized the cost of his degree completely and he was grateful for the support he received from CCTS staff who helped plan his college classes.
Jimenez said his family’s pride in his accomplishment is just as important and rewarding to him as earning his two degrees. In the fall, he will attend the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) on a full scholarship.
A music instrumental student at CCTS, Jimenez also has a passion for science and plans to study physics. His dream is to earn a doctorate and work for NASA before returning to the Dominican Republic to teach.
The 337 students graduating from a county vocational-technical school this month with an associate degree include:
- 89 from Bergen County Technical School District
- 73 from Cumberland County Technical Education Center
- 46 from Ocean County Vocational Technical School
- 22 from Camden County Technical Schools
- 22 from Essex County Schools of Technology
- 21 from Somerset County Vocational and Technical Schools
- 19 from Hudson County Schools of Technology
- 16 from Middlesex County Magnet Schools;
- 13 from Salem County Vocational Technical School District
- 9 from Gloucester County Institute of Technology
- 4 from Morris County Vocational School District
- 2 from Mercer County Technical Schools
- 1 from Sussex County Technical School
Photo caption: Eric Mora Jimenez celebrates earning two degrees – his associate degree from Camden County College and his high school diploma from Camden County Technical Schools (CCTS). Jimenez will attend the Massachusetts Institute of Technology this fall on a full scholarship. – Image courtesy of NJCCVT.
