SNJ Today – February is Career Technical Education (CTE) Month, and to celebrate Senate President Steven Sweeney visited South Jersey to talk to technical education students.

On the afternoon of Tuesday, February 12th, Sweeney stopped by the Gloucester County Institute of Technology (GCIT) to chat with Skills USA students to celebrate CTE Month and congratulate them on receiving their fourth State Models of Excellence Award.

The Skills USA chapter at GCIT was named among the top 24 Skills USA chapters in the nation.

Sweeney says programs like Skills USA and schools like GCIT are teaching kids that it’s OK to follow a path that doesn’t involve going to college and still be successful.

“It’s OK to be a welder, it’s OK to be a carpenter, it’s OK to be a hairdresser, you know they’re good careers, and, unfortunately, too often we just drive every kid that we can to college when there’s a better opportunity for them which is here,” said Sweeney.

To mark the occasion, Sweeney presented the Skills USA chapter with a proclamation on their achievements.

To learn more, visit skillsusa.org.