Association for Career and Technical Education Welcomes Newly-formed Guam ACTE Chapter

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November 3, 2015

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: November 3, 2015
Contact: Sean Lynch
703-683-9312, slynch@acteonline.org

Association for Career and Technical Education Welcomes Newly-formed Guam ACTE Chapter

Alexandria, VA – The Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) today extended its congratulations to the CTE community in Guam, which recently moved to affiliate with the national organization as an official chapter under the leadership of Guam ACTE President, Dr. Sam Mabini.

Dr. Mabini worked with local CTE professionals and leaders from ACTE to reorganize the disaffiliated and inactive body, and helped to reestablish the organization as an ACTE State Chapter. This ensures that CTE educators, administrators, career and guidance counselors and others in the chapter will have access to ACTE’s extensive professional development offerings, and advance CTE in their community.

“I’m so pleased to welcome Dr. Mabini and her colleagues from Guam ACTE into our national organization,” said ACTE Executive Director LeAnn Wilson. “When CTE professionals work together to pursue our shared goals, we can accomplish great things – and the partnership of Guam ACTE means we can build an even stronger CTE system for our students.”

By forming an officially recognized state chapter, Guam ACTE has gained significant opportunities to advance its involvement with ACTE’s national headquarters and will represent the specific CTE content areas pertinent to its members. In addition, the chapter will benefit its members by connecting them to ACTE’s national organization of professionals.

“Guam ACTE, as well as neighboring members from CNMI, Palau and American Samoa, are excited to work together as a team,” said Dr. Mabini. “These are professionals focused on helping our islanders prepare for personal success and careers needed in the Pacific region and the world. We look forward to working closely with other educators, businesses and our public leaders who champion the success of our students.”

About Us: The Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) is the nation’s largest not-for-profit association committed to the advancement of education that prepares youth and adults for successful careers. ACTE represents the community of CTE professionals, including educators, administrators, researchers, guidance counselors and others at all levels of education. ACTE is committed to excellence in providing advocacy, public awareness and access to resources, professional development and leadership opportunities.

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President Obama Announces First-ever National Apprenticeship Week

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November 2, 2015

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 2, 2015
Contact: Sean Lynch
slynch@acteonline.org, 703-683-9312

President Obama Announces First-ever National Apprenticeship Week
Emphasizes need for student access to career-focused educational opportunities

Alexandria, VA – In an official proclamation last week, President Obama formally declared the week of November 1-7, as National Apprenticeship Week, the first-ever annual celebration of the opportunities offered to students through apprenticeship programs. ACTE is proud to join in this national conversation about the promising pathways to success available through apprenticeships and other employer-connected CTE programs.

“As a firm believer in the power of CTE, I am thrilled to add ACTE’s voice to this week’s dialogue about apprenticeships,” said ACTE Executive Director LeAnn Wilson. “Like CTE Month in February, this event marks an excellent opportunity for us all to acknowledge the promise of apprenticeships as a leading model for success in delivering CTE. I hope we can all come together to thank the educators, business leaders and students who are collaborating in apprenticeship programs to ensure our workforce and our economy will remain the strongest in the world in the 21st century.”

The Obama Administration has demonstrated a commitment to spotlighting apprenticeship programs that offer opportunities for students to gain the necessary skills for careers in growing fields. ACTE has partnered with the Administration to support these efforts, which call attention to the need for all students to have access to high-quality CTE that will prepare them for college- and career-success.

ACTE has also conducted work to call attention to leading apprenticeship programs, including through its recent brief on Pratt & Whitney’s “Flight Plan to Success” program, developed in partnership with Muscogee County School District and Columbus Technical College based in Columbus, Georgia. There, students can work as Gas Turbine Engine Mechanic Apprentices, which teaches advanced technical and STEM skills as well as critical employability skills in a professional setting at Pratt & Whitney manufacturing facilities. These strategies for educating America’s students can prepare them for their future, and help them to get excited about careers available in their local communities.

