Posts Tagged ‘CTSOs’

Funding Career Technical Education: Making State-Level Investments to Support Unique Elements of CTE

Tuesday, February 27th, 2024

Advance CTE released the 2023 State of CTE: An Analysis of State Secondary CTE Funding Models to highlight how states and the District of Columbia provide high-quality Career Technical Education (CTE) through various secondary CTE funding models and approaches. This blog, the fourth in a series, describes ways states invest in CTE programs through line item appropriations to support unique elements of CTE. This blog unveils new information not available in the State of CTE Funding release.

Overview

States make significant contributions to CTE programs through non-categorical, line item appropriations. Programmatic funding is distributed through periodic, legislatively established authorizations that are contingent on the availability of funds. States often place conditions on how money should be spent or used to promote state priorities. Additionally, a programmatic line item appropriation can be a recurring or a one-time investment. This blog highlights appropriations in industry-recognized credentials, Career Technical Student Organizations (CTSOs), career advisement, and educator preparation for fiscal year (FY) 2022. You can read more about categorical funding in the first blog in this series, Funding Career Technical Education: Secondary CTE Funding Basics

These key state investments often pilot new programs, sustain existing programs, provide training to educators and professionals, or allow purchases for needed equipment and supplies. These investments certainly allow Local Education Agencies (LEAs) to scale and improve program quality, which aligns with Advance CTE’s vision for the future of CTE where continuous improvement is needed at all levels within systems.  

Investing in Unique Elements of CTE

State funding through non-categorical, line item appropriations is incredibly common; 80 percent of state leaders surveyed in summer 2022 reported some line items for CTE programs. 

Industry-recognized Credentials

Helping learners have access to and earn industry-recognized credentials can make them more competitive for future work and educational opportunities. States may offer reimbursements to the learner, educator, or local institutions for the completion of credentials. There are expenses associated with industry-recognized credentials such as exam fees, materials, books, or supplies. 

Thirteen state leaders reported appropriations for industry-recognized credentials in FY 2022. 

CTSOs

CTSOs allow learners to gain academic, workplace, and technical skills, build networks, and pursue leadership experiences that are needed to succeed in today’s global workforce. 

Twelve state leaders reported line item appropriations for CTSOs, with appropriations ranging from $125,000 to $2.52 million per year in FY 2022. Most states allocated the funds toward one or more of the 11 CTSOs specifically authorized in the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act (Perkins V). 

Career Advisement

Offering comprehensive and connected career advisement systems helps all learners get the support and guidance to gain skills and explore future careers. 

Nine state leaders reported line item appropriations for career advisement in FY 2022. 

Other states have made one-time investments to help pilot programs and offerings. 

Other states focused on providing resources for professionals who help with career advisement and planning. 

CTE Educator Preparation

There remains room for improvement in CTE educator preparation as only Georgia, Minnesota, and Virginia reported line item appropriations for CTE educator preparation in FY 2022. 

You can learn more about identifying funding streams that support CTE educator diversity by reading Advance CTE’s State and Local Strategies for Diversifying the CTE Educator Workforce

Recommendations

Programmatic line item appropriations are additional sources of funding to leverage to support important components of career preparation ecosystems. State leaders should take the following action steps:

Additional Resources

Be sure to read the other blogs in this series: 

We also encourage you to watch the Exploring State Secondary CTE Funding webinar.  

Dr. Laura Maldonado, Senior Research Associate

Dr. Laura Maldonado is a Senior Research Associate with Advance CTE. In this role, Laura directly supports Advance CTE’s policy research and technical assistance initiatives, data quality initiatives and internal data strategy.

By Layla Alagic in Public Policy, Research
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Welcome Ross White as the New State CTE Director in Arkansas

Tuesday, March 8th, 2022

Advance CTE joins the Arkansas Department of Education in welcoming Ross White as the new State Career Technical Education (CTE) Director. Ross transitions into this role while fulfilling the duties of the Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE)’s Region IV Vice President

Advance CTE staff met with Ross as he shared his pathway to becoming the State CTE Director, as well as his initial priorities for CTE in Arkansas.

