Herb Chambers Lexus Representative Visits Automotive Shop

Hello SSVT Community,

Having strong connections with our local employers is absolutely essential.  When local employers know about SSVT and the high quality programs we run here, they become very interested in partnering with us because we can supply them with strong candidates for employment.

Mr. Ricky Medeiros, Herb Chambers Lexus Representative toured the Automotive shop to get a sense of what our students are working on.  Herb Chambers Lexus is a new auto dealership located near the intersection of Routes 53 and 228 in Norwell.  Our region has seen an increase in dealerships in the past few years and I hope we can call upon local industry in the future to help us as we pursue plans to expand the Automotive shop space in the future.

Here are some pictures from the visit with instructors Mr. Scott Kessell, Mr. Shaun Hennessy, and Mr. Ronnie Michaud, and students Michaela Johnson and Dylan Peebles.

NECN Features Culinary Arts Students & Brass Lantern Restaurant

Hello SSVT Community,

On Tuesday March 24th,, New England Cable News (NECN) featured SSVT on its Making the Grade segment of its 9:00 news broadcast.   Click here for that video clip.

What a wonderful showcase for all the awesome students in Culinary Arts and the value of a vocational technical education!  Viewers can clearly see how passionate and motivated students can be when engaged with their hands-on work.  We are all very proud of you.

---Mr. Hickey

Time to Download the new SSVT App!

Hello SSVT Community,

Many of you have probably heard by now that SSVT has its own app.  I want to encourage staff, students and parents to download the app at your earliest convenience. We have received great feedback from those who have already downloaded it.

The app helps you access all of our school information in one place from any mobile device.  It gives you access to the school bulletin, news, sports information, important notifications, links to log into PowerSchool and much more.

To download the app visit the app store on your Apple device or the Google Play store on your Android device and search for “South Shore Vocational Tech HS”. 

If you have any questions feel free to contact the tech department via email iParenthelp@ssvotech.org or via phone at 781-878-8822 x451.  Thanks for staying connected with SSVT!   

---Mr. Hickey

Below are a few tips to help you get started with the app:

Directory:  Provides a listing of all teachers and staff, giving you an easy way to contact teachers or other staff members.

PowerSchool:  Provides a link for you to log into PowerSchool.  If you do not already have the PowerSchool app installed you will be prompted to do so.  If prompted for the district code, you will need to enter:  CLGC

Notifications:  This is where you'll find important notifications from the school - like snow days, Delayed starts, or a notification that your bus is going to be running late.  

If you swipe left, you'll go to page 2 of the app. Below is a list and description of each of the icons available on this page:

Stream:  Is a running stream of all social media and calendar posts related to SSVT.

Calendar:  A calendar of day and evening activities at SSVT.

News:  See news articles related to SSVT.

Tip Line:  The tip line provides the community with a way to notify Administration of events they consider important.  There are several categories available, including Bullying, Drugs, Kudos/Praise, Threats, Vandalism, and Weapons.  You can choose whether your tip is anonymous or not, you can provide a picture to go alone with your tip, and provide any information you feel will help make your school a better place!  

Photos:  Pulls pictures from any social media post made by SSVT and puts them all into one place.

Sports:  Provides information about SSVT Sports.

Superintendent:  Choose this option to access my blog.

Facebook:  See SSVT's facebook page.

Twitter:  See SSVT's twitter account.

YouTube:  See SSVT's Youtube channel.

Resources:  This section is broken up into 5 categories. You will most often be using the "Parents" link inside of the resources folder.  Some of the links can be accessed elsewhere in the app, but the attempt was to provide a one-stop-shop for you to access anything you might need.  For instance, there's another link to log into PowerSchool, as well as a link to our uniform policy and the "My School Bucks" site where you can add money to your child's lunch account. 

One more swipe left will bring you to the third page.  

My School Bucks:  A link to log into "My School Bucks" to add money to your school lunch account.

Settings: Use the settings icon configure the schools you're following, how you want your alerts to behave, select your language, and rate the app.

Engineering Academy Students to Benefit from $133,000 Grant

Hello SSVT Community,

Running vocational programs requires current technology and equipment and adequate supplies to give students the best experiences possible for the short time they are in high school.

