The state of Michigan’s Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs were honored with the Pathway Award by the Michigan College Access Network (MCAN) during its annual College Access Impact Awards ceremony on November 4 in Lansing.
The Pathway Award recognizes partners that connect K–12 education, higher education, and industry to advance Michigan’s Sixty by 30 goal and provide students with clear pathways to success. This year’s award highlights the impact of CTE programs, which enrolled nearly 115,000 students. Over the past decade, CTE completions have more than doubled to over 55,000 statewide. Through hands-on learning, work-based learning experiences, and opportunities to earn industry credentials and college credit, CTE programs help students build skills for both college and careers, making CTE programs vital to Michigan’s future workforce.
Accepting the award on behalf of Michigan’s CTE programs was Robert Smith, Director of Career and Technical Education at Van Buren Intermediate School District/Van Buren Tech, alongside Celena Mills, Director of Career and Technical Education at the Michigan Department of Education.
“Unlike the old vocational model of Career and Technical Education, which was primarily seen as an alternative to college, today’s CTE programs serve college and university-bound students, utilizing a multi-faceted training experience that includes a combination of project-based learning, targeted academic instruction, work-based learning, industry-recognized credentials, and college credit,” said Robert Smith. “In line with Michigan’s Sixty by 30 initiative, today’s CTE programs aim to close the skills gap by providing an environment where students can apply the skills and academics they learn, utilizing high-tech equipment and training as they explore career options, prepare for college, and develop skills for the workplace.”
Van Buren Tech is proud that Robert Smith represented our program and Michigan’s Career and Technical Education community in accepting the MCAN Pathway Award, which recognized the collective impact of CTE programs statewide. His leadership and perspective continue to highlight the vital role CTE plays in preparing students for both college and careers across Michigan.