Friend,

My name is Maureen Santiago, and I’m a career and technical education teacher at Lawrence High School. Through the LHS Innovation Pathways Program, our students learn and explore careers in critical industries in our community: computer science, healthcare, business and finance. The program’s popularity is growing, with enrollment expected to reach approximately 350 students for the 2025-26 school year.

Yesterday, we were thrilled to welcome AFT President Randi Weingarten and AFT Vice President and AFT Massachusetts President Jessica Tang to meet with our students and staff.

During the visit, three of our healthcare students—Josh, Arislerdy and Hilary—held a roundtable to discuss their studies, their on-the-job internships, and the joy of hands-on learning. The students’ joy was infectious, and all three raved about internships at local healthcare facilities that gave them confidence and reaffirmed their dreams of studying medicine to serve the community.

I’m proud my national union and state union are working to seed and expand CTE opportunities for all students, because I can see firsthand how my students learn, understand, and thrive when given relevant and engaging learning opportunities. Every student in America should have access to engaging, transformational programs like ours at Lawrence High School.

President Weingarten recently wrote an essay for the New York Times about how schools like ours are an important part of creating multiple pathways to a better life—whether students decide to attend college after graduation or pursue other options.

Programs like this don’t just provide relevant and engaging skills to future medical professionals, HVAC technicians, accountants, nurses or electricians. They also teach students invaluable skills like communication, collaboration, creative problem-solving and critical thinking—the kinds of skills so often overlooked when we talk about how to be prepared for life and a career.

We had such a great visit that I wanted to share this update with you! If you’re interested in CTE:

1. Learn with the AFT’s career and technical education online resources.
2. Catch up on the Spring 2024 issue of American Educator that’s all about career and technical education.
3. Learn more about how the AFT is working to expand experiential learning.

To my fellow AFT union members, your solidarity gives me hope.

To anyone else in the AFT community reading this, thank you for fighting for public education and opportunity for all of our kids.

Thank you,
Maureen Santiago
Lawrence Teachers Union member
AFT Massachusetts member
AFT member