Dear Colleagues –

On April 17, 2018, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) released a report entitled, "First Look: Career and Technical Education Programs in Public School Districts, 2016-17." The report provides the results of a survey conducted of districts and offers nationally representative data on career and technical education (CTE) programs. Our office funded this survey with Perkins national activities dollars.

The survey defines a CTE program as a sequence of courses at the high school level that provides students with the academic and technical knowledge and skills needed to prepare for further education and careers in current or emerging professions. For this survey, districts were instructed to include all CTE programs that the district offers to high school students, including programs provided by the district or by other entities (such as an area/regional CTE center, a consortium of districts, or a community or technical college).

The report provides information about the entities that provide the CTE programs and the locations at which the CTE programs are offered to high school students. It also presents data about work-based learning activities and employer involvement in CTE programs, as well as barriers to the district offering CTE programs and barriers to student participation in CTE programs. Data are also presented about the extent to which various factors influence the district’s decisions on whether to add or phase out CTE programs.

To share the key findings, we will be hosting a short Webinar on Wednesday, April 18, 2018 at 2:00 pm. Registration for the webinar is under PCRN Calendar and Quick Links – we hope you will be able to join us.

Best –
Sharon Lee Miller, Director
Division of Academic and Technical Education