Additional information is available on the Department of Labor’s website, here.

About Us: The Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) is the nation’s largest not-for-profit association committed to the advancement of education that prepares youth and adults for successful careers. ACTE represents the community of CTE professionals, including educators, administrators, researchers, guidance counselors and others at all levels of education. ACTE is committed to excellence in providing advocacy, public awareness and access to resources, professional development and leadership opportunities.

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ACTE Praises Bipartisan Creating Quality Technical Educators Act

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October 8, 2015

Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) Executive Director LeAnn Wilson today expressed her support for the reintroduction of the Creating Quality Technical Educators Act, sponsored by Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA), Rob Portman (R-OH), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) on October 8, 2015. The bill would fund partnerships between local educational agencies (LEAs) and postsecondary teacher preparation programs to prepare future CTE teachers with vital pedagogical and technical training, as well as to provide mentorship and ongoing professional development for these new professionals.

“The Association for Career and Technical Education applauds Senators Kaine, Portman, Baldwin and Capito for the reintroduction of the Creating Quality Technical Educators Act,” Wilson said. “Their efforts will pave the way for the development of a new generation of educators, while helping to address our nation’s critical shortage of CTE professionals. In leveraging existing federal funding for postsecondary education, this bill would bring much needed support for CTE educator preparation programs. We urge Congress to adopt this legislation as part of a comprehensive reauthorization of the Higher Education Act.”

The legislation allows eligible partnerships to access Teacher Quality Partnership grants for individuals pursuing CTE teaching opportunities, and ensures that grant recipients will meet the needs of local educational institutions by requiring a needs assessment of available positions. These steps ensure that the funds will make meaningful progress in addressing the needs of LEAs to develop and retain CTE professionals, while providing students with robust CTE curriculum.

ACTE Statement on Secretary Duncan’s Resignation

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The Association for Career and Technical Education extends our best wishes to Education Secretary Arne Duncan who announced earlier today that he will be leaving the Obama Administration at the end of the year.

During the Secretary’s tenure, career and technical education (CTE) has received increased attention from within the White House and federal agencies. Policymakers, employers, parents and other advocates continue to cite the importance of CTE as a way to provide greater relevance to student learning and a better opportunity for sustainable careers for both students and adults.

We appreciate the Secretary’s work to expand the conversation in this arena and the opportunities he has taken to highlight CTE in both secondary and postsecondary contexts. The CTE community is awaiting the reauthorization of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act and we urge new leaders to provide continued recognition and increased support to sustain and expand the CTE system within the United States.
We look forward to working with Deputy Secretary John B. King Jr. who has been chosen by President Obama to assume the role of Secretary of Education upon Secretary Duncan’s departure.

Nevada Association for Career and Technical Education Unifies with National Education Membership Association

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September 23, 2015

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: September 23, 2015
Contact: Sean Lynch
703-683-9312, slynch@acteonline.org

Nevada Association for Career and Technical Education Unifies with
National Education Membership Association

Alexandria, VA – The national Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) today applauded the Nevada Association for Career and Technical Education (NACTE) membership’s vote to formally unify with the national body, and commended NACTE president Michele Lewis and past president Craig Statucki for their leadership in the transition.

The decision to unify with the national association streamlined the process for NACTE members to concurrently join both the state and national organizations. In doing so, NACTE has gained its members access to the national association’s support and resources while strengthening the broader Association’s voice to advance CTE across the country and on Capitol Hill.

“I am honored to welcome this new group of CTE professionals in to our national community by unifying with NACTE,” said ACTE Executive Director LeAnn Wilson. “I want to thank these teachers, administrators, career and guidance counselors and other professionals for this show of support and camaraderie with ACTE, and I look forward to working with them to build a stronger CTE system in Nevada and nationwide.”

Unification provides significant benefits for NACTE members by combining the application processes for both the state and national organizations into one. This streamlines the path to national membership for Nevada CTE community members, which connects them with professional development resources, benefits at major education advocacy and community events and a broad network of prominent business and industry colleagues.

