Kishwaukee Education Consortium

 

It seems like Career and Technical Education (CTE) is having a moment. But for many of us working in the field of CTE, we’ve witnessed lots of incredible moments, and we’ve watched students do lots of amazing things. And we’re thrilled that lots of other people are finally taking notice.

But wait. Taking notice of what? Not sure you even know what CTE is? Sure, you do!

 

CTE is the practice of teaching specific skills to students so that they’re prepared for high-skill, high-wage, and high-demand jobs. CTE programs are in middle schools, high schools, and post-secondary schools across the country. These programs provide students with the academic and technical skills they need to pursue the jobs they want.

 

And they want jobs doing all kinds of things in all kinds of settings. Luckily, CTE prepares students for all kinds of occupations – everything from careers in the trades to transportation to technology, as well as health sciences, public safety, education, engineering, and much more.

 

So, think back for a minute. You may have been in school when these programs were known as vocational education and were more limited in scope (maybe something like shop class or home ec). For many years, CTE programs weren’t necessarily popular or even available to all students in middle school or high school. But over time, these programs have grown tremendously and so has the support for them. In fact, 97% of all public high school graduates have earned CTE credits, and 47 states have put forth policies with industry partners to expand CTE programs even further.

 

Now more than ever, students in CTE course are taking what they’ve learned in the classroom and applying it in the real world and in real time. Exciting, hands-on, meaningful learning happens in CTE classes daily. What’s even more exciting is that students taking CTE courses in our schools today will be the highly skilled workforce in our communities tomorrow!

Take a moment. Look around. You’ll see CTE at work everywhere in our world. CTE is here for good. And that’s a great thing!