Reston, VA – The National Association of Secondary School Principals issued the following statement on the House of Representatives’ passage of the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act (H.R. 5587):

We applaud the House of Representatives for their bipartisan support and passage of the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act (H.R. 5587), which will modernize career and technical education (CTE) programs for the era of college and career-ready standards. As our NASSP State Principals of the Year have been sharing with members of Congress on Capitol Hill today, new standards demand that we convert schools into institutions of opportunity that build the human potential of every student, not just identify a narrow range of talent in a few. The House recognizes that CTE programs play a significant role in fulfilling that vision. Most notably, the House bill provides much needed support for educator development, recognizing that effective CTE programs require schools and educators to retool their own skills and knowledge for a new kind of pedagogy.

We now encourage the Senate to follow the House lead and bring the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act to the Senate floor for a vote. Yet, in this version, we hope the Senate will remove the “explorer” component from the formula to assess CTE’s impact. Removing from accountability formulas those students who are only tangentially engaged in CTE will have virtually no impact on accountability (0.7% of students according to NCES data), but will provide a more reliable measure of CTE’s effectiveness by examining the performance of those students who pursue such programs in earnest.

About NASSP

The National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) is the leading organization of and voice for middle level and high school principals, assistant principals, and school leaders from across the United States and 35 countries around the world. The association connects and engages school leaders through advocacy, research, education, and student programs. NASSP advocates on behalf of all school leaders to ensure the success of each student and strengthens school leadership practices through the design and delivery of high-quality professional learning experiences. Reflecting its long-standing commitment to student leadership development, NASSP administers the National Honor Society, National Junior Honor Society, National Elementary Honor Society, and National Association of Student Councils.

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