Old Forge High School Senior Jacob Abplanalp talks about frustration among law enforcement students at the Wilkes-Barre Area Career and Technical Center following the suspension of the class teacher, Joe Lakkis. Students set up signs and stood outside the center Tuesday calling for Lakkis return, contending they are not being adequately prepared for key tests scheduled for Monday.
Mark Guydish | Times Leader
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Wilkes-Barre Area Career and Technical Center students set up tables and signs Tuesday outside the building calling for the return of suspended law enforcement teacher Joe Lakkis.
Mark Guydish | Times Leader
PLAINS TWP. — Wilkes-Barre Area Career and Technical Center law enforcement students staged a protest outside the school Tuesday calling for the return of their suspended teacher, Joe Lakkis. They contend they are not being properly prepared for a key industry test to be administered Monday.
“Our students need hands-on training for our tests for NOCTI,” Old Forge High School senior Jacob Abplanalp said, “which if we don’t pass, we don’t get our college credits.”
NOCTI stands for National Occupational Competency Testing Institute. NOCTI credentials are widely accepted in many industries, and the test results are used by the state in measuring CTC performance.
About 50 students attend the Wilkes-Barre Area CTC for the law enforcement program, split between morning and afternoon sessions. The Center’s website bills the program has preparing students “for careers as municipal or state police officers, dispatchers, F.B.I. agents, U.S. Marshals, park rangers, security officers, military police officers, probation officers, sheriffs, surveillance system monitors and correction officers.”
The CTC is run jointly for five member districts in Luzerne County. Old Forge is not a member district, but Abplanalp said he couldn’t get training for law enforcement near his school. He also said the failure to provide a fully certified teacher so close to the tests is hurting the future of seniors in the program.
The students said Lakkis was suspended “for petty reasons,” but did not have any information other than rumors and speculations involving some sort of confrontation in the school. They said Lakkis has been suspended for about six weeks.
CTC can’t discuss matter
Inside, CTC Administrative Director Anthony Guariglia said he could not discuss the matter because it was a personnel issue. “I understand their frustration,” he said of the students, but he also said he is confident the students would be properly prepared for the NOCTI practical exams (they have already taken the written exams), especially if they would return to class with the staffing made available to them. “I think they’ll do just fine.”
While he would not confirm Lakkis was suspended, Guariglia did confirm there was a suspension near the end of March, but also pointed out that students were off about a week for Easter/spring break, reducing the days of classwork after the suspension.
Guariglia said he is confident the issue will be fully resolved by the next meeting of the Joint Operating Committee that runs the center. The JOC is comprised of school board directors from the five districts that are CTC members. The meeting is scheduled for May 15.
Reach Mark Guydish at 570-991-6112 or on Twitter @TLMarkGuydish