By: Chris

The 2012 Lemelson-MIT Invention Index, a survey of 1,010 Americans aged 16-25, provides a helpful look into the younger generations’ perception of the role of invention and innovation in the American economy. While the naming of Steve Jobs as the second greatest inventor behind Thomas Edison is getting all the headlines, there are a number of other findings that are worth noting.

Nearly half of respondents (47 percent) correctly noted that a lack of invention will hurt the U.S. economy; yet, 60 percent say factors such as the lack of attention that invention is given in school and being underprepared by the school system overall “could keep them from pursuing an education or career in science, technology, engineering or math.” The survey specifically reveals a glaring lack of the type of hands-on education needed to cultivate inventors and innovators. As Leigh Estabrooks, the Lemelson-MIT Program’s invention education officer, points out, “this year’s survey revealed that less than half of respondents have done things like used a drill or hand-held power tool, or made something out of raw materials in the past year.”

When asked how schools could remedy the lack of education that develops and encourages invention, 54 percent of respondents said the inclusion of invention projects during school or creative field trips could be a solution; while 52 percent said “simply giving students a place to develop an invention could do the trick.”

In addition to school programs, 80 percent of respondents expressed interest in extra-curricular education training courses to help them become more inventive and creative, and 58 percent said an opportunity to participate in an “invention-related training program…where aspiring inventors can ‘shadow’ working professionals in science, technology, engineering and math would encourage aspiring inventors in the U.S.”

How are CTE programs in your school developing future inventors and innovators?

By: Alisha

Once again, the National Research Center for Career and Technical Education will be offering a special session during the National Policy Seminar. This year’s session is titled, “Using Labor Market Information within a Program of Study Context.” The session will be held live at NPS from 1:30-3:00 on Tuesday, March 6, and webcast for those not able to attend.

A key ingredient in developing programs of study (POS) is labor market information (LMI), specifically data related to employment projections. Career Clusters: Forecasting High School through College Jobs, 2008-2018, a report co-authored by the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce (CEW), the National Research Center for Career and Technical Education (NRCCTE), and the National Association of State Directors of Career Technical Education Consortium (NASDCTEc), took employment projections information and reorganized it using the sixteen career clusters. In this session, some of the co-authors of the report will discuss how this was done, which career clusters are in the highest demand, and how you can use LMI to develop locally relevant POS. The speakers will include:

• James R. Stone, III—Director, NRCCTE
• Kim Green—Executive Director, NASDCTEc
• Bruce Steuernagel—Minnesota State Colleges & Universities System
• Pradeep Kotamraju—Deputy Director, NRCCTE

More information can be found on the NRCCTE Web site.

By: Steve

On February 2, I attended a briefing on Capitol Hill titled “The Role of the School Counselor: Helping Students Achieve." The event featured finalists in the American School Counselor Association’s 2012 School Counselor of the Year program. Participants discussed the important role that school counselors play in meeting the needs of the whole child to improve their academic achievement and emphasized the need for counseling services in the upcoming reauthorization of ESEA.

Part of the discussion addressed what is needed to ensure students are college and career ready. Dave Forrester, a counselor from Olympia (WA) High School, explained how college and career readiness is integrated at his school. I discussed this issue with him after the presentation and learned that Olympia High School has a Career Cruising College and career readiness curriculum it uses. The curriculum includes a course that students take that is focused on their career goals.

Dave’s presentation also highlighted his use of data to identify students at risk of low performance or dropping out. He uses research indicating students are more at risk if they have one academic failure. Other counselors providing compelling evidence that counseling interventions have helped to keep students in school and improve their academic performance.

Mary Kusler with the National Education Association, a co-sponsor of the event, noted that the Elementary and Secondary School Counseling Program has been eliminated in ESEA legislation, something NEA opposes. ACTE also opposes the elimination and joins in thanking school counselors for the important, and often unheralded, roles they perform each day.

By: Jamie

With Congress beginning work on the Fiscal Year 2013 budget and appropriations process, our voice is needed more than ever to ensure that CTE programs are able to be successful in preparing students for careers in skilled occupations. 

