Career and Technical Education (CTE)

Career Development and CTE

When students engage in Career and Technical Education (CTE) they progress through intentional career pathways and academic plans beginning as early as 5th grade, advancing through high school, and into college.  

• The state office for CTE is housed within the Colorado Community College System.

Career Cluster Model

Adapt the Career Cluster Model to fit your pathways and school culture.

• color-code your course guides
• list teacher names inside cluster ‘boxes’
• empty out the bulleted points/text and fill in your own course titles (add the Concurrent Enrollment options too)
• put in the college pennants who have majors within these clusters

Career Advisement and Development

Each Colorado learner deserves the opportunity to explore career options and receive guidance in planning for their future careers. Career advisement and development should be a systemic process that starts with a broad understanding of what work is and what is required to be successful in a career. It should narrow as learners move through middle school, secondary, and postsecondary education. A systems approach that brings together advisors, CTE instructors, and community members is most effective and allows for the alignment of activities that can build throughout a learner’s education experience.  

Learning that Works Resource Center

The Learning that Works Resource Center is a repository of high-quality CTE and career readiness research and promising policies, and is designed to connect state leaders, policymakers, academics and practitioners with a vetted bank of resources across 12 categories.

CTE Program of Study Templates

Consider using the Program of Study templates with students to help them build their schedules. 

• English and Spanish versions available

Middle School CTE and ACE Programming

• With Career Education in mind, Middle School CTE programs are exploratory in nature, focused on connection to career possibilities and assist students to obtain connection to self, while experiencing an all encompassing ‘wheel’ of career cluster exposure.
• Alternative Cooperative Education (ACE) Career & Technical Education (CTE) is a multi-occupational pathway that facilitates individualized, developmentally appropriate programming necessary to support CTE students successfully. 

Support Your Work-Based Learning Programs with Virtual Skill Development Activities

CareerPrepped is a career success system that supports Work-Based Learning programs.  Virtual activities are centered around student skill development and authentic assessment processes involving CTE educators and industry professionals. Students build, prove and showcase their workplace skills in an interactive environment, while learning how to articulate and evidence their skill claims through a guided process that models the type of self-reflection needed in the real world.  The program is endorsed by ACTE.

"CTE teaches you how to do things and gives you experience making ideas real...No matter what you want to do - whether you want to go to more school or other paths - those are skills that colleges and employers look for." 

- Haley Follman, CTE Construction Technology, Creede High School

 

Listen to other CTE voices (video)