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Corporate Backgrounder
Mission
Career Tech Charter High School is an independent, public high school with a curriculum that
focuses on traditional and modern skills in technology and trade fields. It was founded by
Maureen Anderson and Angela Musto, educators with a passion for helping their students
achieve success. Career Tech was built on the foundation that not all students learn in the same
manner and that not all will pursue college after finishing high school. Career Tech builds
brighter futures, one student at a time.
Location
The charter school will be located on the North Side of Pittsburgh, preferably near Community
College of Allegheny County (CCAC). As of right now, Career Tech has not received their
charter or non-profit status.
Educational Model
Students at Career Tech will receive a hands-on education of skills in traditional trades, such as
engineering and modern technology, like cyber security and robotics. This bridge between the
traditional and modern trades is unlike vocational and career tech schools around the country
that typically focus on one set of skills.
Career Tech is intended for urban students who are looking for flexibility in their education and
the chance to collaborate with the community in and outside of the school. It features a new
education model that breaks down the six arcs of education, including:
Mental and physical health
Basic skills and knowledge
Decision making and goal accomplishment
Healthy relationships
Financial literacy
Civic engagement
These arcs put the student first and maximize what they are capable of accomplishing while in
school. This model makes time for students to interact with different people like teachers, peers,
administration, supportive staff and community resources. This breakdown of time changes to fit
the individual needs of students.
Flexibility for Students
Career Tech will also individualize education by offering paths that a student can take to
graduate. They can graduate in three, four or five years, either with an associate’s degree or
certification along with their high school diploma. This will give students a chance to further
pursue an education or enter the career field of their choosing.
Service Learning Opportunities
Students and faculty will participate in a monthly, school-wide service learning project where
they will work to better their community. This program will teach them how to build sustainability
in the city and to cultivate life-long learners in the process.
Projected Timeline
The idea of Career Tech began in 2014; the founders hope to open the doors by the end of
2018. The proposed timeline for the next two years includes:
Begin hosting community meetings – December 2016
Formalize advisory board and board of directors – January 2017
Incorporate and apply for 501(c)3 status – January 2017
Secure funding sources and grants for development year – June 2017
Complete charter application and submit to PPS – June 2017
Petition state for charter approval – August 2017
Recruit and hire principal – September 2017
Find and secure location – December 2017
Recruit students – January to August 2018
Hire educators – May through June 2018
Students first day – September 4, 2018
For more information, visit careertechcharter.org or contact [email protected].
Maureen Anderson Biography
Maureen Anderson is a co-founder of Career Tech Charter High School. She completed
her bachelor’s degree in international relations at Pennsylvania State University and her
master’s in instructional leadership at Robert Morris University. She is currently pursuing her
doctorate of education and principal certification at Point Park University.
Anderson has worked in a variety of careers over her lifetime. From 1985 to 1994, she
worked in the United States and in Spain, as an analyst, a president of different organizations,
and an English as a second language teacher.
When she returned to the United States, she worked as a business owner and instructor
for Creative Memories from 1997 to 2000 before becoming a substitute instructor at the
Community College of Beaver County. This led to her current position at City Charter High
School in 2003. She began at the school as a career readiness teacher and, in 2012, became
activities director. She assisted with after-school programs at City High including Students for
the Advancement of Global Entrepreneurship (SAGE), in which students create and run their
own businesses.
This diverse background of education and work experience led her to create the basis of
Career Tech Charter High School. She began to understand the need for a personalized
educational experience for urban students that will allow them the opportunity to step beyond
the mold of traditional high school graduates.
Angela Musto Biography
Angela Musto is a co-founder of Career Tech Charter High School. She completed her
bachelor’s degree in physics education in the Robert E. Cook Honors College at Indiana
University of Pennsylvania and her master’s in educational psychology at Capella University.
She is currently pursuing her doctorate of education and principal certification at Point Park
University.
Musto started her professional career by training in the reserve officer training core from
2001 to 2003.She was the summer honors program head counselor in 2003 through 2005,
where she made arrangements for the honors students in a three-week program.
