Career and Technical Education
Career and Technical Education (CTE) is an integral part of the comprehensive secondary school program in Wake County.
The mission of Career and Technical Education is to provide offerings that meet student needs, interests, abilities, and aspirations and respond to actual or anticipated opportunities for employment, advanced education, and practical life application. The Career and Technical Education Section promotes best practices that enhance teacher effectiveness to improve student achievement and encourage responsible career choices.
Middle school students are offered exploratory courses in business and information technologies, life skills, technology systems, and career decisions. Each middle school has a Career Development Coordinator to support the school-to-career connection and facilitate business alliance activities.
In the high schools, introductory courses are available at grades 9 and 10, advanced and specialized instruction at grades 11 and 12. Courses are offered in the areas of agriculture, business and information technology, career development, health occupations, family and consumer sciences, marketing, technology, and trade and industry. Each high school has a Career Development Coordinator to support the school-to-career connection and facilitate business alliance activities. Special Populations Coordinators provide support services for qualifying students needing special assistance or intervention to succeed in a CTE course. Dual enrollment and advanced placement opportunities are available at local community colleges.
This CTE website provides information for school administrators, teachers, and other staff to support the management of CTE programs at the school level. The information and procedures outlined are based on federal, state, and local regulations governing Career and Technical Education funding.
- CTE Goal. CTE Goal 2008.
- CTE Staff. Contact information for the CTE staff at the Central Office.
- Courses. Valuable information about our CTE courses.
- Course Resources. Course numbers, blueprints, curriculum guides, pacing guides.
- VoCATS. Information about our Instructional Management System.
- Funding CTE Programs
- Purchasing. Procedures and forms used to purchase equipment and supplies with CTE funds.
- Reimbursement. Procedures and forms used to get reimbursed.
- Travel. Procedures and forms to get reimbursed for CTE-related travel.
- Request for Leave requiring a CTE-paid substitute teacher.
- Job Descriptions. A listing of CTE job descriptions.
- Special Populations
- School Volunteers
- CTSOs - Career and Technical Student Organizations
- School-to-Career
- CTE Resources
- CTE Meetings and Activities Calendar
- National Board Certified CTE Teachers
Dear CTE Teachers and Staff Members,
Welcome to the 2007-2008 school year! I look forward to working with you again this year to promote student success in Career and Technical Education programs throughout Wake County. CTE teachers are among the most enthusiastic, caring, flexible, and hard working in any school. The examples that each of you set for your students and your professional colleagues speak volumes about the value of Career and Technical Education within the total instructional program. You are our biggest promoters!
I am delighted to report that WCPSS posted a 2.6 percentage point gain in our regular VoCATS postassessment scores in 2006-07, with 72.9% of our CTE students scoring at or above Level III on the statewide, standardized end-of-course CTE tests. Fourteen high schools and twelve middle schools demonstrated improvement this year. After a "plateau" year in 2006-07, our scores are on the rise again! WCPSS has achieved a 20.6 percentage point gain in the past seven years, so we have much to celebrate. Our unified, concentrated, and steadfast commitment to continuous improvement in 2006-07 paid dividends, and we are back on the road toward our 95% goal. This system-wide goal keeps us focused on student achievement, and we must continue to work together to reach it one year at a time. I encourage each of you to continue to use the many valuable instructional resources readily available to you, to teach the curriculum, to constantly collaborate with your professional colleagues, to frequently assess student progress, to carefully analyze the data, and to continually adjust your efforts to meet our students' needs.
Virtually everything you need to know about CTE processes, procedures, policies, and personnel can be found at the CTE web site on the WCPSS Intranet at:
This web site is the fruit of the collective efforts of the entire CTE Central Services staff, with valuable input from you. We have tried to make it both comprehensive and concise. We encourage you to take the time now to review it thoroughly by participating in our first "Virtual Convocation," and then to refer to it frequently during the year. If you do not find the answer to your question there, contact the appropriate CTE staff member who can best provide the assistance you need. We are certain that you will find this site to be a valuable and user-friendly resource throughout the year.
Our staff is eager to help you and your students reach your goals. We offer you our best wishes for a safe, successful, and rewarding school year.
Sincerely,
David Rockefeller
This page was last updated on August 15, 2007