School is Back in Session! Re-energizing Connections at BV Hub

After our summer break, I am proud to return to the Blackstone Valley Hub for Workforce Development (BV Hub) energized and excited to start the school year. Over the past few weeks I had the privilege of connecting with educators, students, business partners, and industry innovators at a variety of meetings and events.

When I asked our Executive Director, Ashley Bregman, to share her own thoughts about being "back to school," she responded:

"There’s a lot happening at the BV Hub as we head into the new school year. We’re building on some really strong partnerships, growing our programs, and trying some new approaches. I’m excited to see what we can accomplish this year and, more importantly, what that means for the students and schools we work with."

On August 18, I attended Uxbridge High School's annual Internship Breakfast, joined by our BV Hub Interim Board Chair, Jeannie Hebert. We had the opportunity to review the school's internship program goals for the 2026-2027 school year and their expected outcomes. We

discussed the school's new and established best practices for internships and got an overview of their Durable Skills Instruction Guide. We also had the opportunity to connect with Uxbridge's strong network of educators, administrators and industry professionals. Among those I spoke with included Superintendent, David Ljungberg, Principal, Michael Rubin, Dean of Students, David Moura, and newly appointed Assistant Principal, David Fredette (show in the photograph here). I left feeling energized about what we've accomplished with Uxbridge Public Schools so far and where we can support the students and staff next!

On September 1, BV Hub Vocational Instructor for popular programs such as START Manufacturing, Artie Young accompanied me to the 3rd Annual Connecticut Manufacturing Innovation Forum. You can even catch my logo-ed back seated at the beginning of this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cv89tY3r5C0

The theme reiterated at the event to educators by keynote speaker, Toni Neary of SME. was,

"Early and often. We need students to know that there are prosperous careers [in manufacturing]. The opportunities are plentiful from K to gray!"

At the forum, we attended several breakout sessions with innovative leaders from CT, Washington D.C., Ohio, and beyond. In addition to Neary, another speaker who

inspired me was Maria Spangler of Nordson Corporation of Engineers. Spanger participated in the session entitled "Robotoics for All: Embedding Hands-On Innovation into the Curriculum." She mentioned that it's "an existential threat to not have the workforce that we need" and reiterated the importance of supporting Robotics Competitions for students. The monitor, Christine Lawlor-King from ReadyCT summarized the key takeaways of this breakout as such,

"Take the meetings, share what it is you're looking for and find that collaborative partner."

Appropriately, our BV Hub team spent the following day hosting a meeting with a new collaborative partner from Flatiron Energy. On September 2, Senior Manager of Construction, Will Kraemer toured our facilities in Whitinsville, MA along with colleague, Kelsey Perry, Senior Manager of Community Engagement at Flatiron Energy. After visiting the Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce, BV Hub Director, Joscelyn Young, introduced the pair to our robotics lab featuring Universal Robots, our new healthcare-focused classroom, and our function hall. Then Artie highlighted the equipment in our shop, including augmented welding machines, CNC mills, our popular laser cutter, and more. He also introduced Perry and Kraemer to our VR headsets (available to sign out by all in our Partnered School Program).

After learning about what BV Hub has to offer, Flatiron Energy shared details about their active Uxbridge worksite and their passion for energy education. We ended that day eager to reconnect and provide our students with a deeper knowledge about renewable energy resources, sustainability science, and the power grid.

Our last in-person meeting of the week was on September 3. We reconnected with educators from Milford High School: Bill Chaplin (Director of Guidance and Career Pathways, Grades 5-12) and newly appointed Career Counselor, Jessica Lorenz (formerly of Bellingham High School). It was nice to share some of our newer equipment with them such as our Cadaviz, a virtual dissection table that gives anatomy programs life sized, 3D cadavers with clinical detail and U.S. based support. But more significantly, we were able to discuss ways we can spear-head workforce development curriculum for Milford Public Schools, and past programs we would love to continue expanding for Milford students such as, START Manufacturing, YAWD, YouthWorks, and more.

To echo the sentiments of both Ashley Bregman and Toni Neary, I'm excited to see what we can accomplish this year from K to gray! It's great to be back.

For more information, join us on zoom for a "Drop In" session Tuesday, September 15 anytime between 10am-11am or email Lauren Barrett at barrett.lauren@bvhub.org.