In 2005, she was hired as a physics, biology, chemistry and math teacher at City Charter
High School. She became a tutor for those classes in 2006 until 2010. She was then hired by
City High as an educational leader, in which she helped to make educational decisions and
worked with the science curriculum within the school.
The diverse background of education and work experience led Musto to create Career
Tech Charter High School, because she began to understand the need for a personalized
educational experience for urban students that will allow them the opportunity to step beyond
the mold of traditional high school graduates.
She has attended conferences and professional development workshops, where she
has listened to or led presentations about her field.
Fact Sheet
Mission:
Career Tech provides students with a seamless transition between high school and community
college, including opportunities for career exploration and training in the technology and trades
fields.
Students will graduate with a wealth of preparation -- a high school diploma, experience in
community action and entrepreneurship, computer and coding skills, a thorough understanding
of our democratic government and judiciary system and strong workforce skills -- they will have
the opportunity to earn the important career credentials they need in the form of a certificate or
associate’s degree.
About: Career Tech High School is unique in its educational philosophies and practices. It is an
independent, public school founded by Maureen Anderson and Angela Musto. It was built on the
foundation that students need a more personalized education focusing on real world challenges,
research and analysis, collaborative problem solving and viable career preparation.
The current system of education, operating on an educational model created during the era of
the Industrial Revolution, does not provide students with the range, depth and style of learning
and skills that are compatible with our country’s rapidly evolving workplace.
While the school is not yet open, it’s projected first day is on September 4, 2018. Career Tech
will be located in the innovative Energy Innovation Center, where downtown Pittsburgh meets
the edge of the lower Hill District. This facility was created specifically to provide space for
research and development, entrepreneurial start-ups, offices for area non-profits and state-of-
the-art training in trades specialties.
Contact: Maureen Anderson, [email protected] or visit careertechcharter.org
Visit the Career Tech Facebook page to place your child’s name on the early admissions list.
NEWS RELEASE
Contact: Maureen Anderson
Co-Founder, Career Tech Charter High School
724-709-3383
Doctorate Students Develop New Education Model
PITTSBURGH, PA, November 8, 2016 - Maureen Anderson and Angela Musto, co-founders of
Career Tech Charter High School, have created an innovative education model that shifts the
focus of learning to a student’s well-being. This model defines the core of Career Tech and how
the founders develop the curriculum to better educate their students.
The educators will focus on mental and physical health in students as the core of their program,
allowing students to receive a quality education.
This educational structure includes:
Basic skills and knowledge
Decision making and goal accomplishment
Healthy relationships
Financial literacy
Civic engagement
The educational model will help their students grow as individual, healthy learners in the
community. Students will be assisted by Career Tech in partnership with community colleges,
trade unions and other training programs.
“We have looked at the science at what leads to real, actual learning. Other than physical and
mental health, you also can put students in new situations,” Musto said. “We want to get them
out of the classroom. We want people working on real-world problems.”
To learn more, contact Maureen Anderson at [email protected]
###
About Career Tech Charter High School
Slated to open in 2018, Career Tech Charter will be an independent, public high school that
prepares students for the workforce in the local Pittsburgh industry. It focuses on creating a
hands-on experience and developing technology and trade skills through partnerships with the
community college, trade unions and other training programs. Career Tech will provide students
the opportunity to receive credentials in their field, like certificates or associate degrees, in
addition to their high school diplomas.
MONTH DAY, YEAR
Sheldon Ingram, ReporterWTAE-TV400 Ardmore Blvd.Pittsburgh, Pa. 15221
Dear Sheldon,
I noticed that you have written about community involvement and the development of the
city of Pittsburgh. My co-founder and I have created Career Tech Charter High school, which is
for the hard-working, hands-on students in Pittsburgh, and we believe that our standard for the
school aligns with your own set of ideals.
On AN UNDECIDED DATE, we will be holding an informational session regarding the
structure and mission of the school. The session will include our fellow colleagues commenting
on the plans we have in place and give their ideas for how to improve the high school
experience in Pittsburgh. We invite you to come write about the session as we explore how to
improve the lives of high school students through their experiences with us and discuss the
importance of the hands-on training for our students.
