2103


CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION

POLICY


The Board of Education recognizes that Career and Technical Education is a distinct but integral component of a quality education system. Furthermore, while all education has vocational aspects, comprehensive Career and Technical Education programs help students develop the technical, academic, employability, and life skills needed for high wage and high skill careers and/or postsecondary education.

Therefore, Career and Technical Education encompasses both career and academic education and shall be incorporated into the curriculum at each grade level in the public schools. Elementary and middle/intermediate schools shall implement technological design and career planning standards by integrating career awareness and exploration opportunities into the curriculum. High schools shall offer rigorous and relevant Programs of Study that integrate academic and technical skills standards which are organized within career pathways. Each Programs of Study shall include a coherent sequence of courses based on academic, technical, and employability skills standards. Programs of Study standards shall be aligned with postsecondary education, labor, and industry. Assessment of Career and Technical Education Programs of Study, which includes data on student achievement and postsecondary opportunities, shall be a continuous process and shall guide program improvement.

Students who successfully complete all course requirements for graduation, and complete a Career and Technical Education Pathway Program of Study, including all requirements and assessments, shall be recognized for their academic and technical skill achievements. Recognition of the successful completion of a Career and Technical Education Program of Study will be documented by a designation of achievement on the diploma and the recording of the achievement on the students’ transcript.


Collaboration by school administrators, staff, and students is essential in providing effective Career and Technical Education programs. Moreover, schools should involve their community stakeholders as full partners in developing quality Career and Technical Education programs organized within a Career Pathway System.

Approved: 01/08/98; Amended: 01/05/06, 03/18/10