ACTE Announces Retired Iowa FCS Program Reviewer as National Award Finalist
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 25, 2023
Contact: Dominique Frascoia
ACTE Announces Retired Iowa FCS Program Reviewer as National Award Finalist
ALEXANDRIA, VA—Today, the Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) announced Sandra Miller, retired FCS Program Reviewer at Grant Wood Area Education Agency in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and retired Iowa ACTE Executive Director, as the 2023 ACTE Region III Lifetime Achievement and Hall of Fame Award recipient. This award recognizes CTE professionals for their leadership on behalf of ACTE, their innovations in CTE and their contributions to the field over an extended period of time. The Hall of Fame honors the leadership of CTE professionals who have made enduring contributions to CTE throughout their career.
Sandra Miller’s lifelong career passion and work has been for Career and Technical Education (CTE), spanning 42 years and touching local, state and national levels. She views herself as an advocate for all areas of CTE and is passionate about fostering quality CTE for all. She has a comprehensive background in CTE, holding a Master’s Degree in Education and achieving National Board Certification twice as a teacher in Career and Technical Education. She served for 33 years as a middle school through secondary classroom teacher and CTSO/FCCLA adviser, mentoring ten state officers, three state Presidents, three national officer candidates and over 24 state winners of STAR Events. Sandra’s passion for innovative program development and creating unique experiences for students resulted in growing the program from a one-person department with low enrollment to a thriving two-person department. This included diverse CTSO leadership and competitive opportunities for hundreds of students. Sandra’s innovative Entrepreneurship course won her the 2011 national Leavey Award for Excellence in Private Enterprise Education. She was the 2002 Iowa Association of Family and Consumer Sciences Teacher of the Year and the 2003 American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences Top Ten Teacher of the Year.
After retiring from the classroom in 2014, she served for 8 years as a student teacher supervisor, as well as the Executive Director for the Iowa Association for Career and Technical Education (Iowa ACTE) and CTE Program Improvement Reviewer for Iowa’s Region 10 Area Education Agency. The knowledge gained from her career helped her lead and plan high quality CTE professional development and guide Iowa ACTE forward. She successfully helped Iowa add two new ACTE divisions and become a unified state through her tenure as the Executive Director. Sandra has served in many CTE leadership activities at all levels, including: National FCS Standards Task Force, national STAR events judge, ACTE National Executive Director (NEDA) Vice-President, President and Past-President, FCS division level key leader, VP, President and Past-President, board representative and Iowa Executive Director for Iowa ACTE.
Sandra has been married for 46 years to her supportive husband, Ted. They live on the Miller family farm and raised three daughters plus an exchange daughter from Ukraine. They are blessed with 8 grandchildren.
Miller is one of five finalists for the 2024 national title. The national winner will be announced at the ACTE Awards Gala, an award presentation recognizing the best CTE educators in the country. The event will take place on November 29, 2023, at 7:00 p.m. The Awards Gala is sponsored by Express Employment Professionals, Goodheart-Willcox, The Army, and Stratasys. For more information about the ACTE Excellence Awards, visit our webpage.
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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, school counselors, guidance and career development professionals 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.