This event is the chance for Pittsburgh to have a voice in how our youth are educated in
the future and how we, as educators, can help to tailor each individual’s time during school to
set each student off on the right career path after high school. This will include a question and
answer panel in which we will help Pittsburgh citizens to understand our mission in the school.
We will also premiere our promotional video for the school and introduce the student
perspective of how Career Tech will help students in their chosen career fields. This is the
chance to learn about a school that is unlike traditional vocational or high schools in the area.
I will follow up with you about this story within the next few days, but if you have any
questions, feel free to contact me before then. I hope to see you at the informational session.
Sincerely,
Maureen AndersonCo-Founder, Career Tech Charter High School724-709-3383 - [email protected]
MONTH DAY, YEAR
Brenda Waters, ReporterKDKA - TV
Dear Brenda,
I noticed that you care deeply about the empowerment of women and highlighting them
as role models in society. My co-founder Angela Musto and I have been female educators in the
science and career development fields respectively, and we have dedicated our time to creating
a school to empower the students in Pittsburgh. We have been working to build a school that
will allow students who learn through hands on experience to get the individualized education
that they deserve and give them the chance to work on their own leadership skills.
On AN UNDECIDED DATE, we will be holding an informational session regarding the
structure and mission of the school. The session will include our fellow colleagues commenting
on the plans we have in place and give their ideas for how to improve the high school
experience in Pittsburgh. We invite you to come write about the session as we explore how to
improve the lives of high school students through their experiences with us and discuss the
importance of the hands-on training for our students.
This event is the chance for Pittsburgh to have a voice in how our youth are educated in
the future and how we, as educators, can help to tailor each individual’s time during school to
set each student off on the right career path after high school. This will include a question and
answer panel in which we will help Pittsburgh citizens to understand our mission in the school.
We will also premiere our promotional video for the school and introduce the student
perspective of how Career Tech will help students in their chosen career fields. This is the
chance to learn about a school that is unlike traditional vocational or high schools in the area.
I will follow up with you about this story within the next few days, but if you have any
questions, feel free to contact me before then. I hope to see you at the informational session.
Sincerely,
Maureen AndersonCo-Founder, Career Tech Charter High School724-709-3383 - [email protected]
MONTH DAY, YEAR
Heidi Brayer, Contributing WriterNEXTPittsburgh
Dear Heidi,
You have written about my co-founder Angela Musto and I’s school Career Tech Charter
High School in your article about Chris Valasek. We are rapidly developing new ideas and
getting closer to opening Career Tech, so we are inviting you to do a follow-up article on our
informational session.
On AN UNDECIDED DATE, we will be holding an informational session regarding the
structure and mission of the school. The session will include our fellow colleagues commenting
on the plans we have in place and give their ideas for how to improve the high school
experience in Pittsburgh. We invite you to come write about the session as we explore how to
improve the lives of high school students through their experiences with us and discuss the
importance of the hands-on training for our students.
This event is the chance for Pittsburgh to have a voice in how our youth are educated in
the future and how we, as educators, can help to tailor each individual’s time during school to
set each student off on the right career path after high school. This will include a question and
answer panel in which we will help Pittsburgh citizens to understand our mission in the school.
We will also premiere our promotional video for the school and introduce the student
perspective of how Career Tech will help students in their chosen career fields. This is the
chance to learn about a school that is unlike traditional vocational or high schools in the area.
I will follow up with you about this story within the next few days, but if you have any
questions, feel free to contact me before then. I hope to see you at the informational session.
Sincerely,
Maureen AndersonCo-Founder, Career Tech Charter High School724-709-3383 - [email protected]
Urban Charter School Provides Personalized Education
PITTSBURGH, PA, MONTH DATE, YEAR - High school students all over the United States
read about the career fields that they could go into after high school. However, many do not get
the chance to experience the workload of these careers, leaving them clueless as to whether a
particular field is the option for them. This means that when these students enter the workforce,
they are faced with the dilemma of whether they are making the right choice for themselves.
