News

June 13, 2019

P-TECH Students’ Ted Talk Videos Take a Worldly Approach

With parents, friends and representatives of SUNY SCCC looking on, freshmen at the innovative Capital Region BOCES Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH) West Campus unveiled on Monday their series of Ted-style Talks.

With topics as diverse as racism and social injustice to saving African Elephants, the P-TECH students took a worldly approach to the project that they have been working on for the past two months.

During the Monday event, each student introduced his or her Ted-style Talk and then stepped aside as classmates and guests watched their Ted-style Talk video.

“I really enjoyed the research part of it because I learned a lot of new things,” said Tony Martinez-Salazar, whose Ted-style Talk focused on social injustice. “I’m Hispanic and I hate to see people treated so poorly because of their race.”

Classmate Vail Perry’s Ted-style Talk focused on African Elephant poaching.

“Poachers are killing 100 elephants a day. If nothing is done, African Elephants could be extinct by 2020,” she warned.

The students in the first year program undertook the TED-style Talks as part of a project that examined everything from scientific issues – ocean pollution and plastics – to social justice topics, said Principal Makensie Bullinger.

Beyond creating the TED-style Talk, students also wrote letters to elected officials to advocate for an issue of their choice.

BOCES partners, including the Capital Region Chamber, the Legal Aid Society of Northeastern New York and Sen. George Amedore, helped the students in developing their research on the topics and in developing persuasive arguments.

“It was a good opportunity to gain insights into what each student felt was an issue of importance. They have been developing their researching skills throughout the course of the first year of P-TECH and I look forward to seeing them progress as they continue on in the program,” said teacher Heather Carper.

P-TECH is a four- to six-year program (grades 9-14) offered to students throughout the region through a consortium that includes Capital Region BOCES, the Capital Region Chamber, Hudson Valley Community College and SUNY Schenectady County Community College.

The program’s two campuses – East Campus is at Watervliet High School, West Campus at the Center for Advanced Technology at Mohonasen – provides pathways for students to earn free college degrees in Computer Science, Computer Information Systems and Cybersecurity.