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I’ve been a longtime advocate of vocational education in Sudbury. My son, a Minuteman graduate, benefited from the entire experience and was inspired to earn two college degrees after high school. Vocational education has also given me the honor and privilege of being appointed to represent and serve Sudbury’s residents and their students.
Sudbury values making decisions based on data, especially when it comes to public funds. So, I think it would be great if we could survey all middle school students and their parents to find out what they need and want from vocational education. This data will help us evaluate different vocational options and see how they would affect Sudbury’s budget.
Right now, Sudbury spends about $22,000 per student in grades K–12 (according to Google AI). Nearby regional vocational high schools (RVHSs) charge between $28,000 and $39,000 per student per year (according to published annual RVHSs operating budgets). Both schools have similar curricula and qualified staff, but the cost differences come from different enrollment standards and financial management, including the use of long-term debt.
To help those who are surveyed, I think it would be a good idea to invite local RVHSs to present their programs to 8th-grade students, parents, and anyone else who might be interested. Some RVHSs that might be interested include Keefe Tech (Framingham, 8.8 miles), Assabet Valley (Marlboro, 9.8 miles), and Minuteman Tech (Lexington, 11.8 miles).
We should also connect with the six towns that left the Minuteman District, along with Sudbury (the seventh), to find out how they’re now offering vocational education to their students after almost a decade.
Most RVHSs are already full and have strong relationships with their member towns. Without financial problems or needing to expand, they’re unlikely to add more member towns. The capacity strain has gotten worse because of unrecognized student interest, and the inclusion of non-essential programs (like TV/radio production, fashion, horticulture, etc.). These non-essential programs could be better taught in community colleges or through industry partnerships that offer internships and expanded apprentice programs. This would free up resources for mission-critical programs important to the Massachusetts economy, which include, but are not limited to, carpentry, plumbing, electrical, automotive, health assisting, and long-time supported early childhood development and cosmetology.
The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) is now dealing with legal requirements to make vocational education more accessible to underserved students who need it, probably by using lotteries to get into vocational schools. Those needed classroom and shop seats will come from existing state vocational schools and related programs.
Once Sudbury figures out what its students need, we can match them with affordable, practical vocational education options.