In 2014, co-workers Maureen Anderson and Angela Musto created the concept of
Career Tech Charter High School, an innovative approach to on a technology and trade school.
Career Tech is based on creating an environment in which high school students gain hands-on
experience in different technology and trade fields, while contributing work to their local
community. This tech and trade school is unlike other vocational schools that only provide the
basic training for their fields; it gives students the chance to personalize their education and
create their own path to earning their high school diploma.
Career Tech partners with other programs, like the Community College of Allegheny
County (CCAC), to allow students to earn other degrees or certificates in addition to their high
school diploma. Unlike traditional schools, the curriculum will not focus on leading students
towards a secondary education. Instead it will give students the chance to pursue a college
degree or prepare them to enter their career field. Anderson and Musto want their students to
graduate knowing that they are ready for life after high school and that their options are not
limited.
“There is an unmet need for personalized education in this city, in this country, in this
world, and we would like to address that need,” said Anderson. “We want to give learners who
feel marginalized in traditional schools, who may not think that they can be successful because
they don’t fit the traditional mold, an opportunity to be successful in this non-traditional
education model.”
Career Tech will blend traditional and modern trade skills for students. It will offer the
traditional trades, like engineering, and with modern skills in coding, cyber security and robotics.
The program is targeted toward urban students who learn more from working with their
hands, rather than sitting in traditional classrooms. This new design is intended to optimize what
students gain from their high school experience, rather than molding them into the same type of
student. Career Tech also wants students to interact with the community as a whole. This
includes school-wide service learning every month to develop skills and expose students to new
environments.
Career Tech’s educational model challenges the structure of traditional schools, putting
the mental and physical health of students at the core of learning, rather than focusing on basic
skills. While the education itself is important, the students must come first in their education.
Career Tech aims to create an innovative learning environment that will focus on the
students, rather than just what they can hope to learn. With community involvement, a focus on
personal health, and the individualized educational paths, students will earn their high school
diplomas in a way that other schools will not be able provide.
Tweets:
Applications for the 2018 to 2019 school year can be found at careertechcharter.org. Let
us help you find your #success
Check out this article on the need for #HandsOnLearning in #STEM curriculum
http://bit.ly/2fUzENX.
Join Career Tech and @CityPGH on Nov. 9 for #ServiceLearning day. More info:
careertechcharter.org
We have received our #charter. Join us for a celebration on June 9. RSVP:
careertechcharter.org
Open house on April 30 for prospective students. #BuildBrighterFutures RSVP here:
careertechcharter.org
Facebook:
Learning Model
o PICTURE: Of the circular model
o Co-Founder Angela Musto created a new education model that centers on
students’ physical and mental health. How would a health-focused learning
model help you as a student? Learn about how Career Tech can apply their
model to your success. Visit careertechcharter.org.
Open House
o PICTURE: Informational flyer about details for the open house
o Career Tech is holding an open house for hands-on learners who are interested
in developing their skills in the STEM field and various trades. Come discuss the
flexibility Career Tech gives students their pathway to success. What do you
hope Career Tech can do for you? RSVP for the Open House:
careertechcharter.org
Service Learning
o PICTURE: Students helping to pick up trash around the North Side near the
school
o Career Tech students and faculty have made a commitment to give back to the
community at least one day of every month. In _____ (month) they helped to
clean up the streets of their campus. What organizations in Pittsburgh should we
partner with for future service learning days? For more information on service
learning, visit careertechcharter.org
Mental health
o PICTURE: Students practicing meditation
o Career Tech students will dedicate a portion of their time to improving and
bettering their own health. This focus on health will contribute to building their
success during and after high school. What do you do to improve your mental
health? Visit careertechcharter.org for plans regarding the health of students.
Additional Certificates
o Community College of Allegheny County is offering a variety of certification
programs and associate’s degrees to Career Tech students upon graduation.
