CTE Grant Committee to Begin Its Work - Oregon Department of Education

For immediate release
contact Crystal Greene, 503-947-5650

September 22, 2011

CTE Grant Committee to Begin Its Work

First awards from new grant fund to be made this spring

PORTLAND- State Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian and State Schools Superintendent Susan Castillo today announced their appointees and co-chairs of the Career and Technical Education Revitalization Advisory Committee (CTERAC), the key voices who will help them administer the $2 million dedicated to CTE restoration by the Oregon legislature earlier this year. CTERAC holds its first public meeting, concentrating on organizational matters, on Thursday, September 29, 2011, from 9am to 3pm in Room 243 of the State Capitol.

The 12 members of CTERAC, appointed jointly by Avakian and Castillo, are drawn from the Oregon Legislature, organized labor, the business community and trade organizations, and education professionals from various backgrounds. They include:

Jon Chandler of the Oregon Homebuilders Association, CTERAC Co-Chair	Ginger Redlinger of Clackamas Academy of Industrial Sciences, CTERAC Co-Chair
Andrew Beyer of Lease Crutcher Lewis	Barbara Byrd of the Oregon AFL-CIO
Colin Cameron of the Confederation of Oregon School Administrators	Rep. Kevin Cameron, Ore. House Republican Leader
Sen. Diane Rosenbaum, Ore. Senate Majority Leader	Mark Elston of Hampton Lumber
Penny Grotting of Malheur Education Service District	Brian Krieg of the Sheet Metal Contractors Association
John Mohlis of the Oregon State Building and Construction Trades Council	Duella Scott-Hull, retired Coos Bay School District educator

“This is an exciting time for career and technical education in Oregon,” Avakian said. “We have work to do, thanks to years of disinvestment in CTE, but we have a concrete plan to get on the right track: maximizing the return on public dollars through partnerships with labor and industry, drawing on existing models of success and establishing a framework to bring high-quality CTE options that teach emerging or in-demand job skills to every student in Oregon.”

“The members of the CTE committee bring a tremendous breadth and depth of knowledge and experience to this project,” Castillo said. “I thank all of them for their past contributions to CTE in Oregon and look forward to the impact that they will have in building a strong foundation for future generations of Oregon students and workers.”

CTERAC, administered by the Oregon Department of Education and Oregon’s Bureau of Labor and Industries, will award grants to successful applicants in spring 2012, with funds to be disbursed for the 2012-13 school year. Committee members will advise the Labor Commissioner and Superintendent on rules and policy regarding the grant application process and award criteria. Oregonians interested in following the committee’s work, which is open to the public, can join the secure “CTE Grants” email list at http://listsmart.osl.state.or.us/mailman/listinfo/ctegrants.

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Susan Castillo, State Superintendent of Public Instruction
Christine Miles, Communications Director, Telephone (503) 947-5637
http://www.ode.state.or.us

Oregon Department of Education News Releases contain information that was originally released to the press as an official release. Refer to each News Release for the details.