Advance CTE: Which of your professional experiences has most prepared you for your role as the State Director? 

Ross: Most of my time in education has been spent in the CTE setting: a classroom educator, career student technical organization (CTSO) advisor, district CTE director, and as an ACTE officer and member. I give credit to my years as the district director because it is in this role where I learned how to be innovative and bold, rethinking systemic solutions to serve each learner. I also developed strong business and industry partnerships that I can continue to foster as State Director.

Advance CTE: In what ways have you had the opportunity to leverage social capital and professional networks in your career progression?

Ross: Early in my professional career journey, I had a mentor who taught me all I needed to know about CTE. I have relied immensely on this knowledge throughout my career, and will do so as I became the State Director. I also participated in the ACTE’s National Fellowship and have been active in multiple professional memberships. In my experience, no matter the type of fellowship (or mentorship), there will be an amount of influence, conversation and ability to impact change. Ultimately, social capital is not the people you know, but the people who make you grow.

Advance CTE: What excites you most about being the State Director in Arkansas? 

Ross: It excites me that in this new role as State Director I will be able to more quickly connect policy and programming across the CTE ecosystem in the state. This is largely due to my background in school administration, in the classroom and at the state agency. However, also playing a part is the consolidation of all education programs under the Department of Education. Being under one “roof”, the state CTE system will become much stronger in our cross-sector relationships, aligning secondary and postsecondary systems, and will have the opportunity for more frequent communication and data sharing. 

Advance CTE: As you are settling into your new position, what initial priorities have you identified? 

Ross: I have identified a few initial priorities around CTE data collection and reporting. One of our Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act (Perkins V) program quality indicators is credentials of value. Yet, we do not have a best practice in place to meet the data reporting needs for credentials in our state. Once we identify the best path forward from the state-level, the next priority will be to educate local districts on credentialing and credential data. 

The work we have to do around credentialing aligns with our career coach initiative in the state. We have received additional funding to implement career coaches and it is a priority to scale statewide. 

Advance CTE: Fast forward and we are now celebrating your one-year anniversary as State Director. What is one challenge you’d like to have overcome by that milestone?

Ross: We have a need for the division of career and technical education (DCTE) to reinvent our brand in the state. We are known far too often as, “the rules place.” I want to build more trusting and lasting relationships with our local recipients, ensuring they know who to call on my state team when they are in need of support. I hope to have been successful in this endeavor by this time next year.

Our state team will also work to address teacher shortages across the state. I am sitting in on a working group that is developing a grow your own program. Over the next year, I hope to be able to celebrate its success. 

Advance CTE: What is one weekend activity or hobby or interest you would like your peers to know about you? 

Ross: Outside of work, my wife and I spend much time attending to our daughters and their love for dancing, swimming and gymnastics.

Welcome, Ross! Advance CTE is thrilled to support Ross as he strives to ensure each learner in Arkansas has access to and the means to succeed in any high-quality CTE program or experience that leads to success in their career of choice.

Click here to learn more about the state CTE system in Arkansas.
View resources that feature best practices in Arkansas here

Follow Ross on Twitter

Brittany Cannady, Senior Associate for Digital Media

By admin in Uncategorized
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This Week in CTE: National FFA Advancing CTE Without Limits

Friday, February 25th, 2022

While stakeholders across the Career Technical Education (CTE) continuum celebrate CTE Month®, Advance CTE will join in the celebration by uplifting Career Technical Student Organization (CTSO) student leaders and their national advocacy weeks. 

These organizations are a powerful model for learner-centered and learner-led education, and Advance CTE is pleased to be joined by seven national CTSOs in supporting the national vision for CTE. Without Limits: A Shared Vision for the Future of Career Technical Education (CTE Without Limits) places CTE as the catalyst for achieving a cohesive career preparation ecosystem that is responsive to each learner’s needs for college and career success. 

Throughout February, the This Week in CTE blog series will highlight the activities of several CTSOs and their alignment with the five interconnected principles of CTE Without Limits. Today, we highlight National FFA, who celebrated the 75th anniversary of National FFA Week February 19-26, 2022, with the social hashtag #FFAWeek. Each day of National FFA Week was supported by a student-led video that shared hands-on learning experiences, learner success stories, teacher appreciation and much more! 

