"Innovation Pathways" program helps Mass. high school students graduate with job-ready skills
BROCKTON – In addition to the basics of education like algebra, biology and literature, dozens of Massachusetts high schools are teaching kids real-world skills that employers need right now.
It's part of the Innovation Pathways program created by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE). Students take job-specific coursework in high-demand industries like healthcare, IT, life sciences and manufacturing.
Carla Lominy of Brockton is a student at Bridgewater State University, but she also works as a professional medical interpreter at Brockton Neighborhood Health Center.
"I actually love my job," she said.
It is a job that Lominy trained for while she was a student at Brockton High School, not long after arriving from Haiti and a bit afraid to use her native Haitian Creole language.
"This Brockton program is so fantastic because it gives you the ability to use your language in a professional setting," Lominy said.
The medical interpreter curriculum is one of the Innovation Pathway programs.
"The first semester junior year they learn about the ethics of interpreting, bedside manner and legal terms," said Rachael Umbrianna, the coordinator of classical and modern languages at Brockton High School. "The second half of the program is when they really dive into those anatomy and physiology body parts and systems."
Students are then assigned internships at local medical facilities where they shadow interpreters talking to actual patients. According to Brockton Neighborhood Health Center CEO Maria Celli, 56% of the residents in Brockton are better served in a language other than English so the skill these students have is critical.
"Actively we have four or five staff who were originally these students so it's phenomenal, especially in these times where it's difficult to recruit employees," Celli said.
Maria Caires is a current Brockton High Student who arrived in the United States three years ago from Brazil speaking only Portuguese, which is also a common language in the area. She'll finish the program this year understands what a huge responsibility it is.
"Imagine giving someone the news that they have cancer? You need to know how to prepare yourself so you can deliver that news," she said.
Click here for a complete list of schools with Innovation Pathway programs.