New Friends of CTE Blog Series Provides Platform for CTE Advocates

Silver Spring, MD, November 22, 2011 - Career Technical Education (CTE) offers a distinct and viable pathway for individuals who seek education and training that will prepare them for a high-demand, well-paying job, according to Nicole Smith, a Senior Economist at The Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce. In a new Friends of CTE Blog monthly series, Smith highlights the opportunities available in high-skills job markets and how CTE can provide individuals access to those jobs.

“Career Technical Education (CTE) offers opportunities to these students through developed career pathways that begin the grooming process in high school, preparing them for distinct high-wage, high-demand, high-skill jobs,” Smith said in her blog.

“We need to inform decision makers, institutions and individuals about the best ways to select the education and training required to achieve their educational goal.”

The Friends of CTE Blog is a monthly guest blog piece hosted by the National Association of State Directors of Career Technical Education Consortium (NASDCTEc). The blog provides advocates – from business and industry, the researcher community and organizations – to articulate their support for CTE. Guest bloggers provide their perspective on and experience with CTE as it relates to policy, the economy and education.

Smith, co-author of the recently-released Career Clusters: Forecasting Demand for High School through College Jobs, provides data that underscores the need for education and training aligned to new labor market demands. She notes that higher education credentials linked to high-skill qualifications, can sometimes offer the same or better opportunities than diplomas. In summary, there is no longer only one education path that leads to worthwhile career opportunities.