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Local Spencer Murray Fostering Career & Tech. Education
By Jessica Schultz

Some people thrive on being busy. They take on many projects, have big plans, big dreams and make a large impact on the communities they work in. One such individual is Ellicottville’s Spencer Murray. The Villager had a chance to grab some time with Spencer to discuss everything he has been up to recently and he had a lot to share.

   The Villager (V): You’ve been very busy lately, what new projects are you working on?

   Spencer (S): Well, not so many new projects, but definitely doing some great things out there.  Experience Your Chef has continued to grow and has been busier than ever. Doing all sorts of parties from company cooking demonstrations, to weddings, and bachelorette parties.  It continues to be a lot of fun and it is exciting to see the company grow. We have more chefs now and can-do multiple parties on the same night. I still serve on the Buffalo & Erie County Workforce Investment Board, which has been doing some great things such as expanding it’s On the Job Training programs and really engaging with local employers to help get them support for training and finding employees. I now work for a company called the National Coalition of Certification Centers (NC3) which I absolutely love.  It is a non-profit educational organization that works to be the bridge between education and industry.  We work with community colleges, high schools and middle schools around the country in the Career and Technical Education world.  With our global leading industry partners, like Snap-On Tools, 3M, Lincoln Electric and Trane, we create industry recognized credentials to help students build a career in the skilled trades, which there is such need for skilled individuals, and they can make a lot of money. I travel the country now to meet with these industry partners and visit schools to help promote, enhance and grow the world of career and technical education and help change the perception; that it is a career driven field, not just a job for those who don’t go to college. I really enjoy the work and being a part of the continued growth of CTE.

     I continue to work with Rock Autism, a non-profit music and arts organization that creates multimedia camps and classes for autistic individuals with the goal of one day finding them jobs.  We recently filmed a TV show pilot called “Setlist’ that is based on a band from Buffalo trying to make it in the entertainment business. Based on a true story of the organization founders and family members, who dealt with many struggles throughout life while trying to stick together. We used the students from our multimedia camps as interns on the show and were able to pay them. We premiered the TV show in Los Angles and just premiered it in Buffalo.  We have been making great connections around the country and hoping to get a shot in the big times over the next year. It is an exciting project and can’t wait to see where we can go with it. Why not us?

   V: You spent some time in Washington, could you share what that trip entailed?

   S: The trip to Washington, DC was for a conference called The FORUM, put on by the National Association of Workforce Boards. I serve on their Board of Directors, and was just re-elected to another three (3) year term. This event brings local and state workforce boards, industry and educators together to discuss trends, innovations and opportunities to better communities and enhance the world of workforce, which through covid, has put many of our industries into a workforce crisis.  The key elements surrounding the conference are the need of communities to come together, think outside of the box, work through investment and training to address the skills gap, and focus our attention to students at a younger age and make career readiness the true priority of American education and the workforce system. I got to moderate a panel with executives from Walmart, McDonalds, Lincoln Electric and FutureFit AI, which leads our country towards getting people back to work, and investing in individuals’ futures.

   V: Are you still operating your Experience Your Chef endeavor?

   S: I still am and it is going great! Busier than ever. We are having so much fun doing all different types of events and creating fun, exciting and memorable food and beverage experiences for others.

   V: What’s on your plate next?

   S: I look to continue to get involved in my local workforce board even more and make a difference in my community. I hope to make an impact on a national level with workforce and education, by continuing to bridge the gap of industry and education and continue to build up and promote the world of career and technical education and skills.  I will continue to work to push and promote our TV show pilot, “Setlist” across the country in hopes to get the show picked up.  We continue our search for investors as we truly believe we have a great concept and show.

   Thank you, Spencer, for taking the time to speak with us and to share all your upcoming plans. Looking forward to “Setlist” becoming a series!!

 

Continuation Quote: “With our global leading industry partners, like Snap-On Tools, 3M, Lincoln Electric and Trane, we create industry recognized credentials to help students build a career in the skilled trades, which there is such need for skilled individuals, and they can make a lot of money. I travel the country now to meet with these industry partners and visit schools to help promote, enhance and grow the world of career and technical education and help change the perception; that it is a career driven field, not just a job for those who don’t go to college. I really enjoy the work and being a part of the continued growth of CTE.”


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