The P-TECH program’s goal is to build technical, academic and professional skills through collaborative experiences that emphasize authentic problem-solving from the field of Advanced Manufacturing. Industry Partners collaborate with P-TECH staff to build projects that provide opportunities for students to showcase their talent in a meaningful and supportive environment. As an Industry Sponsor of a workplace challenge, our partners get the opportunity to work directly with future talent graduating from the program and entering the workforce.

A student’s personal growth in the classroom is balanced by a strong relationship with professionals from the field. The P-TECH mentorship program connects students with a professional from the field, through individual and group meetings held in-person or online throughout the school year. Topics range from leadership, professionalism and career growth. The sessions are designed to build a strong relationship between mentor and mentee, as they progress from high school to college and on to their career.

All Industry Partners are invited to join the P-TECH Governance Team, which oversees the program and provides direct support of Industry pathways for students within Oswego County. The Governance Team meets virtually, on the first Wednesday of the month and includes representatives from local school districts, Onondaga Community College and local manufacturing companies.

Eligible students in 11^th grade are provided the opportunity to participate in an observation-based job shadowing experience that places students into manufacturing facilities in the county. Each experience is unique to the industry preference but typically occur during late December through January and May through June. These experiences are intended to provide students a rich understanding of the different departments and activities that make up a manufacturer’s operations.

Beginning in their freshmen year of high school, P-TECH students make numerous visitations to the diverse manufacturing facilities in the greater Oswego County region. The goal of these visitations is to open the minds of our students in their understanding of Advanced Manufacturing through the diverse lens of facilities in our communities. P-TECH administration work with industry to tailor these visitations to each partner’s request and can range from short tours with Q&A sessions to full-day experiences.

Students in the program who have completed 50% or more of their college associate’s degree are eligible to apply to paid internships with manufacturing facilities in the greater Oswego region. P-TECH internships are catered toward a facility’s needs, but typically occur throughout the year including summer, in-between semester breaks and on days in which students do not have academic classes scheduled. The internship is often the “final step” toward job offers for students who graduate with an associate’s degree in electrical, mechanical or electromechanical technology degrees.

The high school and college curriculum that P-TECH students experience has been uniquely created to ensure that students who graduate have the most up-to-date skills and knowledge to transition effectively into a career in the field. That curriculum is based on collaboration between teachers, professors and industry. Sharing resources and personal knowledge, P-TECH students are given an opportunity to learn from authentic classroom experiences that are rooted in applicable industry skills and knowledge.