Melissa Murphy’s eighth grader had been looking forward to the day she would learn whether she was accepted into a Danvers school that has the only nearby equine science program: Essex North Shore Agricultural & Technical School.
“Essex Tech has been a goal of hers literally since about fourth grade,” Murphy said. “She has been volunteering the last few years at local barns, helping out with vet groups. She’s really been motivated to stay on top of her schoolwork because she knew that it was a competitive program to get into.”
On Feb. 5, the day came. But it wasn’t the outcome the family wanted. Murphy’s daughter got waitlisted.
Until last year, putting together a strong application would’ve helped her get in. Now, getting into Essex Tech is entirely a matter of chance.
“I get that the goal is fairness,” Murphy said. “But I think to go from it being an open system where you apply and you say why you’re applying, it just seems like a drastic jump from one extreme to the other.”
Every one of the more that two dozen vocational and technical school in Massachusetts is now using a lottery system to fill their thousands of seats, a change from past years, when acceptance had been based largely on merit, including grades and attendance. Some schools still choose to give extra weight to students with good attendance or demonstrated interest, but grades play no role.
It’s a change some had been pushing for years, arguing it finally gives marginalized students a chance of getting in.
Recent analyses by advocacy groups and local media showed the old admissions system was systematically leaving out students of color, disabled students, low-income students and English language learners. A federal civil rights complaint three years ago alleged that the admissions policies were illegally exclusionary.
But the new admissions system has left many parents frustrated that merit has been largely taken out of the equation. They want the state to take a second look after this year’s admissions cycle.
Voc-tech schools have become resoundingly popular in Massachusetts after decades of being dismissed as trade schools for academically underperforming students. The education can cover everything from cosmetology to HVAC to culinary arts to IT. The benefits are clear, too — namely, better on-time graduation rates and higher earnings right out of high school.
The state’s Board of Elementary and Secondary Education voted last May to switch to a lottery system to pursue equity.
“I was like, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me. ... Let’s just pick you out of a hat,” said Alexis Smyka, a North Attleboro parent.
Her son won a spot at Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School in Franklin this year through the lottery. She says he has ADHD and mild dyslexia, and works better learning independently and with visual and auditory aids. Her son is excited about culinary arts in the fall.
“I can see the other side of things like, ‘Well, everybody should have the opportunity,’” Smyka continued. “Well, they do. They did have that opportunity to go. They just had to show that they really wanted to go there and put forth some effort.”
Advocates who have been pushing to level the playing field acknowledge the anger.
“Some white middle-class parents might be upset their kid didn’t get in,” said Dan French, the board president of the nonprofit Citizens for Public Schools. “Well, a just-as-deserving Black student, Latino student, low-income student, immigrant student or student with disabilities did get in. And that’s a good thing.”
A spokesperson with the state’s Department of Elementary and Secondary Education underscored that the purpose of the new lottery system is equal access.
“This is about making sure that every student in Massachusetts has equal access to our incredible career technical education schools and programs,” communications director Jacqueline Reis wrote in an emailed statement. “We continue to collect data and work with schools to ensure implementation of the new admissions process is a success.”
One advocate compared the old process to competitive college admissions, saying it used to put this kind of education out of reach.
“I know many parents that are grateful for this change,” said Norieliz DeJesus, who leads La Colaborativa’s Youth Career Exploration Center in Chelsea. “They feel like their children now actually have an option to enter the school.”
“Every student deserves to have the right to access vocational education, because vocational education unlocks so many opportunities for students,” said Brian Dezurick, an attorney at Metrowest Legal Services who works with students with disabilities.
Advocates and parents on every side of this issue agree that Massachusetts needs more of these schools. That’s where many people want the focus to be, instead of how to pick which kids get in.
“Regardless of the methodology used, there are still students that we can’t take. And I wish we could take every student.”Jill Rossetti, the superintendent-director at Blue Hills Regional Technical High School in Canton
The state could likely fill a few thousand more vocational education spots, a DESE-funded 2019 analysis found, on top of the tens of thousands of spots already filled.
“There’s not enough seats,” said Jill Rossetti, the superintendent-director at Blue Hills Regional Technical High School in Canton. “Regardless of the methodology used, there are still students that we can’t take. And I wish we could take every student.”
Tim Murray, president and CEO of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce, and former lieutenant governor under Deval Patrick, says he opposed the switch last year.
“I just think the governor’s approach to this was completely wrong,” Murray said. “If this was packaged with a major initiative that said, ‘Within five years, we’re going to eliminate waiting lists,’ we might have a different conversation. But that was not what happened here.”
Murray says that instead of rationing seats to voc-tech schools, “the goal should be dramatically expanding.”
“The single biggest issue we hear on a day-to-day basis — the number-one issue — is workforce training,” he said. “People who can come with skills and a knowledge of what the world of work expects of them. ... Voc-tech does that.”
Some worry graduation rates, grades and MCAS scores could slip under the new system. But even if that happens, for some advocates, it’s evidence that the schools need to be doing more.
Equity in admissions, Dezurick says, is just the first step.
“The other piece is these students having success once they’re actually going to the schools,” he said.
Rossetti, at Blue Hills Regional, said her focus now is how to help kids succeed.
“Our responsibility isn’t just about admissions, the process. It’s after that,” she said. “We have to support everyone that enrolls.”
The question now is what the state will do next. If the new system needs an overhaul, some tweaks to weigh merit more or less, or leave things as they are.
Right now, under the state’s new policy, schools can use a straight-up blind lottery or implement a weighted lottery. Depending on the school, some students can get up to three extra entries for strong attendance, no disciplinary history or demonstrated interest. About a fifth of standalone voc-tech schools are using the blind lottery system, according to the state’s education department.
“That was kind of a compromise ... [for] people who feel as though [students] should be rewarded for doing the right things, like coming to school, not getting in trouble,” said Shaun Dougherty, a Boston College professor whose research focuses on education policy analysis.
Aaron Polansky, president of the Massachusetts Association of Vocational Administrators, opposed switching from a lottery system and disputes the idea that there were statewide issues. So far this year, he says says there have been two specific issues he’s identified as problematic in this first admissions cycle: kids of school staff and siblings who don’t get in through the lottery.
“If a single parent had to drive one student to one high school and another student to another high school, what does that feel like? What are the true impacts of that?” he said.
“Those have been some big stumbling points that I think are resolvable,” Polansky added. “Whether or not that’s of interest to them, I think, will be up to the state.”
It will be some time before the actual impact of the lottery system is clear. Admissions data for next fall’s incoming class will be released next spring, and it’ll take years more to track trends like graduation rates and grades.
The current admissions cycle is still underway and it’s possible that Melissa Murphy’s daughter gets off the waitlist to join Essex Tech’s class of 2030.
“The tough part is: I don’t have any good answers,” Murphy said.
DeJesus at La Colaborativa said students should be the priority here.
“The interest for vocational trade opportunity is huge right now. A lot of youth love to do more of the hands-on work,” she said. “They’re the most important piece of this all, is making sure that they feel comfortable, aware, informed and can access these opportunities.”
