FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                             Contact: Megan Reiter, (703) 683-9312
February 23, 2005                                      ACTE Media Relations Manager


ALEXANDRIA, VA- Minot Public Schools in North Dakota is the recipient of the 2005 “Programs That Work: Preparing Students for Nontraditional Careers” Award. The Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE), the National Association of State Directors of Career and Technical Education Consortium (NASDCTEc), the National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity (NAPE), and the National Women’s Law Center (NWLC) created the award to recognize local and/or state educational agencies, programs, and/or schools that have improved students’ access to and completion of career and technical education programs that are nontraditional for their gender.

Minot Public Schools was selected for three programs that reach young women at varying grade levels: DIVA Tech, Define Your Dreams, and Technology on the Go. All three programs focus on technical careers. These programs are important because they offer women skills for alternative, high-wage, high-tech employment opportunities. The programs have seen a significant increase in nontraditional student enrollment. The Minot Public School programs have forged good community partnerships and work to educate employers about the barriers young women face when pursuing nontraditional careers.

Other programs receiving honorable mentions are Northeast Community College in Norfolk, Nebraska, and Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Growth’s Breaking Traditions Award.

Each of the programs will be recognized at ACTE, NASDCTEc, and NAPE conferences as well as during a briefing for the U.S. Congress and media on Capitol Hill. The programs also will be featured in a report that will highlight effective programs and practices for gender equity within career and technical education. The report will serve as a useful resource for local and state educational agencies wishing to employ similar strategies to successfully prepare students for nontraditional, economically self-sufficient careers.

In his FY 2006 budget request, President Bush has proposed to dismantle career and technical education programs that are funded through the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Act, along with several other education programs in order to fund the President’s High School Intervention Initiative. This would mean less funding for successful programs like these. These programs provide students with high-quality skills that prepare them for in-demand jobs and provide business and industry with the skilled workers they need to compete in the 21st century economy.

Minot Public School’s Career and Technical Education Coordinator Pam Stroklund commented, "The equity grants have provided us the opportunity to allow students to explore and become aware of the many career options available for them regardless of gender.”

For more information about the “Programs that Work: Preparing Students for Nontraditional Careers” Project please click here, or contact ACTE, NASDCTEc, NAPE or NWLC.

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February 23, 2005                                          NR#05-04