What fields are you interested in pursuing through these programs? For more
information regarding your path to graduation, visit careertechcharter.org
Radio PSA 30 Second Script - School Tours:
o Career Tech is having an open house where prospective students and their
families can stop by to tour the facilities, discuss the curriculum, and meet the
faculty. The open house will take place on UNDECIDED MONTH AND DAY from
eight a.m. to five p.m. For more information, visit career tech charter dot org or
call Maureen Anderson at seven-two-four-seven-zero-nine-three-three-eight-
three. Once again that is seven-two-four-seven-zero-nine-three-three-eight-three
Radio PSA 15 Second Script - Service Learning:
o Join Career Tech on UNDECIDED MONTH AND DAY when students and faculty
will be partnering with Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership to help tidy up the
streets. For more information, visit career tech charter dot org.
TV PSA 30 Second Script - Physical Health:
Video Audio
Founder InterviewTitle: Maureen Anderson, co-founder of Career Tech
ANDERSON: Career Tech Charter is holding an informational session about the importance of physical health in education.
B-roll: Shot of gym facilities, with students working on a variety of physical activities
ANDERSON: We want to hear from you about our new charter school, and how we can educate the community on the impact health can have on a child’s education.
B-roll: Students having a discussion with Maureen Anderson and Angela Musto (founders)
ANDERSON: This event will open the dialogue about the health of our youth and give us a chance to discuss how we can provide students with the best opportunities.
Logo with career tech charter dot org
For more information, visit career tech charter dot org
TV PSA 15 Second Script - Service Learning:
Video Audio
Student InterviewTitle: Name, Age, Year
STUDENT: Career Tech holds monthly service learning days where students and faculty volunteer within the local community
B-roll: Students cleaning up trash and graffiti in downtown Pittsburgh.
STUDENT: This month we will partner with the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership to brighten the community.
Logo with career tech charter dot org
For information on how to volunteer, visit career tech charter dot org.
Chris Valasek in control
The Pittsburgh hacker, now with Uber security, who got famous taking over the controls of a Jeep
By: Heidi Brayer
One day last summer, Pittsburgh hacker Chris Valasek and fellow researcher Charlie Miller
huddled over a laptop in Miller’s St. Louis home. From there they took over the controls of a
Jeep Grand Cherokee that was driving on a highway ten miles away. First, they commandeered
the air conditioning, blasting cold air into the vehicle. Then they messed with windshield wipers.
Then the radio. And then? They cut the transmission.
Despite how it looked, they weren’t intent on harm — and the driver of the Jeep was in on it.
Their mission was to expose the vulnerability of automobiles that increasingly rely on software.
And they did it well.
Known as the “Jeep Hack” and detailed in a July 2015 Wired article , their exploit—the
culmination of several years of research—was a game-changer in the field of vehicle security.
Less than a week after their exploits went public, Fiat Chrysler announced the recall of 1.4
million vehicles that contained the wireless entertainment system that allowed Valasek and
Miller to take control. In March of this year, the Federal Bureau of Investigation issued an alert
warning motorists of the threat of attacks on their vehicles via remote access.
When he’s not hacking for the greater good, Valasek works as security lead at Pittsburgh’s Uber
Advaned Technologies Center in the Strip District. Who better to hire to protect the fleet? (As
reported by Wired in an updated article last month, Miller now works there as well.)
Chris Valasek, left, and Charlie Miller hamming it up.
Over an iced coffee at Lawrenceville’s Espresso a Mano—a short distance from the Uber center
—the 34-year-old Valasek talked about his love of all things Pittsburgh, his latest research, and
his involvement with a group of educators to start a high school that aims, among other things,
to teach kids the fine artistry of hacking.
Valasek’s formal training in computer science began at the University of Pittsburgh.
“It was the only school I applied to,” says Valasek who, less than two weeks after graduation,
was offered a job in programming in Atlanta and moved south. Eventually, he worked for a
company that allowed him to work remotely. He moved back to Pittsburgh in 2011 and started
working at Uber in September of last year.
