Paul Tocci

Paul Tocci grew up riding and fixing dirt bikes, so when he learned of Eastern Suffolk BOCES Automotive Technology Program while attending Riverhead High School, he knew he would eventually enroll. Paul attended the Academy at Ward Technical Center in Riverhead and obtained an internship at the Subaru car dealership in Riverhead through the program. “The summer after my internship, I was hired full time and began working six days a week at the dealership,” Paul said. He is grateful to ESBOCES for the internship placement, as he continued to work at the dealership for six years, throughout his completion of high school and college. Paul attended SUNY Morrisville, earning a Bachelor of Business Administration in Automotive Management, completing two additional internships through the college.

As Paul was about to graduate, he learned of the opportunity to teach full time at ESBOCES. Paul was placed teaching Vehicle Mechanics at Islip Career Center and while it is a big change from working as an Automotive Tech in the field, Paul feels he has found what he was meant to do. He is currently applying to get his Masters in Career and Technical Education through SUNY Oswego. “When parents tell me that their child loves coming to school because of my class, or that their behavior at home and in school has changed because of my class – that’s very rewarding,” says Paul. “It feels good to be giving them not only career skills, but life skills that they will always need.”

Click here to read about our Automotive Technology Program