March 2020
CTE Connections Preparing Students for Future College and Career Success
CTE Month February 2020 The CTE celebration of the year took place at the State Capitol on February 11, 2020, in Little Rock. Held in the Capitol Rotunda, the event showcased CTE programs and leaders from across the state. The day was full of showcasing what CTE means to students from all occupational areas and Career and Technical Student Organizations (CTSO’s) across Arkansas. CTE Director Dr. Angela Kremers explains, “CTE Day at the Capitol was a great collaborative event to highlight Career and Technical Education in Arkansas. We sincerely appreciate Governor Hutchinson for sharing his time to speak and spend time with CTE students. Arkansas ACTE is also a great asset in the state for their important work to support CTE teachers. They did an outstanding job organizing the event in collaboration with DCTE and many others. Thank you also to Anthony Owen and his Computer Science team, along with schools who came to showcase their high-quality programs.” The Rotunda was filled with extraordinary representations of Arkansas CTE programs from a variety of occupational areas.
From the Business & Marketing area, Alma High School was on hand to discuss School-Based Enterprises and Marketing Education; and Searcy High School was thrilled to share information on their Supply Chain & Logistics program.
Centerpoint FFA was on hand to share their experiences as an Agriculture Charter School, and their unique establishment of a meat processing plant as a part of their program.
Family and Consumer Science was represented by Cabot High School’s Education and Training Program as well as Manila High Schools Advanced Nutrition and Dietetics students.
In the Career Readiness area, Ms. Anita Moore from Magnolia High School brought students to share experiences with Work-Based Learning opportunities, and Dr. Mary Jacobs and her students from J.A. Fair High School highlighted the many benefits of their JAG program.
Trade & Industry were represented by Springdale Har-Ber’s award winning TV/Broadcasting team, led by Mr. Trent Jones. Subscribe to their YouTube channel to see some of their amazing work!
STEM also had two outstanding programs present. West Side HS JROTC brought drones to help them explain their Unmanned Aerial Systems program, and Bryant High School did an amazing show and tell with their Vex robotics display.
Speakers for the day included state leadership from several areas: Justin Neel, Arkansas ACTE President; Dr. Kelley Todd, Arkansas
ACTE President Elect; Mr. Anthony Owen, Director of ADE Computer Science; Dr. Angela Kremers, Director of the Division of Career and Technical Education, Mr. Johnny Key, Secretary of the Department of Education; and Governor Asa Hutchinson. After the speaking program, the leadership team made their way around the Rotunda, visiting with students to learn more about their programs, and taking pictures with each group. State legislators and ADE leadership teams also made the rounds, networking with students, teachers and CTE Coordinators. State Representative Jon Eubanks said that he found the event very informative. In addition to seeing the enthusiasm of our CTE students, he was excited to learn more about our Work-Based Learning programs, and was able to talk to people who could help him connect businesses and schools in his area.
During his message, Secretary Key emphasized that “CTE prepares you for whatever path you take”, and that is at the heart of our mission for Career and Technical Education! ACTE President Justin Neel felt that CTE Day at the Capitol was a huge success. He goes on to say “Arkansas ACTE would like to thank all of the folks that helped make this a great day for CTE in Arkansas. When we pull together there is no limit on what we can achieve.” Dr. Tina Moore, ADE Public School Program Coordinator - Math, explained “The Reception for the Computer Science and Cybersecurity Task Force at the Arkansas Regional Innovation Hub provided an opportunity for collaboration among various stakeholder groups. I enjoyed learning more about the work of others and discussing how the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education STEM Unit can further partner with the Division of Career and Technical Education and the Computer Science Initiative.” After the CTE Day program, a special pinning ceremony was held in the Old Supreme Courtroom to install the state SkillsUSA leadership team.
February is CTE Month! We celebrated all month using #WhatCTEmeans in a social media campaign to learn what CTE means to our students, teachers, and stakeholders. It was great to hear from programs across the state!
