Send us Fan Mail

ExcessiveBanter is New England’s unofficial therapy session — where we laugh, rant, and drink Dunkin’ while yelling at refs. From Boston to Bangor and the Cape to Providence, we’re talkin’ food, politics, sports, accents, and all the wicked pissah weirdness that makes New England what it is.

Send us Fan Mail

In Part 2 of our Don Bosco Trade High School series on ExcessiveBanter, we dig into the “why” behind the rebirth of this legendary vocational institution.

Hosted by Paul 'Benny' MacLellan — Don Bosco Tech-Boston alum and DBT High Board Member — highlights the urgent demand for skilled workers, with recent studies showing that more than 70% of U.S. contractors report difficulty filling trade positions and that the construction industry alone will need close to half a million additional workers in the next year. Against this backdrop, the return of schools like Don Bosco to the South Shore of Boston comes at exactly the right moment.

We also take a look at how other private and faith-based trade schools across the country — from Mercy Tech in Philly and St. Peter's Career/Tech in Houston, a Catholic network of work-study schools to smaller Catholic and independent technical academies — are successfully combining academics, career training, and values-based education to meet this growing need.

This episode paints a clearer picture of how all of these schools, like Don Bosco Trade High School is not only reviving its own legacy, but positioning itself as part of a broader national movement to restore dignity, purpose, and opportunity in the trades.

Send us Fan Mail

In this inspiring episode of ExcessiveBanter, we introduce the rebirth of a legendary name in vocational education — the Don Bosco Trade High School, now returning to the South Shore of Boston as a private, coeducational Catholic trade school.

Host Paul MacLellan, a proud Don Bosco Tech Boston alum and Board Member, shares how this reimagined institution will offer young men and women across Massachusetts a meaningful, hands-on alternative to traditional high school education — rooted in technical skill, faith, discipline, and purpose.

Set to offer programs in Electrical, HVAC, Carpentry, Plumbing, and CAD, alongside core academics and spiritual formation, Don Bosco Trade High School is poised to reshape how we educate future professionals — not just in MA, but as a national model for what trade schools can and should be.

This episode is an open invitation to business leaders, unions, educators, donors, and anyone invested in our future workforce. Learn how you can help us raise the funds to open doors for students, expand access to financial aid, and build a path where every student — regardless of background — can thrive.

🔧 This isn’t just about rebuilding a school. It’s about restoring pride in the trades — for every student ready to build a better future.