Due to budget limitations, SSVT often looks for grant opportunities.  Grants provide funds from outside sources, allowing schools to grow and modernize.  It is not easy to get grant money because there are typically many schools and organizations who compete for this money.

I think this is important to share because it underscores our excitement when we learned that SSVT was awarded a $133,000 Massachusetts Life Sciences Award from the Mass Life Sciences Center.  Here is a full copy of a press release issued from SSVT on the grant award.

The students who will benefit from the grant are our Engineering Academy students. The Engineering Academy includes students in Precision Machine Technology, Drafting and Electronics.

Congratulations to Electronics instructor Mr. Barba for writing the grant.  It was a lot of work!

Below is the write-up and picture from the January 18, 2015 issue of the  Boston Globe South section.

"The South Shore Vocational Technical High School in Hanover has received a $133,000 grant from the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center, an organization dedicated to supporting innovation in the life sciences in Massachusetts. Administrators at the school announced that they plan to use the money to jump-start the school’s 11th- and 12th-grade engineering curriculums and to introduce students to real-world prototype manufacturing processes. “It’s going to allow us to expand our shop and to buy equipment to teach students premanufacturing processes,” Vincent Barba, the school’s electronics department head, said of the grant. He said he also hopes to expand the school’s relationship with electronics companies, which provide excess and obsolete components for the students to work with.

Electronics students Brittany Ceurvels, Nathan Tavares, Richie Lobo, and Madeline Long,
with instructor Mr. Johnson

This extra effort helps to keep our technical programs on the cutting edge!

---Mr. Hickey

Congratulations to Cosmetology Students Passing Their State Board Tests

Hello SSVT Community,

One of the career activities that makes SSVT unique is that our students can earn third party industry credentials during their high school years, thus making them more marketable when searching for jobs, and accelerating their path up the career ladder of their choice.  Our Cosmetology students are allowed to take the State Cosmetology Board Exam once they have accrued enough hours of practice and theory.  

We are thrilled to congratulate Alicia St. Amour, Taylor McCarthy, Samantha Swanson, Alison Wamness, Alysia Caparotta, Nick Bunker, Morgan Reardon and Michelle Long for achieving this goal!  

Our Cosmetology instructors did a great job celebrating their students' accomplishments by putting together a display on the bulletin board outside the CM shop.  Check it out!  

Congratulations!

--Mr. Hickey

Concession Stand Update

Hello SSVT Community,

Last week, on Tuesday, the thermometer read 18 degrees and our Carpentry seniors were out in the elements making steady progress on the concession stand.  Here are a few photos.  The posts you see in front of the concession stand will support the overhang of the concession stand roof.

CP Seniors Brandon Teixeira and Anthony Spicuzza
with CP instructor Mr. Burke (Back Left)

CP Senior Dominic Varrasso is up on staging
working to cover the plywood seams

The CP students learn how to work in these weather conditions and continue to make great strides for this on campus project. Great work!


---Mr. Hickey

HVAC-R Program Earns Department of Public Safety Approval

Hello SSVT Community,

Earlier this year, our HVAC-R program was visited by officials from the Massachusetts Department of Public Safety (DPS), the agency that oversees oil burner and refrigeration licensure.

As a result of the DPS visit and review of our HVAC-R program curriculum, the DPS has approved our HVAC-R program. This means that students who complete the rigorous course of student and who wish to pursue further training can earn hours toward their oil burner and refrigeration license, which is a logical next step for our HVAC-R graduates.

The specific components of the program approval are:

Shop/Work Experience
Practical Piping Work	140 hours
Practical Electrical Work	140 hours
Practical Sheet Metal Work	100 hours
Practical Refrigeration & A/C  Work	700 hours
Practical Heating (Gas & Oil) Work	270 hours
Classroom/Educational Theory Experience
Massachusetts Electrical Code Training	100 hours
ASHRAE Refrigeration Code	180 hours
Sheet Metal Calculation & Design	30 hours
ASHRAE Air Conditioning & Heating	140 hours

During these hours of instruction, our HVAC students get considerable hands on practice and related theory.  It goes without saying that, in order to earn these hours, students need to maintain excellent attendance and demonstrate achievement in the program curriculum!

For HVAC-R graduates, this is just another opportunity that awaits them when they enter the workforce and seek to advance themselves in their chosen field.

---Mr. Hickey