On September 6, the Office of Career, Technical and Adult Education (OCTAE) Assistant Secretary Amy Loyd spoke with Advance CTE Executive Director Kimberly Green as a part of Advance CTE’s Fall Fireside Chat series. This is one of Assistant Secretary Loyd’s first public appearances to discuss CTE since her Senate confirmation in June. OCTAE oversees the Perkins Act and other federal CTE-related initiatives, including community colleges, adult education and literacy, and correctional education.
Assistant Secretary Loyd was asked to discuss the experiences that led her to her current role. She pointed to her Native heritage and her parents’ careers as education professionals as defining factors in her career path. She attended Santa Fe Community College, Northern New Mexico Community College, St. John’s College and the Harvard Graduate School of Education, where she earned her doctorate in educational leadership. Among her professional degrees, she has also earned an EMT certification.
Across her work with Jobs for the Future (JFF) and the Cook Inlet Tribal Council in Alaska, Loyd has focused on K-12 education, community colleges, adult education, workforce development, economic development and diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Loyd expressed that she hoped to ensure that CTE programs closely reflect the communities that they serve. Further, she also emphasized the need for culturally responsive education and a need to support students through training and wraparound services, especially Alaska Native and Native American communities. Loyd also pointed to her observations of the Swiss apprenticeship model, in which 70% of secondary-school-aged children participate in a hands-on apprenticeship program that culminates in an industry-recognized credential.
When asked what she hoped to achieve by the end of her appointment at the Department of Education, Loyd expressed a desire to align CTE programs and practices with the Biden Administration’s priorities for CTE. ACTE looks forward to continuing our close partnership and work with OCTAE under Assistant Secretary’s Loyd’s leadership.
You can view a recording of the webinar here.
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