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Career & Technical Education (CTE)

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Career and Technical Education (CTE) in Iowa includes educational programs offering a sequence of courses that prepare individuals for employment in current or emerging occupations. Programs include competency-based applied learning, which contributes to an individual’s academic knowledge, higher-order reasoning and problem-solving skills, work attitudes, general employability skills, and occupational-specific skills. CTE broadly encompasses six service areas:

  • Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources 
  • Applied Sciences, Technology, Engineering, and Manufacturing (including transportation, distribution, logistics, architecture, and construction)
  • Business, Finance, Marketing and Management
  • Health Science 
  • Human Services
  • Information Solutions, Arts, and Communications

Program Overview

Career and Technical Education (CTE) in Iowa includes educational programs offering a sequence of courses that prepare individuals for employment in current or emerging occupations. Programs include competency-based applied learning, which contributes to an individual’s academic knowledge, higher-order reasoning and problem-solving skills, work attitudes, general employability skills, and occupational-specific skills.

CTE

Service Areas:

  • Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources
  • Arts, Communications, and Information Systems
  • Applied Sciences, Technology, Engineering, and Manufacturing (including transportation, distribution, logistics, architecture, and construction)
  • Business, Finance, Marketing, and Management
  • Health Sciences
  • Human Services

State law requires schools to offer 4 of the 6 service areas to their students under Chapter 12 “offer and teach” requirements.

There are 3 units of instruction required for each program of study. One unit of instruction may be shared between programs.

Teachers must have a CTE endorsement in the area they are teaching.

If your district is adding a new CTE program offering, please contact Chris Dicus at Northwest AEA.

Resources by Program

Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources

Career and Technical Student Organization (CTSO):

Professional Organizations:

Arts, Communications, and Information Systems

Information Solutions: Standards & Benchmarks (Iowa)

Career & Technical Student Organizations (CTSOs):

Applied Sciences, Technology, Engineering, and Manufacturing

Applied Sciences, Technology, Engineering, and Manufacturing (Industrial Technology) Vision & Mission

Applied Sciences, Technology, Engineering, and Manufacturing - Standards & Benchmarks (Iowa)

Career & Technical Student Organization (CTSO):

Professional Organizations:

Project Lead the Way (PLTW) 

Business, Finance, Marketing, and Management

Iowa Standards are aligned to the national standards by MBA research. Below are a few resources to check out:

Business, Finance, Marketing, and Management - Standards & Benchmarks (Iowa)

MBA Research & Curriculum Center

State's Connection (free with valid Iowa education email) is a space for instructional materials and resources to support educators and their program development. 

Career & Technical Student Organizations (CTSOs):

Professional Organizations:

 

Health Sciences

Health Sciences: Standards & Benchmarks (Iowa)

Community College Core Performance Standards (Iowa)

Iowa Health Science Work-Based Learning Toolkit

Career & Technical Student Organization (CTSO):

HOSA - Future Health Professionals

Professional Organizations:

Human Services (Family and Consumer Science)

Human Services (Family and Consumer Science) Vision & Mission

Framework for Family & Consumer Sciences in CTE

Statewide Articulation (Child Development, Intro to Early Childhood, Nutrition, Community College Articulation Contact Information)

Human Services (Family and Consumer Science): Standards & Benchmarks (Iowa)

Career & Technical Student Organization (CTSO):

Professional Organizations:

Universal CTE Resources

Program Review

Program Approval is completed on a five year rotating basis in Region 4 and 12. The schedule for Program Reviews requiring the completion of Self-Studies is below:

2023-24 2024-25 2025-26 2026-27 2027-28
Agriculture Applied STEM

Industrial Tech

 Human Services

(FCS)

 Business, Finance, Marketing, and Management

 

Arts, Communications, and Information Systems

 Health Sciences

 

Law, Public Safety, Corrections, and Security

Timeline for Program Review Completion:

1. AEA Workshop: Program of Study Launch Workshop and Collaboration (September)

2. Submission to the RPP Program Review Team (October)

3. Approve the Program of Studies to be submitted to the Department of Education (December)

4. RPP Coordinator submits the region's programs for review

Resources

CTE Model Programs

The Iowa Department of Education’s Career and Technical Education Bureau developed these specific model programs as a starting point for school districts, new teachers, and other educational stakeholders to view program examples that may serve as guideposts for new program implementation with fidelity.

