April 2026

From My Desk: President & CEO, Dr. Aisha Francis

Hello, friends

Spring is a time of bloom, transformation, and nature’s cue to start fresh. At Franklin Cummings Tech, we have experienced that growth through the first semester in our new campus building.

The halls of campus are lively with preparations for commencement, and students are enjoying the camaraderie and celebration in communal spaces like our Yawkey Student Lounge and rooftop Liberty Level.

The backdrop is new, but the programming remains cutting-edge to meet the needs of a 21st-century tech and trade workforce.

The automotive program, a historic staple of our institution, now has dedicated ports for hybrid and electric vehicles. The Optical Shop is providing prescription glasses and telehealth eye exams to students and faculty from throughout the college. Our robotics lab exposes students to the top-of-the-line manufacturing equipment in the industry and students are producing items such as recognition plaques and signage. Finally, our students in our building engineering technology, HVAC and Refrigeration, as well as Practical Electricity majors students are learning by doing with our own net-zero building as a learning tool—exactly as planned.

We are grateful for the ways that our community has been showing up to support us. Earlier this month, our Momentum Celebration fundraising event welcomed hundreds of attendees to celebrate our bright new future while raising scholarship funds to support student access. Engaged corporate partnerships like those with Schneider Electric – thanks to whom our college cheered on the Franklin Cummings Tech Marathon team for the second year in a row — help our new home come alive.

It is also a pleasure to celebrate the success of our graduating students who are landing jobs and announcing next steps in their educational journeys with much fanfare at our now Annual Match Day event. The season of celebration continues through May, when we will welcome The Honorable Senator Ed Markey as the 2026 Franklin Cummings Tech Commencement Speaker.

While we savor spring’s renewal, may this season empower us all to set new intentions and embrace the positive change in the air.

With hope and joy,

Aisha Francis, PhD

President & CEO

A Momentous Celebration

We are thrilled to share that our Momentum Celebration gala raised over $1 million from more than 140 individual and institutional donors that will support scholarships for Franklin Cummings Tech students, the college’s top fundraising priority.

The support for the college allows us to continue our critical commitment to educational achievement for a diverse student population through hands-on, cutting-edge technical and trade programming.

The signature event in the college’s Year of Celebration honoring the new building, marked a watershed moment in the 118-year history of Franklin Cummings Tech, as we completed our move into a new home in Roxbury’s Nubian Square.

Celebrating Apprenticeship Week
with Commodore Builders

For National Apprenticeship Week, Franklin Cummings Tech is celebrating our partnership with Commodore Builders.

Commodore Builders President Tom Comeau sat down with Franklin Cummings Tech President and CEO Aisha Francis, PhD, to discuss the power of workforce partnerships and the importance of career-connected learning for students.

“It is a way for students to really put into practice their classroom experience in a real-world environment. That’s what Commodore is offering to Markin, with whom you were paired over the past year, and to others.”

Dr. Aisha Francis, President & CEO

We are thankful to our employer partners like Commodore Builders for providing Franklin Cummings Tech students valuable opportunities to work for pay in their field while they continue their educational journey. It doesn’t have to be a choice between work or school. It can be both.

April 30th is the annual Match Day at Franklin Cummings Tech, where we officially pair our co-op students with employer partners to begin their co-op program. See highlights from last year’s event here.

Cybersecurity students visit Massport

Students from our Computer Information Technology program visited the Massachusetts Port Authority for an inside look at the complex cybersecurity needs of a quasi-governmental agency managing three airports and the public terminals in the port of Boston.

Students toured the headquarters to experience the real-world careers and technologies protecting critical infrastructure across the state. The visit showed them how their classroom experience equips them to be career-ready for high-demand cybersecurity jobs.

Franklin Cummings Tech project wins CREW Boston's Networking Achievement Award

Franklin Cummings Tech celebrated the talented women and women-led businesses who masterfully designed our purpose-built campus building in Nubian Square.

The college was awarded the Networking Achievement Award from CREW Boston, celebrating our innovative building that had technical education centered in every design consideration.

The college now stands as a beacon of accessible education and economic opportunity for the Roxbury community and all of Greater Boston. Thank you to all of the women who collaborated with us on this project, and to CREW Boston for the acknowledgement.

Celebrating our Marathon Team

The 2026 Franklin Cummings Tech marathon team raised over $40,000 in support of student services and scholarships. The Friday before the big race, the six runners were celebrated by the college’s faculty, students, and our partners at Schneider Electric, who graciously contributed bibs in support of the team.

You can read more about how these runners chose to fundraise for Franklin Cummings Tech through the Marathon Spotlight page on our website.

Employee Spotlight: Greg Chludzinki

"Helping students showcase their experience"

Greg has a personal connection to Franklin Cummings Tech’s mission to create economic advancement through high-paying careers. His own family’s story reflects that promise.

Greg’s grandfather earned an automotive certificate from the then-named Franklin Institute in 1949, using G.I. Bill funds to enter the manufacturing industry. Greg’s father later became the first in the family to earn a college degree and build a career in photovoltaics.

When Greg joined Franklin Cummings Tech’s Career Services team in 2024, he stepped into a role that facilitated the same economic advancement his family experienced.

Soon after starting, Greg noticed a challenge many students faced: they could describe their technical training, but it did not always translate clearly on a resume or in an interview. Employers wanted to understand what students could do, not just what they had studied. Greg saw an opportunity to bridge that gap.

To help solve this problem, Greg led the creation of “student showcases” that give employers a direct look at Franklin Cummings Tech talent in action. Before career fairs, students now participate in hands-on demonstrations that allow them to show their skills, communicate their value, and make a stronger impression on potential employers.

“There is a large focus on helping students show their experience,” Greg said. “That way, beyond the elevator pitch, they can demonstrate their technical skills to an audience that would want to hire them.”

What Greg finds most fulfilling about his role at FC Tech is being a part of a student’s success story. “There is a tangible benefit that you don’t get in other lines of work,” he said. “The student gets a career, and the business strengthens its workforce. It makes all the work that we do worth it.”

For Greg, the mission is more than institutional. It is a family heirloom. His grandfather’s certificate opened one door, his father’s degree opened another, and now Greg helps Franklin Cummings Tech students open the next one.

Commencement: Mark(ey) your calendars

Senator Ed Markey will address approximately 200 Franklin Cummings Tech graduates as the Commencement Speaker at our May graduation. Families, friends, and members of the Roxbury community will gather at the Reggie Lewis Center, to celebrate the educational journey of Franklin Cummings Tech graduates.

This year’s cohort includes record numbers in our Practical Electricity, HVAC, and Automotive Technology programs. This class also marks the first graduate from our new Biotechnology Associate Degree program, which has continued to grow since its launch in 2024.

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