Student Training Adjustment for Realistic Transitions, or S.T.A.R.T., is an Exceptional Student Services (ESS) Career Program offered at Metro Tech High School.  Students with disabilities ranging from mild to moderate can enroll in the program to build work-readiness skills with the goal of transitioning successfully into independent living and employment after high school.  S.T.A.R.T. also provides opportunities for Metro Tech general education and ESS students to be paid employees in the Metro Tech cafeteria each year.

The S.T.A.R.T. Program is responsible for serving over 1,500 meals daily to the student body and staff at Metro Tech High School. The meals are created by our ESS students and led by our vocational chef and ESS instructors.  In addition, the students are responsible for the entirety of cafeteria operations necessary to run a comprehensive high school cafeteria.  

S.T.A.R.T. trains students in:

• Industrial food production and service

• Laundry services

• Custodial work

• Cafeteria set up and logistics  

• Theoretical and functional academic curriculum

• Workplace and transitional standards to prepare students for employment after high school

• Skills in social and emotional development

The S.T.A.R.T. program at Metro Tech is the only ESS vocational food service program in the state of Arizona and there are only a few comparable models in the nation.  The students and staff in the S.T.A.R.T. program pride themselves in their innovative work and are excited to share that many students in the program have gone on to find successful employment within the PUHSD community as well as in industry within the community after leaving Metro Tech.

Janae Bobo | ESS Teacher
Email Janae Bobo(602) 764-8199 

Jessica Thompson
Email Jessica Thompson
(602) 764-8199

Derek Bahler | ESS Teacher
Email Derek Bahler
(602) 764-8229

@startmetrotech - See us in action!

Cafeteria Menus
See what the S.T.A.R.T. Program is offering for Breakfast and Lunch for all students and staff at Metro Tech this month!

Best Buddies Organization
Best Buddies International is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment and leadership development for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).

Metro Tech hosts a local Best Buddies chapter that works closely with the S.T.A.R.T. Program as well as other Exceptional Student Service Career Programs on campus.