Career Technical Education in Montana works with teachers, students, parents and communities to carry out the mission of the state's Graduation Matters program. To do this, state officials help make connections between high school students' curriculum and their career possibilities as well as providing CTE resources to schools and sponsoring student organizations. They also help set high standards for the state's CTE programs and establish business and industry relationships to help shape these programs.
The state's Two-Year and Community College Division provides leadership and advocacy for the University of Montana system on topics such as dual enrollment, online learning, adult education and outreach.
CTE is offered through the following institutions:
- Comprehensive high schools
- Community colleges
- Four-year universities
- Tribal colleges
| Secondary Indicators | 2015-16 | 2016-17 |
|---|---|---|
| Academic Skills - Reading/Language Arts | No | No |
| Academic Skills - Mathematics | No | No |
| Technical Skill Attainment | Yes | Yes |
| School Completion | Yes | Yes |
| Student Graduation Rates | Yes | Yes |
| Placement | No | Yes |
| Nontraditional Participation | Yes | Yes |
| Nontraditional Completion | Yes | Yes |
| Postsecondary Indicators | 2015-16 | 2016-17 |
|---|---|---|
| Technical Skill Attainment | Yes | Yes |
| Credential, Certificate or Degree | Yes | Yes |
| Student Retention or Transfer | Yes | Yes |
| Student Placement | Yes | Yes |
| Nontraditional Participation | Yes | Yes |
| Nontraditional Completion | Yes | Yes |
| Year | FY 2018 | FY 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| Total Perkins Funds Received | $5,575,493 | $5,919,788 |
| Percentage of local funds distributed to Secondary | 68% | |
| Percentage of local funds distributed to Postsecondary | 32% |
Montana has modified the National Career Clusters® Framework and is implementing 11 Career Clusters. Montana uses Career Clusters as an infrastructure for a seamless educational transition between all learner levels as well as a tool for career guidance, a platform for course sequence organization and a way to improve the quality of CTE.
For the past three years, the State has sponsored a summer Career Clusters Institute bringing together teachers and administrators at the secondary and postsecondary levels to explore and more fully develop Montana’s Career Clusters model.
Montana’s Big Sky Pathway initiative is the state’s effort to build strong, fully-articulated rigorous programs of study and is the main approach used by the state to facilitate secondary and postsecondary linkages. Montana's is currently implementing programs of study - Big Sky Pathways - in six Clusters, which encompass 15 Career Cluster areas.
- Agriculture, Food & Natural Resources
- Arts, A/V Technology & Communications
- Business, Management & Information Systems
- Health Sciences
- Human Services & Resources
- Industrial, Manufacturing & Engineering Systems
Montana University System
- Montana's Five-Year State Plan
- Division of Career, Technical, and Adult Education: Montana's state office has a collection of valuable resources for CTE, veterans and adults.
- Office of Two-Year and Community College Education: On the postsecondary level, this office provides leadership and support for Montana's 12 two-year institutions.
- Big Sky Pathways: This college and career initiative allows students to seamlessly transfer from high school to college and careers through a program of study.
- Learning that Works Resource Center: Montana
Montana offers dual enrollment, concurrent/transcripted credit, state law, and statewide articulation to ease the transition from secondary to postsecondary.
Montana’s CTE START program is beginning to define statewide articulation agreements. Managed by the Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education, CTE START identifies and defines secondary courses that meet outcomes that correlate to postsecondary courses. At the postsecondary level, learning outcomes are identified for each course in the university system; secondary courses that are aligned with those learning outcomes then meet requirements for statewide articulation within Big Sky Pathways.
Montana currently maintains over 10 CTE START statewide articulations, including courses such as accounting, construction technology, and welding.
See here for an explanation of the data used for state profiles.