Career and Technical Student Organizations Serving Career and Technical Education Students in North Carolina 1 As a career educator for more than 30 years in North Carolina and a Career and Technical Student Organization (CTSO) adviser for the majority of these years, I value the impact of CTSOs. DECA, FBLA, FCCLA, FFA, HOSA, Skills USA and TSA provide our students multiple opportunities to network in their field. In high school I developed and excelled in the business skills that led me to choose my career path in college and career. As our students prepare themselves for their future in education or the job market, equipping them to find their career path and to be competitive in the marketplace are two of the many benefits to belonging to a CTSO. I have seen directly how CTSOs have impacted students’ lives in multiple ways. By attending local, regional, state and national events hosted by their CTSOs, our students learn to network socially and professionally and develop leadership skills necessary to succeed in their career field and life. Our goal is for each of our students to be able to compete globally in the 21st century and find gainful employment in their field. CTSOs provide positive opportunities for our students to meet these goals by building leadership, public speaking skills, technical competencies and self-confidence. In North Carolina over 104,000 work-place credentials have been earned by students enrolled in business, health science, marketing, family and consumer science, technology, agriculture, and trade and industry education courses. It is, indeed, my pleasure to be a part of the North Carolina Career and Technical Education team serving the Career and Technical Education students! Take a look at some of the exciting initiatives taking place in North Carolina! Mary Jane Thomas NC FBLA State Adviser 2 North Carolina Fact Sheet CTE STATE OVERVIEW At the secondary level, CTE is delivered through comprehensive high schools; CTE-focused high schools, which teach core academic subjects in the context of specific career training; career academies and STEM education and thematic schools, which teach academics and technical subjects around a career focus; and early/middle college schools, which allow students to simultaneously earn a high school diploma and an associate’s degree or up to two years of credit toward a bachelor’s degree. At the postsecondary level, CTE is delivered through the state’s community colleges. 506,705SECONDARY 150,962POSTSECONDARY 94% of CTE high school students graduated. 76% CAREER AND TECHNICAL STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS IN NORTH of CTE postsecondary CAROLINA Career and Technical Student Organizations extend Career and Technical Education in North Carolina through networks of programs, business students met performance and community partnerships and leadership experiences at the school, state goals for technical skills. and national levels. Career and Technical Student Organizations provide North Carolina students with opportunities to apply academic, technical and 78% employability knowledge and skills necessary in today’s workforce. remained enrolled or CTSOs serve a total of 74,288 North Carolina students through DECA, FBLA, FCCLA, transferred to another FEA, FFA, HOSA, SkillsUSA and TSA. For a report of CTSO participation by each postsecondary institution. school, please see the section in this document. PERKINS FUNDING North Carolina received $32,524,684 for Fiscal Year 2013, $3 million less than in 2012 and $6.4 million less than in 2010. Of funds distributed to local programs, 67 percent go to secondary recipients and 33 percent to postsecondary recipients. 3 Learning that works. Nine organizations. development in unique ways. contextualized academic instruction and have Each organization operates independently with the opportunity to work in settings where the One common mission. school-based chapters, state-based associations career skills learned in the classroom can be Career and Technical Student Organizations and national offices creating opportunities and utilized. Participation in a local chapter includes (CTSOs) provide the American education system experiences that a school or even a state could activities designed to expand students’ leadership the tools to educate the student for college and not achieve on their own. abilities, contextualize their academic instruction, careers in ways that are uniquely American. By At the national, state and local levels, CTSOs encourage them to pursue their education and integrating into Career and Technical Education offer diverse programming that is designed equip them with job-related skills in their career programs and courses, CTSOs extend teaching to enhance classroom instruction and four field of interest. Students are also able to develop and learning through networks of programs, common organizational goals: academic and leadership, teamwork, creativity and business and community partnerships and career achievement, leadership development, technical skills. leadership experiences at the school, state and professional development; and community Students participate in local, state, national national levels with different opportunities to service. and international career-based competitions, learn academic, technical and employability skills, At the local level, CTSO chapters operate as aligned with state academic standards, designed which American business and industry say are in-school, co-curricular programs led by CTE to measure their academic understanding and necessary in today’s workforce. teachers as advisers in middle schools, high skills development. schools and postsecondary institutions. Scholarships and awards also encourage Connecting classrooms to The U.S. Congress has specifically authorized students to continue their career-path education a large network. CTSOs in the Perkins Act, and they operate as and assume personal responsibility for their own Each of the nine CTSOs focus on specific national not-for-profit organizations divided into career readiness. career fields and tailors their programing to state associations and local school chapters. By providing students with contextualized the students, teachers and businesses in those Funds from the Perkins Act can be used to support academic instruction and the opportunity to fields. With its singular focus on a specific set local CTSOs. work in settings where the career skills learned in of career areas (Career Clusters), each CTSO the classroom can be utilized, CTSOs effectively develops partnerships with business and industry, Students are the core of facilitate the development of students’ academic, teachers and colleges and at the local, state and each organization. technical and employability skills. national levels that support and enhance student Students participating in CTSOs learn 4 Career and Technical Student Organizations ACADEMIC AND TECHNICAL SKILLS CTSOs apply learning through classroom activities and programs, such as competitive events, that provide unique opportunities to motivate students to demonstrate classroom instruction. CTSOs engage businesses in the education process to identify essential career ready skills. EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS CTSOs create leaders through the development of 21st Century Skills such as creativity, problem solving, teamwork and goal setting. STUDENT, COMMUNITY AND BUSINESS Making an Impact ENGAGEMENT With more than 1.5 million student members combined, CTSOs have a definite CTSOs enhance student engagement by empowering impact on students’ overall college and career readiness: them in classroom, community and career activities. EDUCATION Students who participate According to the National Students who participate ATTAINMENT in CTSOs demonstrate Research Center for Career in school organizations in According to the National higher levels of and Technical Education, 10th grade have higher high Research Center for academic engagement participating in leadership school grade point average Career and Technical and motivation, civic and professional and are more likely to be Education, participating in engagement, career self- development activities in enrolled in college at 21 leadership and professional efficacy and employability a CTSO raises students’ than other students. development activities in skills than other students, educational aspirations. a CTSO raises students’ educational aspirations. and the more students participate in CTSO activities, the better the results. 5 Career and Technical Student Organizations The mission of Business Professionals of DECA prepares emerging leaders and Bringing business and education together America is to contribute to the preparation entrepreneurs in marketing, finance, in a positive working relationship of a world-class workforce through hospitality and management in high schools through innovative leadership and career advancement of leadership, citizenship, and colleges around the globe. development programs. academic and technological skills. <www.deca.org <www.fbla.org <www.bpa.org To promote personal growth and leadership The Future Educators Association (FEA), Making a positive difference in the lives development through Family and Consumer sponsored by PDK International, is a of students by developing their potential Sciences education. Focusing on the student organization that provides students for premier leadership, personal growth multiple roles of family member, wage interested in education-related careers and career success through agriculture earner and