Awards

Excellence Awards

The K-ACTE Excellence Awards Program seeks to promote Career and Technical Education excellence by recognizing individuals who have made extraordinary contributions to their fields. These individuals exemplify the highest standards and have conducted activities to promote and expand career and technical education.

The State Awards Program is modeled on the ACTE Program.

State winners will be eligible to proceed to the regional and national competitions, with the exception of Kansas’s only awards: Young Teacher of the Year, Award of Merit, and Policymaker of the Year.

In Kansas, candidates for the Member Excellence Awards progress through four rounds of review:

  • Affiliate Round: Candidates begin the application process by nominating themselves (or being nominated by a peer) for their affiliate award. Candidates must hold the appropriate position at the time of initial nomination (ex. be a secondary school CTE teacher if applying for the Teacher of the Year.) Deadlines vary for applications to the affiliates.
  • State Round: Affiliate winners will have the opportunity to complete the state application process for their award. Candidates must hold the appropriate position at the time of initial nomination (ex. be a secondary school CTE teacher if applying for the Teacher of the Year.) Applications are due by the state deadline of June 1.
  • Region Round: State winners move forward for consideration within their Regions. All state winners must have their applications uploaded to the ACTE Awards Portal and be ACTE members by the March 1 Region deadline (nonmembers are not eligible to receive Region or national awards). Region winners are selected by their Region awards committees and announced during their Region conferences.
  • National Round: Region winners’ applications are forwarded to the final round of review via the Awards Portal by their Region committee chair. The national ACTE Awards Committee selects the national winners, which are announced at the ACTE Awards Banquet during ACTE’s CareerTech VISION.

More Information:

The K-ACTE Awards Program seeks to promote career and technical education excellence by recognizing individuals who have made extraordinary contributions to their fields. These individuals exemplify the highest standards and have conducted activities to promote and expand career and technical education.

The State Awards Program is modeled on the ACTE Program.

State winners will be eligible to proceed to the regional and national competitions, with the exception of Kansas’s only awards: Young Teacher of the Year, Award of Merit, and Policymaker of the Year.

 

Congratulations to the 2025 /2026 Honorees:

  • Teacher of the Year – Kevin Stalsberg
  • Administrator of the Year – Cathy Mong
  • Postsecondary Professional of the Year – Dr. Julie Dainty
  • Teacher Educator of the Year – Dr. Julie Dainty
  • New Teacher of the Year – Addie Ehling
  • Carl Perkins Community Service Award – Tina Goosz-Garetson
  • Lifetime Achievement Award – PJ Reilly

Award Categories

ACTE Teacher of the Year

Full-time classroom/laboratory CTE teachers at the middle or secondary school level

ACTE Postsecondary Teacher of the Year

Full-time classroom/laboratory CTE teachers/educators at the postsecondary level

ACTE Administrator of the Year

Full-time classroom/laboratory CTE teachers (at the middle/secondary/postsecondary level) with 3-5 years’ experience

ACTE Carl Perkins Outstanding Service Award

Individual ACTE members who have contributed to CTE’s positive impact on communities and the lives of individuals

ACTE Counseling & Career Development Professional Award

Full-time school counselors and guidance professionals

ACTE Lifetime Achievement Award*

Individual ACTE members whose dedicated contributions have been identified with the work and purposes of the association over an extended period of time

Teacher Educator of the Year

This award recognizes teacher educators, secondary or postsecondary, who are committed to preparing teachers to deliver high quality CTE programs, demonstrated innovation in teacher education, and leadership in improving CTE.

New Teacher of the Year

This award recognizes new CTE teachers who have made significant contributions toward innovative and unique career and technical education programs and shown a professional commitment early in their careers.

Applications

All nominations for awards must be submitted through the ACTE Awards Portal.
All awards are administered by the K-ACTE Awards Committee.

Deadline

The deadline is June 1, 2026.

Questions

Contact the K-ACTE Office at 785-221-5914, or email leadership@kansasacte.org.