The CTE Support Fund is gearing up for another year of advocating for CTE programs. Money raised through the CTE Support Fund goes directly to ACTE’s advocacy efforts and strives to educate policymakers on the great things CTE is doing throughout the country. These funds are necessary to ensure that ACTE has a strong presence on Capitol Hill and can demonstrate the value of CTE programming.

A great big thank you to all of you who donated in 2011! We couldn’t have maintained funding for Perkins without all of you.

Let’s all work together to ensure that 2012 is even more successful than 2011. Please visit the CTE Support Fund page and donate to ACTE’s advocacy efforts.

Remember, the more voices we have, the more of an impact we make. Collectively we can call upon Congress to restore funding cuts to Perkins and ensure that CTE programming remains a priority on Capitol Hill. 

By: Ashley

Greetings from the South Dakota Capitol building! This week, in an effort to assist South Dakota CTE leaders and educators in promoting CTE Month and raising awareness in their state of the vibrant, vital CTE programs here, I am conducting a media tour across the state.

We started our tour in Sioux Falls where I visited the new CTE Academy. Several members of the local media attended a tour and met with me; Dodie Bemis, the Executive Director of SDACTE; and Jim Kayl, the superintendent of the CTE Academy, for a discussion on the programs offered and the benefits for students. We visited Mitchell Technical Institute in the afternoon, meeting again with members of the media and touring the facility. MTI offers a unique element to their energy trades program—a practice arena for students to learn the skills needed to succeed as a lineman, including full-sized power poles that students are able to climb and use to learn how to apply crossbars and other elements of a power cabling. There is also an outdoor field, and off-site from the main campus the program has acquired a wind turbine in a functioning wind field that allows students to practice the skills needed to maintain and repair turbines.

The next day, we were up early to join two Watertown morning radio shows, KSDR with Jeff Anderson, and KWAT with Mike Tanner. I was joined by several teachers and administrators from Lake Area Multi-District (LAMD) and Lake Area Technical Institute (LATI). We then visited each campus for tours and to meet with a reporter from the local Watertown newspaper. At LAMD, I learned about a great career exploration course offered to freshman, enabling them to explore all 16 of the career clusters in sections of four clusters per quarter.  I also had a chance to see a house built entirely by students in the construction courses and sponsored by a local contractor who provides supplies and expertise for the program. LATI, recently honored by the Aspen Institute as a top 5 college, also offers an incredible number of programs and modern facilities with the newest technology to ensure what students work with in the classroom will be what they encounter in the workforce. In all of our meetings, we endeavored to showcase innovative elements of each school, the business partnerships that are integral to ensuring the curriculums are aligned with the industry standards and trends, and the overall benefit of CTE in communities for both students and economic development.

Students in the energy trades program at Mitchell Technical Institute practice skills they would use in a career as a lineman. These jobs are in demand in South Dakota and pay a highly competitive wage. Students not only graduate with a certificate but also their CDL license as they learn to operate all the equipment lineman would use in their jobs.

 
 Amy Miller explaining the exploratory CTE course offered at Lake Area Multi-District to freshman.

By: Jamie

On February 1, the House Education and Workforce Committee held the hearing, “Expanding Opportunities for Job Creation.” Testifying before the committee were Govs. Malloy (D-CT) and Snyder (R-MI). Gov. Malloy specifically mentioned the need for Congress to invest in secondary and postsecondary CTE programs to ensure that students are getting the training they need for available jobs. He also expressed concern for consolidating programs, since it usually means cutting funding.

The mismatch of workers’ skills and employers’ needs was discussed throughout the hearing. Gov. Snyder mentioned www.mitalent.org as a resource for Michigan residents to match their skills with available jobs. Both governors agreed that career planning and counseling is critical to ensuring that workers’ skills match employers’ needs.

Leaders of the House Education and Workforce Committee have said that reauthorizing the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) is a priority for this year. ACTE is concerned about the Streamlining Workforce Development Programs Act and the consequences it has on Perkins funding. ACTE will keep you updated of this legislation and alert you when action is needed.

By: Chris

The Office of Vocational and Adult that come as a follow-up to the Regional Community that come as a follow-up to the Regional Community College Summits and Virtual Symposium held by the U.S. Department of Education. We wanted to make you aware of these reports as they provide some helpful information.

