Strong partnerships: New Jersey’s vocational-technical schools recognize Business Partner of the Year for students’ career training

Toshiba Nelson, supervisor of Catering Operations for Flik Hospitality Group, said she understood the benefits of partnering with a vocational high school even before securing a relationship between her employer and Essex County Schools of Technology.

“As a former high school student at Passaic County Technical Institute in the Academy of Finance program, I can speak from experience about how my internship changed my life and helped prepare me for real work,” Nelson said. “Being able to pattern this experience with my local high schools and give students the same opportunities that were offered to me warms my heart, and I hope the experience creates a memorable milestone in their lives.”

Nelson was instrumental in developing a work-based learning program at Newark Liberty International Airport for ECST students studying in the Business and Culinary Arts programs. In just one year, 26 students from ECST have joined the program and engaged in Flik operations at the airport, participating in biweekly meetings with Flik employees to learn budgeting, human resources operations and restaurant management.

Furthermore, these ECST students have gained hands-on culinary and food service experience working as prep-chefs in a large commercial kitchen and as customer service representatives in the United Airlines lounges, including the first-class Polaris lounge. In addition, they have learned the financials of running a large, successful operation and received valuable career feedback.

“It is rare to find partners like Flik who are willing to be patient, dedicated and show a genuine desire to give young people an opportunity that they once could only dream of,” Bernard Gomes, work-based learning coordinator at ECST said. “We are grateful that Flik approached this endeavor to give back to their community and did everything necessary to lay the foundation for a lasting relationship with us and our students.”

Employees at Flik also recently accepted invitations to serve on the Business and Culinary Advisory boards at ECST to further impact students’ career development. Their ongoing enthusiasm to continue helping ECST students train to meet industry standards earned Flik the 2024 Business Partner of the Year honor.

Each of New Jersey’s 21 county vocational-technical schools recently named a 2024 Business Partner of the Year in recognition of the tremendous value industry partnerships have on the schools’ career programs. The 2024 honorees represent a range of industries, from hospitality to healthcare and countless others.

Warren County Technical School named St. Luke’s Hospital and the hospital’s volunteer coordinator, Elizabeth Deck, as Business Partner of the Year for helping students explore opportunities in the vast health care field.

Many students enroll in a career and technical education (CTE) program with broad career goals. Experiences working in the field — often onsite with a partner like St. Luke’s — help students narrow those goals and set out on a more deliberate path toward reaching them.

Since 2021, Deck has visited WCTS Health Sciences students to present volunteer and co-op positions available at St Luke’s Hospital — Warren Campus in Phillipsburg. The co-op positions welcome students for more structured cooperative, on-the-job learning. Deck presents these opportunities to students as early as their freshman year, helping them plan for four years of career exploration and meaningful learning.

“Liz Deck has been instrumental in making our partnership with St. Luke’s successful,” Lana Shanahan, a Health Sciences instructor at WCTS, said. “The hands-on, real-world experience provided from the volunteer-level to the co-op opportunities is invaluable. Students are exposed to healthcare career opportunities that they may not have considered before.”

Students in the WCTS Health Sciences program can volunteer at St. Luke’s beginning at age 14. Starting in January of their junior year, they can work 20 hours a week in a paid co-op position at St. Luke’s. There are positions available on patient floors, physicians’ offices, urgent care, radiology and laboratory services.

In addition to providing students with valuable, real-world insight and hands-on learning, the experiences also open doors for students to continue working at the hospital after graduating high school. 

Another partnership between Cooper University Health Care, based in Camden, and Camden County Technical Schools is also paving the way for a transition from student to employee. 

This partnership is unique in that students learn in a health care setting but receive a non-clinical education. The hospital system welcomes students from the CCTS Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning program to work alongside professionals who provide HVAC-related services to all of Cooper Health’s 56 locations in Camden County.

Both Cooper and CCTS recognize they are building a specialized employee pipeline to train HVAC students to work in a healthcare setting, where HVAC systems are critical to maintaining a desirable environment for employees, patients and equipment.

This onsite learning program was facilitated by Antoinette Fugee, workplace development consultant for Cooper. Her efforts earned both her and Cooper University Health Care the title of CCTS’ 2024 Business Partner of the Year.

“The proactive, forward-thinking approach of Cooper and the CCTS team has made our partnership truly impactful,” Fugee said. Fugee emphasized the impact extends to both Cooper and the students involved for a truly mutually beneficial relationship.

Conversation Starters

Reach Essex County Schools of Technology at: essextech.org or call 973-412-2050.

Reach Warren County Technical School at: wctech.org/wcts or call 908-689-0122.

Reach Camden County Technical Schools at: ccts.org or call 856-767-7000.

Become a Business Partner

Read more about the 2024 Business Partners of the Year and the range of support employers throughout New Jersey provide to their county vocational-technical school programs. Visit careertechnj.org/news.