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Announcer: Welcome to Mondays with Maria, presented by Addition Financial Credit Union. Here's OCPS Superintendent, Dr. Maria Vazquez.
Dr. Maria Vazquez: Hi everyone. Nancy Alvarez is joining me again today to talk about graduation and how we got here and what comes next. I'm so glad you're here.
Nancy Alvarez: Thank you. Thanks for having me. And, you know, we know those families are getting excited with their seniors, getting ready to, you know, celebrate all of their accomplishments. I'm not ready to even think about that stage of life. I have a little elementary school girl and a little middle schooler, and I'm just, oh my gosh. It's overwhelming.
Dr. Maria Vazquez: I, I can't believe we're talking about graduation. The year has just flown by and we're getting ready to celebrate our 2024 graduates. If families have not looked at the graduation dates yet, they're posted on our website ocps.net. Our ceremonies begin May 21st, and they run all the way through May 31st. So exciting times. I love it. I absolutely love it.
Nancy Alvarez: It's just around the corner. So let's talk a little bit more about how you get here, you know, to the finish line and the whole process and sort of the, the moments along the way that are, that are pivotal for our students.
Dr. Maria Vazquez: Yeah, that's a great question. And many parents may not be aware that that process begins in middle school. So you, you start to look at a child's interest, the courses that they're taking, and when they get into high school, many of them already have or should have an idea of a track that they would like. Are they going to take advanced courses? Are they going to look at certifications? And we have school counselors that are meeting with students. We have parents that we want to be engaged in that process, having conversations so that children are making the right choices so that when that pivotal day comes and they're walking across that stage, they have had a pathway that has offered them numerous opportunities. We have all of that information that's available on our website for our parents. Many of our schools have the college and career counselors, and they are a wealth of information for our students and our families.
Nancy Alvarez: Let's talk a little bit more about those college and career counselors and the specialists in every single high school and what, what exactly they do and how important it is that parents make sure their kids are making that connection.
Dr. Maria Vazquez: Oh yes. They are critical, and that's why we have them in every one of our high schools. They are there to assist our students in navigating where they should be as they are planning for post-secondary. So are they going to go to a four year college or university? Are they in a position where they're taking credits to be able to graduate maybe with an Associate's Degree? Maybe they're going to look at another option besides college. Those specialists are there to help our children explore all of the opportunities available to them.
Nancy Alvarez: So let's talk about those students that don't want to attend a big university after graduation. There's a lot of options there for them.
Dr. Maria Vazquez: Yeah, there's a lot more options today than when you and I were in school. I think it's phenomenal that our students have so many great state college options. They can stay local and they have technical college options as well.
Nancy Alvarez: So we have to talk about Orange County. Of course, it has its own technical college. I hear it's expanding and there's so many great success stories coming out of that.
Dr. Maria Vazquez: Yeah. There are great success stories and we are expanding. The growth is really incredible. In fact, in just a few weeks, Mondays with Maria is going to be on the road again to show you some of those amazing programs at our technical colleges. Those include construction and architecture, the medical field with our very popular nursing program and pharmacy technician program. Also, we are going to expand our culinary and hospitality field, and we cannot forget manufacturing, like welding and our automotive careers. The list includes so much more that's available on our six campuses across Orange County. Families are able to get more information online at orangetechcollege.net
Nancy Alvarez: Those certifications, great options, great starts, however you look at it. Just so many different pathways.
Dr. Maria Vazquez: Yes, there are so many different opportunities for our students to be able to get to the career or post-secondary future that you want. Thank you so much for watching, and thank you, Nancy, for this great discussion. We will be back next week for another Mondays with Maria.
Nancy Alvarez: See you soon.
Announcer: Mondays with Maria's presented by Addition Financial Credit Union, count us in for every step of your financial journey. Learn more at Additionfi.com. For more OCPS news and information, visit theslice.ocps.net. I'm your announcer Deivarsi Demezier, a senior at Apopka High School. Thanks for watching and have a great week.