Congress looks to strengthen CTE programs
Virtual reality, high tech security systems. All things students are engaging in and learning at the Arlington Career Center.
"When I was a student this class changed my life," Wilmer Castro said.
Wilmer Castro took a collision repair class here, now he teaches it.
"This class led me to owning a small business, actually two of them, it helped me travel through South America, I travelled through different countries in South America, doing just what I was teaching the students how to do today," Castro added.
Over 20 different career technical education, or CTE programs, are currently being offered through the Arlington Public School System. The goal is to get students fully prepared to enter the real world.
"When I first started here it was kind of uncommon for a student to walk out of here with a certification but these students can walk out with a certification that they can actually work in industry after they graduate," Kris Martini, Director of Career Technical and Adult Education with Arlington Public Schools said.
Some of these programs are currently supported by federal funds and a bill moving through Congress would help strengthen that support.
"It's interesting when you look at workforce data how kids are starting to form some initial decisions maybe earlier than what some of us did in the past," Congressman Glenn Thompson (R-PA-5) said.
Pennsylvania Congressman Glenn Thompson helped introduce the ‘Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act’.
The bill provides builds on a law passed in the 1980's, which increases federal financial support to state and local CTE programs and adds reforms that reflect the challenges of our time.
"They’re fretting they’re worrying about how do they make ends meet well this is an opportunity to get access to high quality career and technical education training, be able to find that, not just to get a job but to get a better job than the one they had," he added.
For Castro, paying it forward is part of the job, and this legislation would help to him continue to do that.
"We can't all sit behind a desk. Sometime I feel that we look badly upon this work, but that's what builds the nation I feel like," he said. "Once you enjoy what you're doing you don’t care about your job." I think if we find out passion we can always figure out what career best fits us," Castro added.
The bill passed in the House but not in the Senate. Thompson said he is hopeful he’ll see action by the end of the year.
