Every February is Career & Technical Education (CTE) Month®. Career and Technical Education (CTE) provides students with opportunities to gain the necessary academic knowledge and technical skills necessary to succeed in high-skill, high-wage, and in-demand careers. CTE has a commitment to equity and equitable learning opportunities for its students. Programs offer flexible scheduling, work-based learning, and stackable credentials that provide a pathway from education to employment not only for recent high school graduates, but also for returning adults, veterans, and incumbent workers wanting to update their skills. The breadth of CTE not only helps address workforce shortages, such as those in nursing, information technology, and teaching, but helps Illinoisans meet their education and workforce goals. This month is a time to raise awareness for the contributions and importance of these programs as CTE will be crucial for Illinois’ economic recovery after the pandemic has ended. For more information about CTE Month and how you can celebrate it, visit this page. 

The Illinois community college system is the largest provider of postsecondary CTE programs serving more than 131,000 students each year. The ICCB is looking forward to celebrating it statewide while highlighting local innovation and best practices. In order to spotlight these best practices, we need you all to share with us by emailing events, news articles, pictures (with descriptions), and other CTE project highlights to cte@iccb.state.il.us.  

For CTE Month this year, ICCB’s focus areas are (* indicates strong focus): 

• CTE as a lever of economic recovery* 
• Highlighting student success* 
• Partnerships 
• Faculty support 

Be sure to also look at the following Illinois workNet resources for CTE Month 2021:  

• Work Based Learning and Apprenticeship  
• Youth Career Pathways  
• College & Career Readiness  
• Job Search Plan  
• Training Plan  
• Skills and Interest Survey

Follow ICCB’s Facebook page for the latest on adult education.

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