 

Each learner engages in a cohesive, flexible and responsive career preparation ecosystem

Laura Beth from Texas FFA noticed a barrier to each learner reaching their full potential within their career journey. Her commitment to CTE Without Limits led to stakeholders’ awareness of the issues and a change in policy!

Each learner feels welcome in, is supported by and has the means to succeed in the career preparation ecosystem

On Alumni Day, National FFA invited alumni chapter members to participate in telling their FFA story. Alumni leveraged the National FFA Alumni and Supporter Toolkit which outlined activities such as, “Take a group picture of your chapter members wearing blue using #FFAWeek and #FFAAlumni.” 

Alumni stories are vital to recruiting and retaining CTE learners and their families. Recent research shared that more than 80 percent of current parents/guardians chose CTE leaders and alumni as a likely source of information when learning about CTE and its programs. Alumni help to ensure each learner feels welcomed in the career preparation ecosystem and can envision themselves being successful in a career of their choice. 

Each learner skillfully navigates their own career journey

FFA is known for their supervised agricultural experience (SAE) that each learner embarks upon when participating in the CTSO. On SAE Sunday, National FFA shared this video to aid chapter members, nationwide, in selecting their own SAE project. The tips shared by the student leader allows for other chapter members to make informed decisions when selecting their own SAE. 

The video from National FFA Week is also supported by this article, Tips for a Successful SAE.

Each learner’s skills are counted, valued, and portable

On Give FFA Day 2022, corporate donors from industry showed their value in the skills learners receive when participating in FFA. Donors participated in donation matching challenges throughout the day to support the CTSO and ultimately the learners served. 

Each learner can access CTE without borders

Virtual engagement opportunities are something we have all witnessed during the current pandemic. National FFA was no different in providing the same for their members this week. A connection room welcomed chapter members, near and far, to network and learn from each other. 

Future dates for National FFA Week are below:

Feb. 18-25, 2023
Feb. 17-24, 2024
Feb. 15-22, 2025

Visit Advance CTE’s vision page for communication and implementation tools for state and local CTE leaders to bring CTE Without Limits to life. 

If you would like to share how your CTE program or CTSO creates limitless opportunities for each learner in this blog series, please email Brittany Cannady, bcannady@careertech.org

Brittany Cannady, Senior Associate for Digital Media

 

By admin in Uncategorized
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This Week in CTE: FCCLA Advancing CTE Without Limits

Friday, February 18th, 2022

Advance CTE continues to celebrate CTE Month® by uplifting Career Technical Student Organization (CTSO) student leaders and their national advocacy weeks. 

These organizations are a powerful model for learner-centered and learner-led education, and Advance CTE is pleased to be joined by seven national CTSOs in supporting the national vision for CTE. Without Limits: A Shared Vision for the Future of Career Technical Education (CTE Without Limits) places CTE as the catalyst for achieving a cohesive career preparation ecosystem that is responsive to each learner’s needs for college and career success. 

Throughout February, the This Week in CTE blog series has highlighted the activities of several CTSOs and their alignment with the five interconnected principles of CTE Without Limits. Today, we highlight Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA), who celebrated their national week  this week, February 14-18, 2022, with the theme “Make It Count” and social hashtag #FCCLAWeek.

Each learner engages in a cohesive, flexible and responsive career preparation ecosystem.

FCCLA members at New Horizons Regional Education Center: Woodside Lane in Newport News, Virginia participate in flexible, responsive CTE programs.  Internships at a local elementary school provide these learners with hands-on experience and real-world skills  in early childhood education.

 

 

 

Each learner feels welcome in, is supported by and has the means to succeed in the career preparation ecosystem.

Griffin Middle School in Georgia elevated learner voices and cultural experiences by incorporating commemoration of Black History Month into their celebration of FCCLA Week. 

The national branch FCCLA is also dedicated to retaining and supporting FCCLA advisors through their annual Chapter Advisor Summit held in January. 

