On November 19, U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez provided a passionate speech about the value of CTE and its link to a healthy economy during ACTE’s CareerTech VISION conference in Nashville. The remarks took place during the annual ACTE Awards Dinner recognizing America’s best CTE educators.
“What you are doing is remarkable,” said the Secretary, adding that CTE educators are a grossly underappreciated people who need more respect. He linked the decline in the American middle class to the nation’s lack of focus and appreciation for CTE and expressed his own desire to ensure that CTE pathways are viewed as equal in status to other secondary and postsecondary options.
Despite the challenges of image and support that CTE is facing, the Secretary noted his “unbridled optimism about the future for the U.S.” referencing 56 months of private sector growth, which he said has led to 10.6 million jobs; more than Europe, Japan and any industrialized nations combined.
Secretary Perez discussed the need for dramatic redesign of how we prepare people for the jobs of tomorrow “not only with the skills needed today but with the skills needed tomorrow and the day after tomorrow.” He referenced the Department of Labor’s Youth Career Connect program and a new apprenticeship initiative as evidence of the Obama Administration’s concern and action on these issues, but also said that CTE and workforce issues are not “red issues and blue issues; only red, white and blue issues.”
In closing, the Secretary called on CTE educators’ support, saying, “We need your help. We need your innovation. We need your ideas. We need you to critique. We need you to push us. We need you to help us build an economy that works for everyone. We need you to help us to build these multiple on ramps and off ramps. We need you to help us take career pathways and stackable credentials to scale. We need all of that.”
Secretary Perez’s appearance marked the first time in recent history that an acting Labor Secretary has participated in an ACTE function and underscores the increased attention that CTE is receiving from federal departments and agencies. In particular, several events have been held this year focused on expanding career pathways and on linkages between education and job training systems.
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