Friends of Vocational Technical & Agricultural Education,
We are most pleased to share this special story from Worcester Tech.
David
Worcester Tech vet program gets $3 million donation to expand vocational program
Jesse Collings Worcester Telegram & Gazette
WORCESTER — With $3 million in donated funding being handed to Worcester Public Schools, the veterinary medicine program at Worcester Technical High School is looking at a complete overhaul.
The district received a $2.5 million grant from the George I. Alden Trust, a Worcester based nonprofit named after the turn-of-the-century educator and industrialist that has been sponsoring mechanical and vocational education since 1912. The district also received a $500,000 donation from the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University, which will be used to expand and redevelop the veterinary medicine program at Worcester Technical High.
Grant Focus
Throughout his life, George Alden evidenced a keen interest in industrial, vocational, and professional education. He studied innovations in this country and abroad and gave of his time to serve on school boards in his community of Worcester. The Trustees focus their grantmaking on the capital needs of vocational and independent secondary schools in the immediate Worcester area
"This project would renovate the current advanced manufacturing space to modernize, upgrade and increase the space of our vet assistance program," Worcester Technical High principal Drew Weymouth said during a School Committee meeting on Nov. 21. "Our vet assistance program has been a model for the nation, in collaboration with the Cummings School since its inception in 2012, but since its inception it has also been undersized."
As part of its career and technical education programs, Worcester Tech offers a program in veterinary technical assistance, which became the first high school program to gain accreditation through the National Association of Veterinary Technicians in 2011. In 2012, the school partnered with the Cummings School to create the Tufts at Tech program, which allows veterinary assistant students to work alongside professional vets and veterinary students that are attending Tufts’ prestigious veterinary school, based in North Grafton.
The program also offers veterinary services at discounted costs to members of the Worcester community. The school reported in a presentation for the Nov. 21 School Committee meeting that it performs between 500 and 600 veterinary appoints per year at a cost that is approximately 25% of the national average for veterinary care.
"This opportunity will allow us to approximately triple the size of the veterinary clinic, increasing the number of clients we can serve and their pets, it will benefit our students at Worcester Tech, as it will allow more opportunity for our sophomores, juniors and seniors to integrate with the clinic, work alongside doctors and vet students, and be a benefit to the Cummings School," Weymouth said.
Dr. Alissa Jagielski attended Worcester Tech’s veterinary assistance program, graduating in 2016 and then went on to graduate from Cummings earlier this year, praised the program in a statement she made as part of a presentation that was shared at the Nov. 21 meeting.
“It was a great experience that solidified my idea of going to vet school. We provided pet care to clients that otherwise wouldn’t be able to afford it, and I love that feeling. It is so fulfilling to see how thankful the clients are," Jagielski said.
The $3 million will pay to expand the current area of the program, with an additional $2 million in funding being paid for by Cummings for equipment once the new space is completed. The current clinic at Worcester Tech is 2,200 square feet, and the expanded clinic will be 8,675 square feet, which will increase the amount of exam rooms and also allow the classrooms for the program to be in the clinic space, as they are currently separate.
The committee approved the donations unanimously during the Nov. 21 meeting. "I’m excited for this, because I remember waiting and meeting and trying to figure out how we are going to get this extra money," School Committee member Maureen Binienda said.
School Committee member Kathleen Roy said that she is excited about the expansion. "I look forward to bringing my animals to bring to these children one day for care," Roy said.
David J. Ferreira
MAVA Communications Coordinator
DavidFerreira
