New Bedford Guide Your Guide to New Bedford and South Coast, MA
New Bedford High School officially added Hospitality and Tourism to its Career Vocational Technical Education program, continuing its expansion of vocational education in the district. The program is connected to the National Academy Foundation (NAF), and the Academy of Hospitality and Tourism is the 5th NAF program at the high school. The announcement was made at the organization’s national conference in Detroit earlier this month.
“We are excited to offer Hospitality and Tourism as our newest NAF academy,” said Bernadette Coelho, Headmaster of New Bedford High School. “We consider NBHS to be a flagship high school for NAF, and we value our strong partnership with them as they continue to support enriching career experiences for our students.”
The high school implemented a pilot hospitality program in the spring semester, in where students enrolled in an event planning class. Notably, the students in the class facilitated major events, including the Mayor’s State of the City address and the groundbreaking ceremony for the school’s finance lab.
“Our hospitality students have already distinguished themselves through implementing two successful events and have set the standard for excellence for future initiatives”, said Chris Cummings, manager of CVTE programs. “We are committed to providing rigorous career technical skill training through the facilitation of events connected to the hospitality industry.”
In addition to offering multiple classes and planning events, the program will strive to place students in paid internship experiences at area hospitality businesses.
As is a component of all CVTE programs, the Hospitality and Tourism program will include an active advisory committee comprised of industry representatives, post-secondary faculty, representatives from the MassHire workforce board, and school staff members. This committee will drive initiatives related to internship placement, employability skill training, and career pathway development.
“We are most fortunate to have a committed advisory committee to support the growth of our new program,” said Cummings. I view them as partners in assisting us in leveraging emerging opportunities in the industry,” he added.
The high school will host an official kickoff event for the school community in October.
New Bedford High School’s Hospitality program is part of the school’s offerings of Career Vocational Technical Education programming. In addition to Hospitality, the school offers career pathway programs in Business, Finance, Instructional Technology, Health Sciences, Engineering, Early Childhood Education, and Criminal Justice. For more information about Career and Technical Education at New Bedford High School, please contact Christopher Cummings, Manager of CVTE at 508 997 4511, ext. 20799.
