Association for Career and Technical Education of Nebraska

What is CTE?
Today’s cutting-edge, rigorous and relevant career and technical education (CTE) prepares youth and adults for a wide range of high-wage, high-skill, high-demand careers. Check out fast facts below, or learn more at ACTE.

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2018 ACTEN Award Recipients
Outstanding career educators were recognized at the 2018 ACTEN conference in Kearney. The conference was well attended and provided a number of opportunities for professional development, industry involvement and camaraderie. For a complete list of recipients & biographies, please visit 2018 Award Winners.

Meet the Winners
Creating Career Ready Graduates
Career education in Nebraska plays a significant role in Nebraska’s objective of creating Career Ready individuals who are ready for success in a career or college upon graduation from high school. Download a PDF of the new “Career Readiness” brochure for details.

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Welcome to the ACTEN Website!

Jon Cerny, 2022-2023 President

It is a pleasure and privilege to serve as President of the Association for Career and Technical Education of Nebraska (ACTEN) this year. This will be my 30th year as Superintendent at Bancroft-Rosalie Community Schools. I have served as a representative of the Administrative Division for several years and as a Board Member for 3 years. I received the ACTEN Outstanding Career and Technical Administrator of the Year in 2019.

As we begin the 2022-23 school year, I want to thank each of you for your commitment to excellence in Career and Technical Education (CTE), and for choosing ACTEN as your professional association. Career and Technical Education is essential for our state to maintain a competitive workforce. Our CTE professionals across Nebraska are educating our students with the skills and knowledge for success in a career path. Take pride in the incredible work you do.

One of my priorities is to work with the Nebraska Legislature and the Nebraska Department of Education to implement LR335. LR335 establishes a goal of 70% of Nebraskans ages 25-34 will have a degree, certificate, diploma, or other industry-recognized credential with economic value by the year 2030. That percentage is currently 58%. We have a lot of work to do, but I believe Nebraska secondary schools are prepared to do our part to meet this challenge.

Nebraska is currently the ONLY STATE that does not allocate state funds to CTE. NDE has asked the Legislature for state funds to match federal Perkins Funds. NDE needs the support of ACTEN and other CTE organizations to convince our state senators the importance of increasing CTE funding to reach the goal of 70%.

I am excited to lead this great organization in the year ahead! If you have any questions or need assistance, please feel free to contact me. I look forward to seeing you at a conference or meeting soon.

Thank you and have a great year.

Jon Cerny, 2022-2023 President

Contact information to find out more about ACTEN:

ACTEN Executive Director
Murleen Bellinger
PO Box 89
Waverly, NE 68462
402-525-8742
actenebraska@gmail.com

Facebook: ActeNebraska

Twitter: @ACTENebraska

Who We Are

ACTEN is the professional association for career and technical educators in Nebraska. Established in 1946, ACTEN has some 375 members across Nebraska including teachers, administrators, teacher educators, career counselors, teacher candidates, business partners and other professionals who support or advocate for career and technical education. (more)