 

 

Each learner’s skills are counted, valued, and portable.

FCCLA strives for FCCLA members to have clear paths for their skills to be valued and counted. FCCLA has identified four career pathways that align to key technical and “employability” skills gained through FCCLA experiences, listed below. Members also have the opportunities to test and display skill competencies at competitions at the regional, state and national level. 

Each learner can access CTE without borders

FCCLA members have the opportunity to share their skills and make connections beyond the classroom and even their state. National FCCLA leader Hayley Reid participated in a federal policy panel held by the National Transportation Safety Board. 

FCCLA Real-World Skills: 

Applied Academic Skills: Communications, Math, Science, Basic Literacy

Critical Thinking Skills: Problem Solving, Organization & Planning

Resource Management: Time, Money, Materials & Personnel

Information Use

Communication Skills

Interpersonal Skills: Leadership, Teamwork & Negotiation

Personal Qualities

Systems Thinking: Teamwork & Project Management

Technology Use

Visit Advance CTE’s vision page for communication and implementation tools for state and local CTE leaders to bring CTE Without Limits to life. 

If you would like to share how your CTE program or CTSO creates limitless opportunities for each learner in this blog series, please email Brittany Cannady, bcannady@careertech.org

Stacy Whitehouse, Senior Associate Communications and State Engagement

By Stacy Whitehouse in Uncategorized
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Getting to Know Advance CTE and CTE Month Celebrations

Thursday, February 17th, 2022

The “Getting to Know” blog series will feature the work of State CTE Directors, state and federal policies, innovative programs and new initiatives from the Advance CTE staff. Learn more about each one of these topics and the unique contributions to advancing Career Technical Education (CTE) that Advance CTE’s members work on every day.

Meet Stacy Whitehouse! Stacy is the Senior Associate for Communications and State Engagement at Advance CTE. Stacy works to develop and implement communications and outreach strategies that support state CTE leaders. Some of her most recent initiatives include communications research for recruiting and retaining families and learners into CTE, and employer engagement. Stacy also develops and implements strategic communications for Without Limits: A Shared Vision for the Future of Career Technical Education (CTE Without Limits). 

In this month’s edition of the CTEWorks Newsletter, we are continuing our celebration of CTE Month! In the interview below, Stacy shares what lies ahead for the field as we use this month to increase our advocacy and awareness of high-quality CTE programs that allow for each learner to find success in a career of their choice. 

Q: How have you seen states innovatively celebrating CTE Month? 

A: States have had to continue to hold primarily virtual events this year, but it’s exciting to see so many well-designed social media campaigns highlighting the accomplishments of CTE learners and alumni! 

Oregon has gone the extra mile and is using CTE Month to organize a multimedia campaign to introduce CTE to populations historically underrepresented in their programs. They will be running audio, video and print ads on Hulu, Pandora, radio stations and news outlets in tribal communities as well as Chinese and Spanish language publications.  What I especially like about this campaign is how utilizing multiple channels allows the state to compare reach across these mediums to inform future campaigns and outreach efforts. 

Q: Are there any key communications themes from CTE Month that state and local leaders can carry with them past February? 

A: One of the wonderful things about the month is it’s a high-profile opportunity to reintroduce CTE to learners, families, employers and other key stakeholders. There’s no reason to stop! 

If you did a social media campaign, advertise a sign-up form so families can receive emails or mail with additional updates about CTE program exploration and enrollment. Additionally, use the same videos and graphics at in-person events to gauge real-time reactions from families and get more mileage from your resources. If Career Technical Student Organization (CTSO) leaders visited legislators, use that as a launchpad to include learners in the policymaking process outside of CTE Month. 

I am always glad to talk to state about creating communication strategies and campaigns that include meaningful metrics for success that support larger program enrollment, quality and equity goals. 

Q: We are approaching the one year celebration of CTE Without Limits. How can stakeholders plan to participate? 

A: The commitment of our local and state leaders to promote and learn about this new vision for CTE and keep pushing the envelope on program quality and equity despite all the capacity challenges they face has been really inspiring.

