Last week, ACTE hosted its annual National Policy Seminar (NPS), a three-day event that brought together CTE professionals from across the country for intensive policy sessions, networking and advocacy opportunities. NPS is the premiere opportunity for CTE supporters and advocates to learn about that policies affecting their programs while making their voice heard on Capitol Hill, and this year’s event was no exception!
A highlight of NPS ’16 was a congressional reception hosted by the Senate Career and Technical Education Caucus in partnership with ACTE and Project Lead The Way (PLTW). The event was hosted in a “science-fair” style, with 11 teams of students showcasing their STEM-related projects and highlighting how their work connected to their future careers. Senate CTE Caucus Co-chairs Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Rob Portman (R-OH) took the opportunity to visit the student teams from their home states, and spoke alongside ACTE President Doug Meyer and PLTW Senior Vice President and Chief Policy Officer Tom Luna about the importance of CTE in every student’s education.
In addition to relaxing at the reception, ACTE members took to Capitol Hill to meet with their Members of Congress and advocate for CTE-related policies, including the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act. These visits are a critical component in educating policymakers about 21st century CTE, and do a great deal to strengthen their engagement. One such successful visit included a stop at Sen. Chuck Grassley’s (R-IA) office by several students from Iowa, who asked the senator to show his support for CTE by joining the Senate CTE Caucus – a request that he later granted!
We at ACTE sincerely appreciate the work done by NPS attendees and their commitment to advocating for their programs on Capitol Hill. Looking to get involved in CTE advocacy or to remain engaged? Visit the CTE Action Center to contact your policymaker about CTE-related policies and issues today. To access additional photos from the reception, click here to visit Sen. Kaine's Flickr album from the event.
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