Scaling the Summits is a summary of the four Regional Community College Summits convened last winter and spring at community colleges across the country. The Regional Summits brought together over 800 attendees from 45 states. The reports provide useful insights and ideas from those attending the summits, and discuss transition and transfer practices, business and industry involvement, developmental education, college affordability, and serving veterans and their families. The strength of these reports comes in the form of practitioner driven recommendations.

A second series of reports come out of the Community College Virtual Symposium, held last April. The Symposium was a forum for discussing the perspectives of researchers who prepared draft issue briefs on strategies to increase student retention and college completion. These reports reflect the refinement and revision to the drafts that resulted from discussion with community college stakeholders. Topics include college-and-career-readiness, integrating secondary and postsecondary programs, developmental education, and industry driven competencies. The usefulness of these reports comes from the helpful feedback of those practitioners in the community college field.  

The Office of Vocational and Adult Education (OVAE) also plans to host a series of webinars in the upcoming months to highlight each report in greater detail.

By: Jamie

ACTE is proud to announce the official launch of the Campaign to Invest in America’s Workforce (CIAW), a national effort calling for greater and more effective federal investments in our nation’s workforce development system, including CTE, to ensure that workers are equipped with skills that match the employers’ needs. The coalition comprises of more than 35 national organizations all committed to increasing the federal investment in workforce programs.

ACTE is an active member of this coalition and is excited to be partnering with other workforce development associations in advocating for additional investments. For additional information on the members of the coalition and the activities, please visit www.americasworkforce.org.  

By: Mitch 

Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney won the Florida Republican presidential primary on Tuesday, January 31. Romney took the state with 46.4 percent of the vote followed by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich with 31.9 percent, former U.S. Senator Rick Santorum with 13.4 percent and Rep. Ron Paul (TX) with 7 percent. Because President Barack Obama was uncontested in the state, there was no Democratic presidential primary. The next presidential caucuses will be held in Nevada on Saturday, February 4.  

In other election news, Democratic state Sen. Suzanne Bonamici beat Republican businessman Rob Cornilles in Tuesday’s special election for Oregon’s 1^st Congressional District. Bonamici took 53.8 percent of the vote over Cornilles with 39.6 percent. She will fill the seat of former Rep. David Wu (D) who resigned from the House last year. 

A couple of important deadlines for voter registration in Ohio and Oklahoma are fast approaching. Both states will hold primary elections on “Super Tuesday,” March 6. In Ohio, voters will be able to weigh in on the presidential primary along with the other 10 “Super Tuesday” states that will hold primary votes on that day. It is also primary day in the buckeye state for many federal, state and local offices including the U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives and the Ohio General Assembly as well as numerous local bond measures and other ballot issues. The deadline to register for the Ohio primary is February 6. The state offers absentee and early voting options as well.  

 Oklahoma will have only a presidential primary on March 6. The deadline to register to participate in that election is February 10. Oklahoma also offers voting by absentee ballot and early voting on certain dates.

 The Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) is a nonpartisan association and does not support or oppose any candidate for public office.

By: Alisha

As we approach the next reauthorization of the Perkins Act, one of the topics that continually comes to the forefront is how we can ensure that programs are actually preparing students for jobs that will be available, particularly jobs paying family-supporting wages with clear career pathways to advancement.

CTE has a long history of responding to labor-market demands, but criticisms still remain regarding programs that are not adequately preparing students for the workforce. Several suggestions have surfaced about new requirements to counter this claim. Business and industry councils could be required, or a requirement for earnings to be disclosed to students prior to program entry (similar to “gainful employment” disclosure requirements) could be instituted. The Department of Education has suggested that all programs be linked to careers deemed “high demand.”

What do you think? How can we assure that states and local institutions offer programs based on the most up-to-date local/regional labor market data and industry trends, and make this information available to students, so students can make informed decisions about college and careers and are prepared for the future workforce?  

Vote now and leave more extensive comments in the comment section below!

Vote! 

