Hogan opens forst P-TECH School in Baltimore

Governor Larry Hogan today celebrated the opening of the first two of six P-TECH schools at an event in Baltimore City. Governor Hogan was joined by Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, along with local education and elected officials. Also in attendance were representatives from P-TECH’s higher education partners, including the University of Maryland – Baltimore, Johns Hopkins University, and Baltimore City Community College, and private sector partners IBM and Kaiser Permanente.

“We are proud that Maryland has one of the most highly-skilled workforces in the entire country,” said Governor Hogan. “Now, through P-TECH Carver and P-TECH Dunbar, we are ensuring that students right here in Baltimore City will have the chance to gain in-demand skills that employers need in the 21st century workforce, and that some of our state’s biggest employers will have a steady pipeline to the next generation of skilled professionals.”

The P-TECH (Pathways in Technology Early College High School) education model, co-developed by IBM, is an innovative, nationally recognized approach that blends high school, college, and work experience in one. P-TECH schools offer students an integrated six-year education program that combines high school, college, and workplace skills required for 21st-century jobs. The Hogan administration has invested $600,000 in grants to develop six P-TECH schools across the state. Dunbar High School and Carver-Vocational Technical School in Baltimore opened as P-TECH schools for the 2016-2017 school year. Four more P-TECH schools are set to open in the 2017-2018 school year at locations in Western Maryland, on the Eastern Shore, and in Prince George’s County.

In six years or less, P-TECH students graduate with a high school diploma and a no-cost, two-year Associate degree in a STEM career field. These students will also benefit from career experience and mentorship in the workplace and will be first in line for skilled jobs upon graduation through partnerships with private sector participants. Each P-TECH school works with industry partners and a local community college to ensure an up-to-date curriculum that is academically rigorous and economically relevant.