Background:

Reauthorization of the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act (Perkins V) has introduced the expectation that States report on a new set of program quality indicators at the secondary level. These include the percentage of career and technical education (CTE) concentrators graduating from high school who have: (1) attained a recognized postsecondary credential; (2) earned postsecondary credits through a dual or concurrent enrollment program; (3) participated in work-based learning; and/or (4) achieved another State developed measure of success. Outcome data produced from these indicators will help to document the benefits that CTE offers students and improve programs.

The Quality Indicator Project is a nationwide initiative to build State capacity to implement the Perkins V quality indicators. Project work will inform development of technical assistance materials that States may access online via the Perkins Collaborative Resource Network. Recommendations from Quality Indicator Workgroups comprised of State and local-level CTE directors and staff at the secondary and postsecondary levels will support development of the technical assistance materials. Project work will be facilitated by experienced, nationally recognized subject matter experts.

Purpose:

Project activities will assist States in strengthening the validity, reliability, and accuracy of their indicators and data collection systems.

Project work will proceed in two phases over a two-year period:

• Phase 1: Develop Technical Assistance Materials (November 2020 – August 2021)
  Convening and facilitating four Quality Indicator Workgroups (QIWs)—one for each indicator—to consider effective data collection and analysis protocols and challenges and possible solutions to issues complicating State indicator adoption. Findings will be published in a comprehensive resource guide and shared on national webinars.
• Phase 2: Deliver Capacity-Building Technical Assistance (November 2021 – July 2022)
  States will be invited to apply for customized technical assistance to support them in designing, implementing, and revising their quality indicators. Supports will be tailored to individual State needs and delivered free of charge by subject matter experts and interested members of the QIWs.

Technical Assistance Benefits:

State and local-level CTE directors and accountability staff participating in the initiative will contribute to the creation of resources and tools that will strengthen the collection, analysis, and reporting of data on secondary CTE programming nationwide. This development work will have longstanding ramifications for CTE program design and the use of data for accountability and program improvement purposes at the State and local levels.

Requirements for Participating:

Phase 1 is open to all State and local-level CTE directors and staff, at secondary and postsecondary levels, with knowledge of the program quality indicators and a desire to contribute to a nationwide effort to improve their use. Participants should have situational awareness of State legislative and administrative policies; experience with the federal CTE indicators and their State’s collection and reporting capacity and procedures; technical understanding of State-level database and IT system capacities; and insight into providers’ program improvement needs. Individuals are encouraged to notify their State CTE director of their application and coordinate their participation to the extent feasible.

Phase 2 participation requirements will be announced in the Fall of 2021.

Application:

Individuals seeking to participate in Phase 1 of the initiative must complete an application and email it to PerkinsVQI@manhattanstrategy.com by Friday, October 30, 2020. Applications are available from your State CTE Director or by contacting Co-Project Director Lori Meyer at LMeyer@manhattanstrategy.com.

Invitation Letter (PDF, 228 KB)
Application Packet (PDF, 447 KB)