State Profile For Connecticut

Data sources used in this profile (MSWord,54Kb)

State Director

Ms. June Sanford, State Director
Career and Technical Education, Connecticut State Department of Education
165 Capitol Avenue
Hartford, CT 06106

Web Site

http://www.state.ct.us/sde/deps/adult/index.htm

Mission

Career and Technical Education will provide educational opportunities for all students for academic and skill attainment and career development, as life-long learners, leading to postsecondary education and/or employment in a dynamic, technological, and global economy.

CTE Statistics

Number of Public High Schools:	185
Number of Public High Schools Offering Solely (or primarily) CTE courses:	0
Number of Students in Public High Schools:	177,344
Number of Secondary Students Enrolled in CTE:	149,149
Number of Public Community Colleges:	12
Number of Students at Public Community Colleges:	47,193
Number of Postsecondary Students Enrolled in CTE:	23,649
Perkins Funds Received:	$10,147,898

CTE Governance Structure

Perkins Eligible Agency:	Department of Education
Agency Administering Secondary CTE:	Department of Education
Agency Administering Postsecondary CTE:	Department of Education
Programmatic Control For Secondary CTE:	State Board of Education
Programmatic Control For Postsecondary CTE:	Board of Trustees of Community Colleges and the State Board of Education

CTE Funding

State Secondary Funding:
State Postsecondary Funding:
Local Secondary Funding:
Local Postsecondary Funding:

State Director Roles and Responsibilities

The State Director has the title of Perkins Program Manager. The Director reports to the Bureau Chief of Early Childhood, Career and Adult Education in the Division of Teaching and Learning Programs and Services. The Director’s primary areas of responsibility include administration of the Carl D. Perkins grant for career technical secondary and postsecondary education, program compliance review and data quality management.

CTE Connections to Secondary Education and High School Reform

Career technical education plays a significant role in high school reform efforts. Since its inception, the Connecticut CTE unit has been a partner in the agency high school initiative. Career Technical Education is a contributing member to the developing high school blueprint that is scheduled for completion in 2006. The state committee is investigating methods that high schools can implement to ensure adequate preparation for postsecondary experiences and opportunities connected to career pathways to stimulate student learning and make the high school experience, including the senior year, more productive.
The committee is expected to issue a preliminary draft suggesting potentially dramatic changes in high schools, possibly including off-campus experiences, college-level courses or student projects designed to pump new life into secondary education in Connecticut. Members of the advisory committee directed by the commissioner have talked about creating alternatives, including some off-campus options, for high school seniors. Career Technical Education plays a vital role in providing alternatives for high school students including relevant authentic learning, work experience and opportunity for dual credit.

Implementation of Career Clusters

In Connecticut, career pathways have been established in the comprehensive high schools and in postsecondary education institutions. The bureau is in the process of developing a new career technical education policy statement for the state board of education to include the career cluster initiative. Plans are underway to flesh out career pathways where they currently exist and forge new pathways in cluster areas related to the economic and labor needs of the state and Connecticut students. Career Technical Education focuses on increasing academic rigor while establishing career pathways leading to postsecondary education. All career technical education, secondary and postsecondary courses have been aligned to the 16 career clusters. The Connecticut Career Certificate (CCC) is awarded annually to students who have demonstrated academic and skill attainment as well as work experience in a career cluster.

Indicators

The data for 2003-2004 in the above chart was taken directly from the Consolidated Annual Reports (CAR Report 2003-04). The CAR is a mandatory fiscal and accountability report submitted by each state to the U.S. Department of Education. It provides performance information on 14 Perkins indicators. A red X means a state did not meet its adjusted level of performance and a green checkmark means that the state did meet its goal.A blue bar in the Secondary Indicators table means that the state does not offer students the opportunity to earn both a high school diploma and other credential (e.g., a skill certificate) or that the data was not otherwise provided by the state. A blue bar in the Postsecondary Indicators table indicates that the state did not provide data.

The data for 2004-2005 was taken from the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Vocational and Adult Education, Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act of 1998, Report to Congress on State Performance, Program Year 2004-05, Washington, D.C., 2007.

Last updated on 02/25/2008