“NACTE members see the benefits of being a unified state not only for the state association, but also the individual teachers,” said Statucki. “In a state that is recognizing the true value of CTE, it is important for NACTE members to have access to the professional development opportunities, advocacy resources, and individual benefits that a unified state can provide.”

About Us: The Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) is the nation’s largest not-for-profit association committed to the advancement of education that prepares youth and adults for successful careers. ACTE represents the community of CTE professionals, including educators, administrators, researchers, guidance counselors and others at all levels of education. ACTE is committed to excellence in providing advocacy, public awareness and access to resources, professional development and leadership opportunities.

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ACTE Voices Support for CTE Opportunity Act

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September 22, 2015

LeAnn Wilson, Executive Director of the Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE), today voiced her support for the CTE Opportunity Act, introduced by Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) on September 22, 2015. The bill assists students enrolled in short-term postsecondary career and technical education (CTE) programs who are seeking in-demand credentials by providing more equitable access to federal student aid programs.

“It’s critical that our postsecondary CTE students have access to federal financial aid programs that will support them while they conduct the important work of building their skills,” said Wilson. “This legislation will connect students pursuing short-term programs to the resources they need to obtain education and training for in-demand careers, and we applaud Senator Baldwin’s work to be a champion for these learners.”

The CTE Opportunity Act ensures that students will advance their career by attaining industry-recognized credentials such as a license, certification or certificate, which meets state or local workforce needs as determined by experts within the state. To qualify, programs will need to include at least 250 clock hours and five weeks of training to ensure the program provides students with adequate education opportunities.

Patty Nation Named 2016 ACTE Business Leader of the Year

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August 10, 2015

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 10, 2015
Contact: Sean Lynch
slynch@acteonline.org, 703-683-9312

Patty Nation Named 2016 ACTE Business Leader of the Year

ALEXANDRIA, VA – The Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) and its Board of Directors announce the 2016 ACTE Business Leader of the Year: Patty Nation, Director of Global Corporate and Community Engagement for Xilinx, Inc. (based in San Jose, California). The ACTE Business Leader of the Year award celebrates the contributions and achievements of an executive from the business community who has demonstrated a solid and sustained commitment to improving career and technical education (CTE).

As the Director of Global Corporate Community Engagement at Xilinx, Patty Nation has led the company’s vision to help transform science and technology education in the 21st Century through the Xilinx Educational Ecosystem (EE). The EEis an integrated, articulated grant process that supports linked learning and career pathways focused on science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). The model provides over $500,000 dollars in grants to local school districts to support STEM programming, and relies on dedicated partnerships between educators, community leaders, corporations and non-profit organizations to identify and address education and workforce needs. “The pioneering efforts of the Xilinx Educational Ecosystem are poised to play a major role in solving this shortage of a ‘homegrown’ STEM CTE workforce,” says Donna Hope, Principal of Campbell Union High School District in San Jose, California.

Nation has been instrumental in driving Xilinx’s involvement with CTE, whether that is by leading in the development and launch of the EEmodel or supporting the social and emotional needs of students in her community through mentorship programs. Nation has also demonstrated a long-standing commitment to building STEM education for students – she successfully leveraged $250,000 to bring the Project Lead The Way program to three community schools, and to extend the program from two to four years. Furthermore, in 2014 she worked in partnership with local schools to host the first Xilinx-sponsored STEM academy, for which a team of Xilinx engineers and teachers spent a week teaching middle school students basic STEM fundamentals and CTE Engineering Standards. The EEin San Jose has fostered unprecedented levels of collaboration between elementary, middle, and high schools across three districts, and the successful model now impacts more than 8,200 students at Xilinx divisions in Colorado, Singapore, India and Ireland. As these and other stories exemplify, Nation has continuously advocated for and supported CTE in her community throughout her career and used her business background to help make her vision a reality.