The easiest way vision supporters can celebrate is to continue educating stakeholders about CTE Without Limits by using Advance CTE’s communication resources. If you’re ready to go to the next level, start your vision assessment journey with Pushing the Limits: A Roadmap for Advancing CTE Without Limits that provides a step by step guide for CTE leaders to assess one or more vision principles against existing policy and practice.

We also want to hear stories of your ‘why’ for pursuing CTE Without Limits – post a photo and use the hashtag #CTEWithoutLimits to share your story of who inspires you to realize systems where each learner can achieve college and career success without limits.

Finally, save the date for our Twitter chat co-hosted with several national organizations who are vision supporters on March 8 at 1PM ET. Stakeholders will have the opportunity to share their insights and progress on implementation. Be sure to follow Advance CTE’s Twitter page.

Brittany Cannady, Senior Associate Digital Media

By admin in CTE Without Limits
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This Week in CTE: FBLA-PBL Creating a CTE Without Limits

Friday, February 4th, 2022

While stakeholders across the Career Technical Education (CTE) continuum celebrate CTE Month®, Advance CTE will join in the celebration by uplifting Career Technical Student Organization (CTSO) student leaders and their national advocacy weeks. 

These organizations are a powerful model for the potential and impact of learner-centered and learner-led learning, and Advance CTE is pleased to be joined by seven national CTSOs in supporting the national vision for CTE. Without Limits: A Shared Vision for the Future of Career Technical Education (CTE Without Limits) places CTE as the catalyst for achieving a cohesive career preparation ecosystem that is responsive to each learner’s needs for college and career success. 

This February, the This Week in CTE blog series will highlight the activities of several CTSOs and their alignment with the five interconnected principles of CTE Without Limits. This week highlights the Future Business Leaders of America-Phi Beta Lambda (FBLA-PBL), who will celebrate their national week February 13-19, 2022, with the theme “Success Starts Here.” 

Each learner engages in a cohesive, flexible and responsive career preparation ecosystem

FBLA-PBL encourages high-quality CTE experiences as early as middle school through its FBLA Middle Level chapters that provide education programs, awards and competitive events. 

Each learner feels welcome in, is supported by and has the means to succeed in the career preparation ecosystem

CTSO leaders can be impactful ambassadors to help each learner feel welcome not only in CTE, but in their school and community. FBLA members at a Georgia middle school used their state chapter’s monthly service challenge as an opportunity to help fellow students feel seen and welcome. 

Each learner skillfully navigates their own career journey

FBLA-PBL’s celebration includes opportunities for CTSO leaders to connect with both chapter members and national leaders to develop meaningful relationships that are crucial to achieving college and career success. On February 15, FBLA National President Jaya Singh and PBL National President Andre Davis will host a national forum, and Regional Networking events will be held on February 18. 

Meaningful connections are also being pursued through programs at the state level, such as New Jersey FBLA’s Chapter Connections initiative and local chapter texting group. 

Advance CTE’s With Learners, Not for Learners: A Toolkit for Elevating Learner Voice in CTE provides a variety of strategies and resources to elevate the learner voice in all aspects of CTE programs and practice.

Each learner’s skills are counted, valued, and portable

As part of FBLA-PBL Week, the organization is elevating student skills and stories through a multimedia contest that invites members to submit a piece of writing, graphic, video, or speech sharing ‘Success Starts Here’, with that in mind, where does success start for you?”

February 15 is Share Your Story Day which will highlight learner stories and impact via the #myFBLAStory hashtag. 

Each learner can access CTE without borders

Over the past several weeks, FBLA-PBL members from across the country have demonstrated their skill competencies and high-quality CTE-focused projects through competitions at the area and regional level. Learners receiving top awards will compete at the state and national level to inspire and advance high-quality CTE without limits.

Visit Advance CTE’s vision page for communication and implementation tools for state and local CTE leaders to bring CTE Without Limits to life. 

If you would like to share how your CTE program or CTSO creates limitless opportunities for each learner in this blog series, please email Brittany Cannady, bcannady@careertech.org

Stacy Whitehouse, Senior Associate for Communications and State Engagement

By admin in CTE Without Limits
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