“For me, Pittsburgh offers all the amenities of a city, but it doesn’t feel suffocating to me like
New York or Los Angeles or San Francisco. All my people are here,” says Valasek, who grew
up north of Pittsburgh in Ford City. Since his return, he has resided in Shadyside.
Valasek wasn’t so much surprised as excited to find that when he returned, Pittsburgh had
firmly established itself as a state-of-the-future tech hub.
“We have some of the hottest biggest companies to work for here in tech,” Valasek says, adding
that one of his favorite new pastimes is showing West Coast friends around the city. “You’re like
‘Here’s a house you can buy,’ and they are like ‘What?’ I have friends that own a house, and
they are thinking about starting a brewery too. It’s not just a pipe dream. You can accomplish
something like that here.”
Not long after his return, Valasek began volunteering with Maureen Anderson, who at the time
was the career readiness and post-high school planning teacher at City Charter High School in
Pittsburgh. The two started an after-school club to get kids interested in cybersecurity.
The club didn’t take off the way they had hoped and the pair realized that they needed to
expose kids to cyber concepts at an earlier age. So they partnered again, this time with a group
of educators trying to start a technologies and trade space charter school for Pittsburgh
students. For Valasek, it was critical that the school include a cyber education component.
“I want to create a curriculum for kids in 7th through 12th grades,” he says. “I realize that getting
them in 10th grade, you are already too late. They have already made up their minds of whether
they want to do computers or not.”
Chief among Valasek’s priorities is teaching students that they do not need to be a programmer
to work in tech. There are countless unfilled positions in the field of cybersecurity where ethical
hackers like Valasek can thrive.
“I was a terrible programmer,” says Valasek. “I like to think that I am fairly good at breaking
other people’s stuff. Not everyone has to build. We need breakers to make builders build better
things.”
The high school envisioned by the group that Valasek and Anderson are working with builds off
the recent success of the maker movement and will target urban students who may not be
college-bound directly out of high school.
“What’s a year of college going to cost you these days? We’ll say at least 30 grand. If you can
come out of your senior year [of high school] making 40 Gs a year, and you don’t have any
student debt, you are so far ahead of your peers that it is ridiculous,” Valasek says.
Their plans morphed into high gear when, in the fall of 2015, Laurene Powell Jobs, Steve Jobs’
widow, launched a $50 million initiative called XQ: The Super School Project inviting teams of
educators and students to rethink high school. Valasek and Anderson competed to be one of
the five winning schools to receive $10 million each.
Anderson explained that Valasek’s input was crucial; he prepared a detailed cybersecurity
curriculum that will ideally allow high school students to graduate with a university-backed
certification and begin working in the field. Their team in the XQ competition—they were team
number 1,574—made it through the first two rounds of vetting in the XQ project and submitted
their final proposal in May. While they weren’t one of five schools selected in the extremely
competitive project, their attempt served a purpose.
“No matter what, it was the most amazing experience because I got to work with really
phenomenal people like Chris,” says Anderson, who in addition to working full-time at City
Charter High School, is in grad school at Point Park University to earn her principal’s certificate
and doctorate in education. “He wanted to get involved with youth in school. He’s very
enthusiastic about more young people learning about coding and cybersecurity.”
When Valasek is not working, he spends time boxing and wakeboarding on weekends at a
property he owns north of Pittsburgh that he shares with two shelter dogs: Karma and Ada. The
latter is named for Ada Lovelace, an English mathematician from the 1800s who is widely
credited with writing instructions for the first computer program.
It takes some prodding to get Valasek off the topics of Pittsburgh’s awesomeness and the
importance of cybersecurity education and back to his latest research. Namely, any plans for
future hacks with Miller?
In late July, the two presented their latest work at Black Hat, a global meetup of cybersecurity
researchers.
“The last couple of years have been ‘Can you control a car? What can you control? and ‘Can
you do that remotely?’, he says. “Now, we are looking back at this and saying ‘Say you want to
fine tune this, and say that we can control in any granularity that we want. It’s kind of refinement
of the beginning of the process, which is cool.”