Newly appointed Principal Stefan Czaporowski and assistant principal Kevin Daley have launched several programs this school year that support and promote student achievement.
Westfield Vocational Technical High SchoolWESTFIELD — A new administration at Westfield Vocational-Technical High School has brought expanded focus on student achievement and school pride.
Newly appointed Principal Stefan J. Czaporowski and assistant principal Kevin M. Daley have launched several programs this school year that support and promote student achievement.
“Along with staff, we have a good team in place that will support our students in academics, shop skills and, at the same time, promote school pride,” Czaporowski said.
The vocational-technical school has restored its “Freshmen Academy,” a program that assists students in transition from middle to high school through academic assistance, much of which is provided by retired educators serving as mentors.
“The goal of the academy is to help our newer students as they adjust to the high school environment and to provide additional help, such as tutoring, in test areas like MCAS,” Czaporowski said.
“Our most recent MCAS scores have shown improvement by 28 percent in English language arts and a 22 percent hike in math. There is still room for improvement and our goal is to continue the trend,” the principal said.
New this school year is creation of a Students Against Destructive Decisions Chapter at the vocational school. “We have a dozen students participating in this peer-to-peer program that addresses such issues as substance abuse and we expect more to join as the year progresses,” said Czaporowski.
Administrators have also created a new Cheerleading Club with a goal to participate in competition beginning with the 2013-2014 school year. Currently 16 students are creating the school’s cheerleading routines and will soon be seen on the sidelines at various athletic events, Daley and Czaporowski said.
Also new is a dropout prevention effort with a goal of graduating all students.
“We have 120 freshmen this year and our goal is to graduate all 120 four years from now,” Czaporowski said.
Total enrollment at the vocational high school is 482 and the principal said additional programs and activities will be added as necessary to help all students earn their high school diplomas and trade skill certificates.
Nearly half of the 2012 graduating class went on to higher education, either a two- or four-year college or technical training school, officials said.
Czaporowski said a new testing system for grade 9 and 10 students has been put in place that will measure their academic progress and identify what additional help is necessary to ensure their success.
Czaporowski, a Florence resident, is a former social studies teacher and supervisor at Chicopee’s Comprehensive High School. He served as assistant principal at Westfield Vocational-Technical High School from 2009 to 2011 and last year served as principal at Smith Academy in Hatfield.