Modern Career and Technical Education is for everyone. Here’s why it should start in middle school.
When my grandfather entered the workforce with a seventh-grade education in the early twentieth century, he mined coal in western Pennsylvania, did factory work after serving in WWI, and retired as an City Councilman. My grandfather owned a home and a car and led a comfortable life. My father graduated high school toward the middle of the twentieth century and immediately took a job as a door-to-door salesman, a career he never left.
When I went to college, I started as a biology major. It quickly became clear that the path wasn’t right for me, so I visited a counselor to discuss my options and landed on a degree in physics education. After college, I spent time as an educator, then as a consultant for NASA, then an entrepreneur, then as a curriculum developer, and most recently as a product manager and strategist.
I share my family history not because it’s unique (many of us have parents with similarly linear career trajectories and have followed a winding path ourselves) but because it has informed my approach to career and technical education. Today, a path like mine – non-linear with a lot of unanswered questions in college – is simply unaffordable for students. Consider that the Bureau of Labor Statistic’s data show that the average younger baby boomer will have changed jobs 12.4 times between ages 18 and 54, and will change careers 5 to 7 times! Today’s students are unlikely to follow a simple path to a good job with limited education or debts as my father and grandfather did. For today’s students, something has to change.
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CITE is the Center for Integrated Training and Education.
For over 25 years, CITE has and continues to train:
TEACHERS: General and Special Ed Masters (Early Childhood or Childhood), ONLINE Special Ed / Professional Certification Masters (pre k – 12), TESOL Masters, Special Ed license extension courses, Bilingual license extension courses, TESOL license extension courses, Early Childhood license extension courses
COUNSELORS: School Counseling Masters, Mental Health Counseling Masters, Advanced Certificate in Mental Health or School Counseling
ADMINISTRATORS: School Building Leadership, School District Leadership, Doctorate for CSA members, Doctorate open to teachers, Doctorate open to school leaders, Public Administration Master’s
— in all five boroughs of NYC, Yonkers, Westchester, Nassau and Suffolk.
CITE PD and Parent Workshops: CITE offers CTLE-approved in-school or online professional development and parent workshops tailored to your school’s needs and your vision. We can work remotely with your staff and parents. Languages available: Spanish, Mandarin, Greek, Italian, English. Info: citepd.com