By: Alisha

The Education Commission of the States just released “12 For 2012: Issues to Move Education Forward in 2012.” The document outlines key policy issues have broad implications for state policy over the next year. The top 12 issues include:

1. Pre-K: Expanding the focus to P-3
2. K-12 finance: Creating and maintaining efficiency and financial accountability without lowering expectations
3. Blended learning: Getting moving. Getting it right.
4. Common Core State Standards: From talking to doing
5. Developing civic engagement in PK-12: State action in the absence of federal funding
6. Teaching quality: Fasten your seatbelts!
7. Rural: Enhancing the potential of education in rural America
8. Data: Access to what teachers and leaders need to improve student outcomes (and the skills to use it)
9. Individualized instruction: Faster. Cheaper. Smarter.
10. Performance funding: Building a model without a blueprint?
11. Remedial education: We know more now than we ever have
12. Credentials of value: Some are better than others

CTE is mentioned specifically under rural education and is intricately involved in the credentials conversation. Many of these other state policy issues have the potential to impact CTE educators and programs as well, such as conversations about measuring teacher quality, blended learning and performance funding. Follow activity in your state closely to ensure CTE interests are being represented as these issues come to the forefront!

By: Steve

This year’s National Policy Seminar includes an important “Measuring Career Readiness Skills” session to explore existing assessments as well as those being developed, the progress in this arena and the challenges that remain.

In today’s accountability-driven public policy environment, that which gets measured receives attention. Career-readiness issues will receive more attention if there are effective assessments that clearly identify a student’s academic, employability and technical skills. This is important for all students and adults, whether they by in secondary or postsecondary school, or are returning for additional education and skills development.

This session will explore important questions such as how can career readiness skills be embedded within academic assessments, as is being discussed with relation to Common Core state assessments; what career readiness skills should be measured and how do we develop a system that provides teachers the support they need to effectively assess students through both formative and summative means.

ACTE has invited leading experts whose organizations are facing these questions head-on. Participants include:

Kate Blosveren, Associate Director, Strategic Communications and Outreach, Achieve
John Foster, Preisdent/CEO, NOCTI
Tim Lawrence, Executive Director, SkillsUSA
Paul Scianna, Vice President of Business Development, ACT

You won’t want to miss this important panel addressing one of today’s hottest “college and career readiness” topics. Sign up now to attend the ACTE 2012 National Policy Seminar! 

By: Ashley Parker

This week, the Utah CTE blog links to a great checklist of activities in its CTE Month post. Head over there for some inspiration with your CTE Month plans! The New York Times writes about President Obama’s mention of the dropout crisis in the State of the Union. National Skills Coalition responds to a critical New York Times article on business and education partnerships. Top Performers calls for a resurgence of CTE as a solution to the dwindling American middle class, and we shared our thoughts in response on the CTE Policy Watch blog and in comments.

 29 Things To Do During CTE Month - Utah CTE blog

 Obama Wades Into Issue of Raising Dropout Age - New York Times

  When industry-based training is a public good - National Skills Coalition

 The Death of Vocational Education and the Demise of the American Middle Class - Top Performers, Education Week

By: Ashley Parker

In the post “The Death of Vocational Education and the Demise of the American Middle Class” on Education Week’s Top Performers blog, Marc Tucker paints a picture of a crippled “vocational” system in our country and argues that CTE needs a renaissance of sorts to revive and modernize the U.S. education system.

ACTE agrees with Tucker that CTE should be expanded to help address the economic issues facing the United States, including the skills gap and decline of the middle class. However, we would also argue that while we need more of it, this type of high-quality high school CTE is not dead!

Educators across the country are indeed delivering strong CTE instruction and imparting the valuable career-readiness skills Tucker calls for in his blog post. Today’s students are still engaged in CTE at high levels as well. While participation has declined slightly over the last 20 years, 94 percent of all high school students still enroll in some CTE courses, and almost 20 percent of students still earn three credits in a single occupational area. As reflected in the change from “vocational education” to “career and technical education” that was dismissed by Tucker, the subject areas these students are exploring have also shifted to meet economic needs. Many fields once considered outside of the vocational scope are now thriving CTE programs, including hospitality and marketing, engineering technology, biomedical science, law enforcement, computer science, and healthcare. Today’s high school CTE programs include rigorous academic, technical and employability skills and play critical roles in student engagement and achievement. They are aligned with postsecondary education to create seamless education pathways for students—ultimately leading to successful careers.

