Career TEchnical AND Adult Education News

BPA & DECA Announcement

“The Ohio Department of Education, Business Professionals of America, Ohio Association and Ohio DECA are committed to protecting the health, safety and welfare of all its students and teachers while providing equitable opportunities for members.

During the week of December 7th, both the BPA and Ohio DECA Board of Directors made the difficult and necessary decision to host the 2021 state-level competitions and conference events virtually.  We recognize this is not an ideal situation, but the safety and well-being of members, volunteers and staff remains our top priority.

We continue to ask for your patience while we develop the plans moving forward with this year’s conference.  As more information becomes available, we will provide updates through the Business, Finance and Marketing Newsletter (subscribe here) and DLG Membership Registration listservs. 

We continue to take various preparedness and preventative measures.  We also echo the advice of Governor Mike DeWine and Ohio Department of Health in asking all Ohioans to engage in and promote the practice of everyday preventive actions.

Thank you for your continued efforts on behalf of Ohio students, and thank you for your attention to this important information. 

More information is forthcoming.”

SkillsUSA Ohio

As previously announced, regional competitions will be held virtually this year. Our plan moving forward will consist of an online test for the technical skilled contests. These tests will be comprised of employability skills and technical skilled trade questions, which will be administered by CETE. Leadership contests will go straight to state. We understand this is a new process for everyone and are aware there may be questions; therefore, we will be holding multiple virtual meetings in January to discuss how the process will work and address any concerns you may have.

We recognize this is not an ideal situation, but The Ohio Department of Education and SkillsUSA Ohio are committed to protecting the health, safety, and welfare of all its members and teachers while providing equitable opportunities for SkillsUSA Ohio members. We also echo the advice of Governor Mike DeWine and Ohio Department of Health in asking all Ohioans to engage in and promote the practice of everyday preventive actions.

We continue to ask for your patience while we develop the plans moving forward with this year’s regional competitions. As more information becomes available, we will provide updates through the SkillsUSA Ohio website and newsletter.

For your reference and to assist in your planning, please review the list of contests below that will run at the regional level and those that will go straight to state.

Contests Running Virtually at Regionals

Contests that normally run at Regionals but now will be straight to State

Career-Tech Video Resources

The office of Career-Technical Education is producing a series of videos to provide resources for the education community to better understand the policies, procedures, initiatives, and programs that drive the work done by the office. These videos are intended to help the experienced career-technical educator stay up-to-date with policies and procedures, provide assistance to the new career-technicaleducator in understanding the basics of career-technical education, and provide transparent and useful information about what the office does to support to education community. Please visit the Career Tech Video Resources webpage to view these videos.

Quality Program Review

Due to current conditions, the Office of Career-Technical Education will be foregoing the quality program review workshops scheduled in January and February. Education Program Specialist will be available for any technical assistance needed for working through action plans. The office will also be collaborating with the Quality Program Review external workgroup in early January 2021 to discuss Quality Program Review expectations for the FY2022 data set.

For additional information, resources and technical documents, please visit the Quality Program Review homepage.

FY22 Perkins Grant Local Application Template Posted for Review

The Local Application for FY22 funding (7/1/21-6/30/22) has undergone a U.S. Department of Education review and a template is now available for Eligible Recipients to review and begin consideration of completion. Unlike last year’s combined Comprehensive Local Needs Assessment and Local Application, this year the Local Application is the only document that needs to be submitted for continuation of funding. The Office appreciates the feedback and input from Perkins leaders in early November as we began consideration of this revision.

The Administrative Field Services unit will be holding a virtual kickoff meeting for all Eligible Applicants on January 12, 2021, followed by a series of virtual regional workshops through February, to work in a more hands-on manner with Career Technical Planning Districts on the content of their applications. 

The due date for Local Application submissions through the Comprehensive Continuous Improvement Plan system, is May 31, 2021. 

This year’s Local Application has been re-formatted to meet federal requirements for a stand-alone submission (i.e., without the CLNA), and will be a substantial reduction in work from the previous year.

