Alternative education opportunities outside of traditional college tracks were the theme of a panel discussion hosted by the Orange County Chamber of Commerce on Oct. 12.
West Point Director of Admissions Rance Lee said that for those not yet ready for college, enlisting in the military was a good alternative to pick up valuable skills while figuring out the future, with some eventually moving on to higher education with tuition benefits.
“You cannot do what is right for mom, dad, brother, sister, or mentor. You got to do what’s right for you,” he said. “If the right choice for you is college, then absolutely you should go for college. If you are not ready, there are a lot of other paths.”
He also shared advice on how to get into the prestigious military academy, and one tip was to not give up, as almost a third of West Point recruits were admitted on their second or third try.
Construction Contractors Association of the Hudson Valley Executive Director Alan Seidman said that apprenticeships could lead to careers with good pay, benefits, and retirement security, but what often works against such programs is the prevailing societal thought of putting college above all.
“Not every child should be going to college, and there are great opportunities out there for both men and women who do not,” Mr. Seidman said at the event.
Dr. Trevor McGinley, owner of Blu Aesthetics Med Spa in Middletown, said that the beauty industry offered an array of opportunities for those who wanted to get early hands-on experience after high school.
Common positions include laser technician, phlebotomist, and medical esthetician, which only requires attending a specialty school or obtaining a certificate.
“The great thing about these is that they allow you to come into an organization or a business and have direct hands-on patient care, and through that, there is a significant amount of success and satisfaction,” he said, noting that some eventually move on to become nurse practitioners or even doctors.
Jhack Sepulveda, executive director of Orange County Food TEC at the Newburgh campus of SUNY Orange, introduced the program’s free to low-cost training that helps people get entry-level jobs in the beverage and hospitality industry, such as cooks, line cooks, and servers.
The program is planned to add food industry certificate training in the future, which will help people move on from entry-level jobs to advanced positions, he said.
Thomas Budington, a financial consultant with Equitable Advisors, stressed the importance of having alternative education investment plans other than the traditional 529 college savings accounts to cover trade school expenses.
Orange-Ulster BOCES Deputy Superintendent Kerri Stroka, moderator of the panel discussion, told The Epoch Times that career and technical programs at her institution help students get a taste of trade jobs before graduating high school.
She said about 2,000 high schoolers in the region attend such programs at Orange-Ulster BOCES (Board of Cooperative Educational Services), with construction trades, health-related careers, and culinary training being their top three choices.
Orange County Chamber of Commerce President Heather Bell-Meyer told The Epoch Times that a chamber member suggested the alternative education topic last year and her team took time to build on it and make it into a panel discussion.
The topic was personal to her, too, she said, as both her sons joined the Marine Corps before entering professional careers in advanced machinery and law enforcement.
“These were what we thought could deliver to our membership and beyond as avenues other than college education that could result in a successful career,” she said.
The panel discussion was hosted at Cornell Cooperative Extension’s education center in Otisville, New York.
