Photo Courtesy of WOSD From left are Micah Bender, Nicholas Mercado, Chris Shevlin and Thomas Barcola.
From left are Micah Bender, Nicholas Mercado, Chris Shevlin, Thomas Barcola and Nancy Mullin.
WEST ORANGE, NJ — The Career and Technical Education Department at West Orange High School sponsored a presentation on supply chain management on Oct. 18 as part of its consideration to add the course to its current career course options.
In addition to the academic curricula at WOHS, the Career and Technical Education Department provides several programs aligned with the national Career Clusters Framework. Courses fall under business education, family and consumer science, and technical education. Students completing the state-approved CTE programs at West Orange High School receive industry-standard certifications and dual-credit opportunities with colleges and universities.
Supply chain management is defined as “the management of the flow of goods and services and includes all processes that transform raw materials into final products. It involves the active streamlining of a business’ supply-side activities to maximize customer value and gain a competitive advantage in the marketplace.”
Several colleges have recently begun to add supply chain management to its roster of courses, including Rutgers University. Trained supply chain managers are in such high demand that Rutgers has a 95 percent placement rate within three months of graduation, and a starting salary of approximately $70,000.
Guest speakers for the event were Thomas Barcola, who has worked with the New Jersey Department of Education for the past five years to establish the Supply Chain Management Program, and Micah Bender, who works as a teacher-trainer in SCM for the NJDOE.
The other two speakers were Chris Shevlin, one of the first graduates of the program in New Jersey and an entrepreneur who manages the rapper Dre Miller and founded SevenThreeTwo Entertainment, and WOHS Class of 2010 alumnus Nicholas Mercado, who is part of the global risk management team for the world’s largest beverage company.
The speakers discussed their backgrounds and successes in the field, and encouraged the students to consider a career in SCM, noting that travel and advancement opportunities were a normal part of the job.
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