• First, the Local Application includes a schedule of agreed performance targets covering the time period of the state plan (Section One).  Because historical data for these indicators is not available at the secondary level for Perkins V (and FY20 data is impacted by the period of mandated school building closure), every eligible secondary recipient will be assigned the performance indicator targets of the state plan in FY22, while there may be negotiated targets for postsecondary institutions.  In the final two years of the state plan, FY23 andFY24, local communities (secondary) will be able to negotiate local targets, based on the availability of FY21 data. 
• Second, eligible applicants will complete tables for goals supported by funded strategies.  Most applicants will likely refine goals and further develop strategies from the FY21 local application. 
• Lastly, the federal government requires each eligible recipient to answer a series of question about the local decision-making process for career-technical education.  The office seeks clear and concise, relevant answers: each response will be capped at 1,000 characters, including spaces (roughly 150 words).

The FY22 Local Application linked here is for prior review and familiarity, additional instructions and an updated fillable form Local Application document will be uploaded in early January 2021 for completion and submission.

The Ohio Department of Education posted updated information about educator evaluation systems on its Reset and Restart Education webpage. Recent legislative changes have impacted teacher, principal and school counselor evaluations. These changes, made in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, grant districts flexibility around educator evaluations for the 2020-2021 and 2021-2022 school years. In addition to the updated information, the Department has posted a frequently asked questions section to address specific concerns. 

The Reset and Restart webpage also contains a collection of useful resources for schools and districts as they navigate the challenges posed by COVID-19. The latest resource in the collection comes from Johns Hopkins University’s Consortium for School-Based Health Solutions.

Thank you to all Ohio career-tech and adult educators for your support of Ohio ACTE!

Whether you are member through your school or as an individual member, your support of Ohio ACTE is greatly appreciated.

Ohio ACTE leadership is working diligently to represent career-tech and adult educators, but we need your support.

To check your membership status, log in in the upper right corner of the web site.  On Dec. 15, members who are not current will be removed from the membership list.

Please continue to support our efforts.  Individual members, log in in the upper right corner of the website to renew your dues for 2020-2021.  Organizational/school members, thank you for your continued support!

Senate Bill 89, commonly referred to as the CTE Deregulation Bill, passed the General Assembly and was signed by Governor Mike DeWine on November 27, 2020.  The legislation will take effect March 3, 2021.  The bill contains over a dozen meaningful changes to Ohio’s education laws, including the following CTE-specific provisions:

Career -technical advocates have been working for passage of SB 89 for two years.In September of 2018, the career-technical education (CTE) community, represented by Ohio ACTE, the Ohio Association of Career Technical Superintendents (OACTS), and the Ohio Association of Comprehensive and Compact Career Technical Schools (Ohio CCS), convened to discuss all pertinent state policy issues impacting our schools, students, teachers and administrators.  Shortly thereafter, the CTE associations developed an “issues list” and met with State Senator Matt Huffman (R-Lima) to discuss potential legislative solutions. After months of consideration, research, and discussions with other legislators / state agencies, proposed resolutions to the most pressing policy obstacles impacting CTE were placed into legislation via SB 89 (link to bill & bill summary), which Sen. Huffman introduced in mid-2019

            A myriad of different factors (including the COVID-19 Pandemic) resulted in delays on the passage of numerous bills over the current legislative biennium (2019-20)—and Senate Bill 89 was no exception.  While SB 89 passed the OH Senate in October of 2019 and the OH House in February of 2020, disagreements over the bill’s non-CTE related provisions necessitated a “conference committee” between the two chambers.  And shortly after the formation of the SB 89 Conference Committee, the Pandemic began.

            Undeterred, the CTE associations remained focused on passing SB 89 and continued to interface and discuss the relevant issues with state legislators across Ohio.  Our advocacy efforts culminated in the SB 89 Conference Committee approving the bill and both chambers passing it shortly before the Thanksgiving (2020) holiday.  And on November 27, 2020, Governor Mike DeWine officially signed SB 89 into law. 

