Students at Pine Bush High School earned their Haas operator credentials and Career and Technical Education (CTE) cords before the end of last school year and received their certificates and cords at a ceremony the day before graduation.
Students who successfully complete the Advanced Manufacturing CTE pathway earn a graduation cord recognizing their achievement. The pathway includes the following courses:
- Design and Drawing for Production (DDP)
- Art and Fabrication
- Advanced AutoCAD
- Excelsior Engineering
In addition to completing the coursework, students had the opportunity to earn HAAS Basic Mill Operator 1 credentials by successfully passing both the online assessment and the hands-on performance evaluation.
The district also received a $35,000 check for scholarships from the Gene Haas Foundation, bringing the total in scholarships from Haas to $202,000. The Haas Foundation has provided scholarships to many students pursuing careers and postsecondary education in advanced manufacturing and skilled trades.
Pine Bush High School was the first high school in the country to build a Gene Haas Innovation Center, with a $250,000 grant from the Haas Foundation in 2021. Pine Bush students have benefited from the center and the generosity of the Haas Foundation as well as its partners in manufacturing, Allendale Machinery and the Council of Industry.
In addition to Kenny Marshal, STEAM coach at Pine Bush High School, who presented the certificates and cords to his students, also at the ceremony were Superintendent Joe Lenz, Assistant Superintendent for Instruction Rachel Adelstein, now-retired Pine Bush High School Principal Aaron Hopmayer, teacher Dave Gibaldi and two guests, Mark Harris of Allendale Machinery and Rachel DiLeo, a Pine Bush High School graduate who is now vice president of Phillips Advanced Manufacturing Solutions.
The Gene Haas Foundation was established in 1999 by Haas Automation, Inc., founder and CEO Gene Haas. He first provided grants to the local community through non-profit organizations. When he saw a growing need for skilled manufacturing employees, he expanded the foundation’s mission to include support for manufacturing training programs. The foundation has provided more than $100 million in grants since its inception.
Great job to all our students who earned their certification and their cords! We are so very proud of you all!
Haas Certification
- PJ Agro
- Sam Bolduc
- Grant Brown
- Brayden Diefenbach (Jr.)
- Jocelyn Loennecker
- Anthony Maida
- Nick Mazzela
- Leah Meberg
- Lucas Meisel
- Sean Mora
- Mahek Multani
- Kaine Riddick (Jr.)
- Roscoe Sudol
- Sophia VanSickle
- Kara Wittenberg (Jr.)
- Angela Zullo
Manufacturing CTE Graduates Cord Recipients
- PJ Agro
- Sam Bolduc
- Grant Brown
- Brayden Diefenbach (Jr.)
- Anthony Maida
- Nick Mazzela
- Leah Meberg
- Sean Mora
- Roscoe Sudol
- Kara Wittenberg (Jr.)