Advance CTE’s 2018 Spring Meeting opened with a focus on some of the most critical external factors impacting CTE – in particular labor market demand and the upcoming 2018 elections.
The meeting kicked off with a keynote from Nicole Smith of Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce who discussed what “good jobs” are available – specifically those that pay a sustaining wage, offer pathways to advancement and are accessible to individuals with some college but less than a four-year degree – and who currently has access those good jobs. Through a moderated discussion with Chauncy Lennon of JPMorgan Chase & Co., who funded the “Good Jobs Project,” Smith shared some of Georgetown’s major findings, including the rise of health care careers and the fact that women disproportionately “own” about two-thirds of all student loan debt, to the tune of $1 trillion, despite only holding one-third of all good jobs.
The morning then shifted to the first full panel of the meeting, featuring some of Advance CTE’s strongest partners: Steve Bowen on the Council of Chief State School Officers, Anna Davis of National Governors Association and Kermit Kaleba of the National Skills Coalition. With 36 gubernatorial elections happening in 2018, along with a potentially major mid-term election impacting both chambers of the U.S. Congress, all three of the panelists urged Advance CTE and its members to keep up on the positive communications about CTE given its popularity and bi-partisanship. The speakers also encouraged the CTE community to do more to educate policymakers and partners on what CTE, and Perkins, is all about to ensure their support going forward.
Kate Kreamer, Deputy Executive Director, Advance CTE
This year’s 2018 Spring Meeting was the most highly attended in Advance CTE history. We thank each and every attendee and sponsor for bringing their wonderful energy and insight to make this year’s meeting one of the most memorable I’ve had in my time with Advance CTE.
Nearly 250 national, state and local CTE leaders joined us April 4-6 at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, DC. Our attendees represented 27 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands and came from every corner of CTE including secondary, postsecondary, workforce development, adult education and even the philanthropic community and other key partners.  
I also want to thank and recognize our sponsors, whose partnership and support helped make our meeting a success:
Diamond Level

• CompTIA
• Certiport
• Lincoln Electric
• Microsoft Imagine Academy
• Oracle Academy

Platinum Level

• Manufacturing Skills Standards Council
• Simulaids

Gold Level

• NC3T
• NOCTI
• Siemens

Bronze Level

• CareerSafe
• Career Solutions Publishing
• CORD
• Fleck Education
• KnowledgeMatters
• MBA Research
• Precision Exams
• RealityWorks
• Vivayic

Not yet a member? Today is the perfect day to join us! Member benefits include discounted meeting registration, which you can use at our next in-person meeting.
We hope to see all of you October 22-24 at our Fall Meeting at the BWI Marriott just outside Baltimore, Maryland!
Andrea Zimmermann, Senior Associate, Member Engagement and Leadership Development