            In Ohio, bills become effective 90 days after the Governor’s signature. Thus, SB 89 will take effect March 3, 2021.   

by Will Vorys, Dickinson Wright, LLC, Ohio ACTE Legislative Counsel

Lt. Governor Jon Husted, who serves as Director of the Governor’s Office of Workforce Transformation, announced the results of the October round of TechCred, which will provide the opportunity for 246 Ohio companies to upskill their workforce.

The most recent TechCred application period closed at the end of October. During this round, 246 Ohio employers were approved for funding, resulting in Ohio employees earning up to 3,164 technology-focused credentials. This round marks a milestone as funding for the program has been approved for over 15,000 credentials. 

In August, the TechCred program exceeded 10,000 tech-focused credentials, fulfilling a commitment made by Governor DeWine and Lt. Governor Husted to fund 10,000 technology-focused credentials each year.

Since the program’s start, a total of 966 Ohio employers have been approved for funding, supporting the earning of 15,105 tech-focused credentials by Ohio employees.

The seventh TechCred application period opens on Monday, January 4th and closes on January 29th at 3:00 p.m.

Businesses with employees who have completed their TechCred training are reminded to submit proof of credential completion to receive reimbursement at TechCred.Ohio.gov.

You can learn more about the program at TechCred.Ohio.gov.

The Ohio Department of Education announced recently the launch of the RemotEDx Exchange, which provides parents and educators of K-12 students access to supports, services and resources for remote education.

The platform is part of the broader RemotEDX initiative, a $15 million effort using federal CARES Act funding to improve remote, hybrid and blended learning.

The exchange is supported by INFOhio, a digital education library and part of the Management Council of the Ohio Education Computer Network (MCOECN).

ODE said that, as with its strategic plan, the RemotEDx initiative places a focus on equity and helping under-served students.

The exchange is available at https://remotedx.infohio.org/.

The Ohio Department of Education today posted important information about Fall 2020 end-of-course exams on its Reset and Restart Education webpage.

These tests are required by federal and state law. No legislative action has been taken, up to this point in time, that alters these legal requirements for the 2020-2021 school year. The Department emphasizes that districts first and foremost should be attentive to the safety of students and staff. Assessments should occur only if they can be administered safely.

It’s also important to note, that while the fall end-of-course exam window originally was scheduled to be open between Nov. 30, 2020, and Jan. 8, 2021, that window has been extended one additional week to provide more time for testing in January. The window now runs from Nov. 30, 2020, to Jan. 15, 2021.

Please see the full updated Fall 2020 Testing webpage for additional details.

Missed an informational meeting from ODE Office of CTE?  Access recordings:

Webinars

• Perkins Overview | Slides
• CTE Program Review and Corrective Action Plan | Slides
• CTE Program Review - Alignment | Slides
• CTE Program Review - Instruction | Slides
• CTE Program Review - Assessment |Slides
• CTE Program Review - Reporting | Slides

Brown Bag Lunch Series

This past Spring, the U.S. Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which in part is designed to assist struggling schools with financial strain caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.  Ohio’s schools will receive funds under the CARES Act Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Program (ESSER) and its related Governor’s Emergency Education Relief Program (GEER).  

Thus far, the U.S. Congress, the Ohio General Assembly, and the DeWine Administration collaborated to allocate roughly $490 million of ESSER funding to Ohio’s traditional k-12 public schools (including compact and comprehensive career-tech programs).  Federal (Title I) limitations prevented Joint Vocational School Districts (JVSDs, or Career Centers) from being eligible for the ESSER funding and as a result, the state announced Nov. 10 that Governor DeWine would allocate $8.6 to JVSDs through the separate GEER fund.

“This funding support is gratefully acknowledged by the career -tech community to help with the added expenses of keeping our students safe while striving to continue their career-tech education,” said Christine Gardner, Ohio ACTE Executive Director.

Additional funding will be used to improve the delivery of CTE for students including enhancing sanitation processes and supplies, updating technology and expanding online curriculum among other things during this unprecedented pandemic, Gardner said.