That is why funding for CTE programs through the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act is critical. These funds help ensure that programs adopt the strategies Tucker emphasizes, including CTE programs that require high levels of academic skills, links between businesses and schools, and “first-rate” instructors and equipment. Unfortunately, Perkins funds have come under attack in recent years and have suffered significant cuts. Policymakers must recognize and support the important role CTE programs play in equipping students with the skills needed to meet workforce demands. Tucker is correct in stating our country needs a plan for improving educational and career outcomes for students, and that plan needs to include a robust CTE system that is adequately supported and funded.

By: Jamie

The second session for the 112th Congress is well underway. Unfortunately, not much has been done in these two weeks that Congress has been back. Instead of legislation, attention is focused on the Republican presidential primaries and party retreats where goals for the year (and re-election strategies) are discussed. That should change in the next few weeks.

Congress ended 2011 by extending items like the payroll tax cut, other tax cuts and unemployment insurance temporarily. These highly controversial items will have to be addressed in February. One item connected to the unemployment insurance that ACTE is keeping an eye on is a proposal to award unemployment benefits only to individuals who have a high school diploma or are working towards a high school diploma. This could be problematic for individuals who are unable to access adult education because of waiting lists or other barriers. In regards to the payroll tax, if an agreement is not reached, then many Americans could see a rise in their taxes.

February will also be a busy month because the president is expected to release his budget on February 13. ACTE is gearing up for this process and is anxious to see what the president’s proposals are for CTE funding. Once his budget is released, then Congress will begin its annual budget and appropriations process. 

By: Steve

ACTE developed a "What is Career Ready?" definition in 2010 to ensure that “career readiness” issues are included and better defined as part of the national conversation about “college and career readiness.” This week, I attended the first meeting of the National Career Readiness Partner Council (CRPC). The convening of CRPC was initiated by the National Association of State Directors of Career and Technical Education Consortium.

The CRPC includes a number of organizations that have been active in the college and career readiness discussion including the National Governors Association, Achieve, the Alliance for Excellent Education, Harvard Graduate School of Education and others. The goals of the CRPC are to:

(1) Develop consensus on a definition for career readiness, and
(2) Review and advise NASDCTEc on the development, adoption and implementation of a Common Career Technical Core

I was pleased to hear agreement from many organizations that career readiness needs to include focus on academic, employability and technical skills, the three skill sets outlined in ACTE’s “What is Career Ready?” definition. Of course, the discussion about a broad definition will be followed by more specifics on how that definition is applied and measured. That will be the toughest part of the endeavor to better define career readiness.

Discussion about career readiness issues is increasing. In addition, many states are beginning to implement constructive initiatives to address career readiness issues. The week before the CRPC meeting, I presented to education and business leaders during a Career Readiness Summit in Kansas led by Governor Sam Brownback. Many state policymakers, including Gov. Brownback, have introduced new career readiness proposals, a very encouraging sign that the CTE community is making progress on this topic. 

By: Ashley Parker

In his State of the Union address, the president called for a “national commitment to train two million Americans with skills that will lead directly to jobs” and pointed squarely at the skills gap as a chief obstacle to economic recovery. He called for an increased role for community colleges in training America’s workers and the need for a resurgence in American manufacturing. A full review of the address was written by Steve earlier today.

In today’s 24/7 media environment, events like the State of the Union address are being covered by thousands of newspapers, television stations, radio and Web sites, and journalists will be dissecting pieces of the address and building story ideas to make their coverage stand apart from the rest. Reaching out to your local media to provide comment or expert opinion on the skills gap and other CTE related elements of the president’s speech or using the State of the Union as a lead-in to your CTE Month pitch e-mails and phone calls are all great ways to seize the opportunity of this media moment. Here are a few tips how you can quickly turnaround this news story through proactive press outreach:

• Write an op-ed or letter to the editor commending President Obama’s call for more support of community colleges and underscore the important role that CTE plays in developing a skilled American workforce and preparing students for careers.
• Call and pitch your CTE event or activities to a reporter. A great lead-in example: “The President’s State of the Union referenced the need for community colleges to be community career centers. Our local school X has a number of programs that are preparing students with the skills our economy needs, and we’re holding an open house/press conference/etc. on X day. We want to invite you so you can learn more our impact on this community.”
• Issue a press statement citing what your school, district or state association thinks about the President’s call to train 2 million workers, or other CTE elements of the president’s speech, like education and business partnerships. Proactive response to policy and media around CTE positions you as a source on that topic in the eyes of the media.