Welcome to the Team! We are happy to welcome Mr. Curtis Scales to our team. Curtis is working as the Special Populations—JAG Program Coordinator in the Career Readiness Office. Jobs for Arkansas Graduates (JAG) provides support to at-risk youth to encourage them to achieve high school graduation. Along with academic support, JAG also provides work -based learning experiences that will lead them to further education and training and rewarding careers. Arkansas’s JAG program is the state affiliate of the national organization Jobs for America’s Graduates. For more information about this program, see the Occupational Areas section of our DCTE website (dcte.ade.arkansas.gov), or email Curtis at Curtis.Scales@arkansas.gov.
Perkins V Updates The state Perkins V plan must be turned in on April 15. Currently, the State Determined Levels of Performance are posted for public comment on our DCTE website. The public comment period will end on April 14. These levels of performance will determine performance targets for all Arkansas school districts, so please take a look and give us some feedback. The most current copy of the Draft Plan, and the State Determined Performance Levels are posted on our Perkins webpage: https://dcte.ade.arkansas.gov/ Page/PerkinsV.
We realize that with Perkins V comes many changes, but we are committed to ensuring that all students currently enrolled in CTE courses will be able to finish their current programs of study. Schools will have a two-year transition period to align with Perkins V Programs of Study changes.
Setting the Gold Standard Congratulations to the DECA School-based Enterprises (SBEs) that earned a 2020 Chapter Certification! The DECA School-based Enterprise (SBE) Chapter Certification Program provides recognition for outstanding achievement by school-based enterprises and motivates SBEs to strive for excellence and growth. The program provides SBEs with standards for model operations and recognition at three levels: bronze, silver and gold. Northside students designing shirts for
RE-CERTIFIED GOLD Fort Smith Northside’s Grizzly Gear store was Grizzly Gear. re-certified Gold—they have maintained this standard for 8 years, since the first year they were eligible! Melinda Briscoe, the leader of this project says "I know that we are not the only class to provide hands-on opportunities, but hands-on is what we do best. Small Business Operations is real every day; real products, real customers, real coworkers, real problems to solve." Northside’s Grizzly Gear has also been featured on AETN’s “Cool Schools” series. CERTIFIED GOLD Bentonville West—The Hub Bentonville HS—The Tiger Prints Don Tyson School of Innovation—Cup of Joe El Dorado—The Wildcat Café Northside students create shirts for Grizzly Gear store.
CERTIFIED BRONZE Pea Ridge—The Nest
For the certification process, SBE student managers and DECA members complete a written project showcasing how their retail operations or food service operations school-based business adheres to select model business standards. Recognition is provided for outstanding achievement at three levels: bronze, silver, and gold. SBEs earning Goldlevel Certification or Gold Re-certification are eligible to participate in the exclusive SBE Academy and competition, held at the International Career Development Conference. The level of certification awarded depends on the number of performance indicators successfully documented within each of the 10 standards. This number varies per standard. For some standards, all performance indicators must be documented. For others, members can choose to document a certain number of performance indicators depending upon the level of certification they are pursuing. A School-based Enterprise (SBE) is an entrepreneurial operation in a school setting that provides goods/ services to meet the needs of the market. SBEs are managed and operated by students as hands-on learning laboratories that integrate National Curriculum Standards in Marketing, Finance, HosThe faces behind the success of El Dorado’s Wildcat Café. pitality or Management, and provide realistic and practical learning experiences that reinforce classroom instruction.
Our Leadership Team
MISSION To prepare students for future college and career success.
VISION The Arkansas Department of Education is committed to transforming Arkansas to lead the nation in student-focused education so that every child graduates ready for college, career, and community engagement. In our 21 century economy, the lines between college, techst
nical education and career have blurred. And to succeed on any of these paths, our students need more complex academic skills, including creative problem solving, synthesis and design; they need interpersonal and teamwork skills; and they need a work ethic and flexibility to thrive in an economic and technological future where change and innovation will be constant.
CORE VALUES
Johnny Key Secretary of the Department of Education Dr. Ivy Pfeffer Deputy Commissioner Department of Education Dr. Angela Kremers Director Division of Career and Technical Education Sonja Wright-McMurray Associate Director DCTE Career Readiness/Work-Based Learning Dr. Kelly Lyon Associate Director Career and Technical Programs
This vision for excellent, student-centered CTE has five key goals that are aligned with the goals in Arkansas’ ESSA plan that was approved by the U.S. Department of Education in January 2018:
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