Dear Colleagues —

Happy New Year! Today marks year nine in the authorization of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 and DATE staff are busily working to issue the State's July 1, 2015, Perkins grant awards. We hope that, like us, you feel that we have a lot to celebrate this year. In addition to all of our day-to-day efforts to elevate high-quality CTE, our work has been recognized at the highest levels of government with the issuing of the Executive Order (EO) to recognize scholarship in CTE. Congress, the White House, and our Department leaders are talking about our work and its role in preparing all students for college and careers. Next year at this time, we will have an inaugural group of U.S. Presidential Scholars in CTE who, along with subsequent cohorts, will remind the nation of the value and outcomes of CTE for students.

In commemoration of the EO, our team worked with the White House to host yesterday's convening, "Celebrating Innovations in Career and Technical Education." The First Lady Michelle Obama headlined the events and spoke about the significance and need for high-quality CTE programs.  Her remarks can be found at: https://www.whitehouse.gov/photos-and-video/video/2015/06/30/first-lady-speaks-career-and-technical-education-cte. Educators, business and industry leaders, and, most importantly, students shared their experiences with CTE programs and how these programs transformed their professional and personal lives.

And, the best is yet to come! Over the coming year, we will have more announcements about exciting opportunities to scale-up high-quality CTE programs and ensure that all students, regardless of background or circumstance, have access to participate. Please stay tuned!

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