Timing is KEY and any pitch that references the State of the Union has a deadline of the next 24-48 hours. However, if you can’t respond quickly you could still include the president’s points in your CTE Month news release, tweets and other content to provide context.

By: Steve

President Obama’s delivery of the annual State of the Union address on January 23 highlighted “an economy built on American manufacturing, American energy, skills for American workers, and a renewal of American values,” The president asked for additional funding and support for education and referenced the skills gap that many employers face.

To address the skills gap, the president requested a national commitment to train two million Americans with skills that will lead them directly to a job and said that community colleges need more money to become community career centers. He also shared his desire to develop a one-stop Web site to help Americans “cut through the maze of confusing training programs.”

Noting that “teachers matter,” the president said that commitment to skills and education has to begin earlier, although he was not specific about when or how that commitment should be implemented. He noted the low pay and sacrifice of educators while he advocated for rewarding good teachers and an end to teaching to the test.

The president commended states for their work on standards-based reform and noted the need to address the cost of higher education by increasing budgets and cutting costs so that student tuition is more affordable. The president also proposed a Veterans Job Corps to help communities hire veterans for law enforcement and firefighter positions.

While the speech contained a number of postsecondary and job skills references, the content did not reference any CTE-specific secondary level issues. Look for additional details regarding the initiatives mentioned in the president’s speech when his FY 2013 budget proposal is announced on February 13. The Republican response to the State of the Union was delivered by Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels. Though he made no specific reference to education and workforce development policies, the full text of his address is available here. 

By: Alisha

 ACTE is pleased to announce that Undersecretary of Education Martha Kanter will be the opening general session speaker during the 2012 National Policy Seminar. Undersecretary Kanter is the second-highest ranking official at the U.S. Department of Education, where she reports directly to Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. She is the former chancellor of the Foothill-De Anza Community College District, one of the largest community college districts in the nation, and currently oversees policies, programs and activities at the Department related to postsecondary education, adult and career and technical education, federal student aid, and five White House Initiatives.  

This will be the Undersecretary’s first appearance at an ACTE event. You will not want to miss this opportunity to hear her thoughts about the role of CTE and the direction of the Obama Administration’s education policies. We expect her to spend time talking about the Administration's postsecondary completion goal as well as other upcoming initiatives.

For other details on the agenda and to register today, visit ACTE's Web site at www.acteonline.org/nps.aspx!

By: Ashley Parker

The Minot Daily News recently published an article on a CTE program in North Dakota titled “Nontraditional DIVAS: DIVA Tech gives girls a look at different careers.” The program profiled in the article specifically targets girls in grades eight through 11 and introduces them to CTE and STEM career options. Women are underrepresented in the STEM career cluster and the program aims to introduce the female youth to “nontraditional” career options and course offerings at the high school in these fields.

This article would be categorized as a “feature,” a story that is of human interest or news that is not time sensitive. Feature stories in your local publication offer an excellent opportunity for media outreach as they focus on the impact of an individual or group of individuals, a community, a local leader, etc. and do not necessarily have to be tied to a current news issue. If you are looking for a point of initial contact with a local reporter, or a pitch idea for CTE Month outreach, consider pitching a feature story similar to the Minot Daily News article. Some tips to keep in mind when pitching these kinds of stories:

• What makes your program unique or different? In this article the “angle” was the program’s target audience of girls, whom research indicates are less likely to explore STEM careers. Feature articles often cover a person, business or story that is unique or different from others in the same category. Does your CTE program target underrepresented groups?
• Is your program widely popular in the community? Do you have prominent alumni in the community you could connect to the reporter? Journalists are always looking for a “face” to the issues they write about so readers can better relate to the subject. Tap your program’s success stories when reaching out the media.
• Has your program ever been featured or covered before in the local news media? If not, invite your local education journalist to tour the facility, sit in on a class or visit a special event. These types of interactions are usually the first step in the development of a feature story.

For more information on media outreach ideas during CTE Month and beyond, visit the ACTE Press Center.