The ACTE Excellence Awards promote excellence in CTE by recognizing individuals who have made extraordinary contributions to the community, programs that exemplify the highest standards and organizations that have conducted activities to promote and expand CTE programs. Award winners will be honored for their contributions to CTE at the annual ACTE Awards Banquet during ACTE’s CareerTech VISION 2015 in New Orleans, Louisiana on November 19, 2015. CareerTech VISION is ACTE’s signature event, with more than 3,000 attendees, career and CTE professionals from across the country and more than 300 workshops and sessions dedicated to improving the knowledge and capacity of CTE leaders. For more information on the Excellence Awards and the Awards Banquet, visit https://www.acteonline.org/awards.

About ACTE
The Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE)is the nation’s largest not-for-profit association committed to the advancement of education that prepares youth and adults for successful careers. ACTE represents the community of CTE professionals, including educators, administrators, researchers, guidance counselors and others at all levels of education. ACTE is committed to excellence in providing advocacy, public awareness and access to resources, professional development and leadership opportunities.

First Lady Michelle Obama Recognizes CTE Innovation

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June 30, 2015

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 30, 2015
Contact: Sean Lynch
slynch@acteonline.org, 703-683-9312

First Lady Michelle Obama Recognizes CTE Innovation
Speaks at White House event organized by national CTE advocates, Obama Administration officials and career and technical student organizations

Alexandria, VA – First Lady Michelle Obama today spoke at a White House event titled “Celebrating Innovations in Career and Technical Education,” which recognized leadership and achievement among career and technical education (CTE) students and educators from across the country.

“CTE programs like these are good for students, because they can learn new skills and find their passion, they’re good for businesses because they can tap into a pipeline of skilled talent, and they’re good for our country because these programs help us grow our economy, compete with other countries and unleash the next generation of entrepreneurs and innovators,” Obama said during her keynote remarks.

The event was organized by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Career, Technical and Adult Education in partnership with Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE), the National Coordinating Council of Career and Technical Student Organizations and the National Association of State Directors of Career Technical Education Consortium.

“It was an honor and an enormous privilege to attend today’s event, which brought together leaders from the world of education policy with the CTE students and teachers who are driving innovation in our classrooms nationwide.” said ACTE Executive Director LeAnn Wilson. “It was also a pleasure to hear First Lady Michelle Obama’s remarks about the crucial role that postsecondary CTE institutions, including community colleges, have in her Reach Higher Initiative. Her emphasis on the important role of CTE in preparing every student to achieve college- and career-success is a crucial message to carry forward as policymakers consider ways to strengthen America’s schools.”

The event also provided attending students and educators with the opportunity to share their insights and classroom experiences through the White House’s first-ever “CTE Innovation Fair,” as well as a chance to collaborate on policies that will support and expand CTE programs.

About ACTE
The Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) is the nation’s largest not-for-profit association committed to the advancement of education that prepares youth and adults for successful careers. ACTE represents the community of CTE professionals, including educators, administrators, researchers, guidance counselors and others at all levels of education. ACTE is committed to excellence in providing advocacy, public awareness and access to resources, professional development and leadership opportunities.

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ACTE Executive Director Announces Support for Counseling for Career Choice Act

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ACTE Executive Director LeAnn Wilson today announced her enthusiastic support for the Counseling for Career Choice Act, introduced by Congressman Jim Langevin (D-RI).

“I was thrilled to hear that Congressman Langevin is continuing to lead the way for CTE through the reintroduction of the Counseling for Career Choice Act,” said Wilson. “This legislation takes an important step by providing guidance and career counselors with the necessary labor market and educational opportunity information to create a plan for all students to graduate with the skills they need to pursue their career goals. By equipping counselors with these tools, we can ensure that every student graduates college- and career-ready.

The Counseling for Career Choice Act would help to ensure that our nation’s school counselors have the resources and materials to help students make educated decisions about their future, whether it is a four-year university, career and technical education program in high school or other option.