These model programs are not to take the place of high-achieving CTE programming that complies with current state and federal operation requirements, but rather to be best utilized by districts looking to create additional pathways or make updates to existing ones. Model programs may also be helpful to advisory committees when looking to make suggestions for course alignment.

The Iowa CTE model programs include foundational CTE courses, pathway-specific example courses, and post-secondary community college courses for a complete roadmap to program success. Also embedded into these model program documents are examples of aligned career and technical student organization activities and work-based learning experiences.

Please remember that these model programs are to be used as guideposts only. Please continue to analyze labor market data and solicit feedback from advisory committees, as well as other stakeholders on a local level to determine the need and program-specific coursework.

CTE Model Programs by Service Area

Career and Technical Student Organizations (CTSO)

Career and Technical Student Organizations (CTSO) integrate and incorporate career and technical education activities into courses/programs to develop the skills students need in their chosen occupational field.  The primary way to start doing this is to view CTSOs as a "co-curricular" organization, rather than primarily a competitive organization. 

CTSOs encourage leadership skills, employability skills, and career exploration with a variety of methods.  A CTSO from a district can participate in conferences, competitions, and workshops, or they can choose to primarily participate by integrating the program into their classes through lesson plans, community service, and other activities. This integration and implementation, no matter the method, will greatly impact students and their preparation for postsecondary success.

Additional CTSO Resources:

Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources CTSO:

Business, Finance, Marketing, and Management CTSOs:

Health Sciences CTSO:

HOSA - Future Health Professionals

Human Services (Family & Consumer Sciences) CTSO:

FCCLA - Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America Iowa FCCLA

Information Solutions/Information Technology (CTSO):

Work-Based Learning

Work-based Learning is now one of the performance measures our CTE programs are accountable for under Perkins V.  It is an essential component in the 21st-century classroom. It provides real-world, hands-on work to students and supports the relevance of classroom lessons. Work-based learning enables students to explore and engage with various careers, and it teaches them the all-important professional skills needed by industry.

Essential Elements of Work-Based Learning:

  1. Academic Preparation
  2. Partnership Between Education and Industry
  3. Academic Follow-up

Iowa Work-Based Learning Fact Sheet

Iowa Department of Education - Work-Based Learning

Guidance:

Getting Started with Work-Based Learning:

The suggestions listed below are intended to provide ideas for districts wanting to get started in WBL. It is not intended to suggest that a district must do all of the things listed.

Work-Based Learning at Schools:

High School Internships and Apprenticeships:

Internships provide students with a hands-on opportunity to develop career and professional skills with an industry partner in a workplace setting.

Resources & Toolkits:

For the most recent and up-to-date information from the Iowa Department of Education Work-Based Learning website.

CTE State and National Organizations

Perkins and RPP Grant Resources

Perkins V Grant Information

Perkins V - Iowa Department of Education

Comprehensive Local Needs Assessment

Perkins V introduced the requirement for districts and consortiums to complete a Comprehensive Local Needs Assessment (CLNA) every two years.

Additional Perkins V Resources

Regional Planning Partnerships (RPP)

Regional Planning Partnerships & Regional Centers:

Career and Academic Planning:

Resources:

Additional Resources

Below are some resources provided by the Department of Education:

 

Important contacts

Staff Directory
Image thumbnail for Christine Dicus

Christine Dicus

Educational Consultant

712-222-6049 Email Christine Dicus