You are here

Celebrate CTE!

Monday, January 25, 2021

2021 has begun and the New Year brings optimism, hope, and most importantly CTE Month in February! The positive impact of Career and Technical Education (CTE) can be seen every day; however, February is officially CTE Month and there are a number of specific ways to celebrate, despite the barriers the pandemic has created.

Regardless if the groundhog sees his “shadow” on February 2, students can benefit all month by participating in job shadow experiences. Whether you develop your own virtual job shadows or link to archived events, these resources can help:

  • The Virtual Job Spotlight Guide walks you through how to put together a virtual job shadow. The appendix also contains a list of 20 virtual job shadows that you can get on YouTube.
  • Inspire Sheboygan County has an archive of virtual job shadows that, as an educator, you can get access to, for the asking.

Your innovative CTE program deserves recognition from the community. It’s time to “proclaim” how incorporating technical skills, work-based learning, dual-credit courses, and CTSOs (Career and Technical Student Organizations) within your program prepares students to be college and career ready. Use the template on this page for your own proclamation! Then, let your local news outlet know so they can spread the word!

You can also get the word out by sharing positive CTE success stories through social media. Remember to include #WICTEMonth and tag @WisconsinCTE to get more mileage out of your posts!

Consider showcasing CTSO participation and community impact. These make outstanding stories, especially with these four CTSOs celebrating their own recognition weeks in February:

  • SkillsUSA Week, February 7-13
  • FCCLA Week, February 8-12
  • FBLA Week, February 14-21
  • FFA Week, February 20-27

Piggyback your celebrations onto these CTSO weeks. You’ll find Wisconsin state proclamations for the following CTSOs here.

Want more ideas for CTE Month? Find them here! You’re sure to raise awareness about the great work you’re doing in Wisconsin CTE!