CNM Perkins

CNM Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Improvement Grant

President Bush signed the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Improvement Act of 2006 into law on August 12, 2006. The new Act outlines an increased focus on the academic achievement of career and technical education students, strengthen the connections between secondary and postsecondary education, and improve state and local accountability. Access the official law here.

From the NM PED CTWEB

Perkins IV and Potential for Education Redesign Efforts:  Perkins IV supports the alignment of career-technical education with State initiatives relating to the redesign of secondary schools and enhanced collaboration with postsecondary education.  The implementation of the new law ensures that career-technical education programs are an integral part of these efforts.

The New Mexico Public Education Department’s vision of having a world-class education system in which all New Mexico students are prepared to succeed in a diverse and increasingly complex world dovetails with the potential that grant recipients will have to support educational reform via integration of Perkins IV with the Governor’s Career Clusters Initiative, and with rigorous, challenging academic & career- technical instruction reflecting New Mexico’s Standards and Benchmarks. Collectively, the initiatives promote economic and workforce development for the State and meet the Public Education Department’s goals of ensuring that students graduate from high school better prepared to succeed in postsecondary education and the world of work, as well as increasing the academic excellence and achievement of students.

NM Career Clusters>Career Pathways>CNM Programs of Study (pdf)

Seamless Education and Workforce Development Systems: Together with the Workforce Investment Act of 1998, which restructured employment training, adult education, and vocational rehabilitation programs, Perkins IV promotes the development of integrated, "one-stop" education and workforce development systems at the State and local levels.

Perkins IV promotes reform, innovation, and continuous improvement in career and technical education to ensure that students acquire the skills and knowledge they need:

•         to meet challenging State academic standards and industry-recognized skill standards, and

•         to prepare for postsecondary education, further learning, and a wide range of opportunities in high-skill, high-wage, or high-demand careers.

Focus on Quality: Perkins IV focuses the Federal investment in career-technical education on high-quality programs that:

•            integrate academic and career-technical education through a coherent sequence of courses;

•            promote student attainment of challenging academic and career-technical standards;

•            link career and technical education at the secondary and postsecondary level through career and technical programs of study;

•            provide students with strong experience in, and understanding of, all aspects of an industry to include work-based learning;

•            address the needs of individuals who are members of special populations;

•            involve parents, employers, labor organizations, and representatives of special populations;

•            provide strong linkages between secondary and postsecondary education;

•            develop, improve and expand the use of technology; and

•            provide professional development for secondary and postsecondary teachers, faculty, administrators, and career guidance and academic counselors, in the areas of integration, best practices, and the use of scientifically based research data to improve career-technical education.

Accountability:  To promote continuous program improvement, Perkins IV builds upon the previous Act by establishing and supporting a state and local performance accountability system designed to assess the effectiveness of the state and local funding recipients in achieving progress in career-technical education. The U.S. Secretary of Education and the State must reach agreements on the levels of performance, with the Secretary’s role being limited to negotiating agreement on the numbers or percentages for the levels of performance for the following mandatory "core performance indicators" specified in the law:

Postsecondary

           Student attainment of challenging career and technical skill proficiencies, including student achievement on technical assessments, that are aligned with industry-recognized standards, if available and appropriate;

•            Student attainment of an industry-recognized credential, a certificate, or degree;

•            Student retention in postsecondary education or transfer to a baccalaureate degree program;

•            Student placement in military service or apprenticeship programs or placement or retention in employment, including placement in high-skill, high-wage or high-demand occupations or professions;

•            Student participation in, and completion of, career-technical education programs that lead to employment in nontraditional fields. 

Special Populations

CNM is committed to serving underrepresented students and to provide grant funds to CTE programs and projects and that will ensure the retention and success of these students. These "special populations" include:

• Individuals with disabilities
• Economically and academically disadvantaged students
• Individuals preparing for nontraditional training and employment
• Single parents, including single pregnant women
• Displaced homemakers
• Individuals with other barriers to educational achievement including those with limited English proficiency

"Nontraditional training and employment"* refers to any occupation or field of work in which a specific gender is underrepresented (less than 25%).