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By Dr. Roy Peters, Jr.
President,Oklahoma Alliance for
Manufacturing Excellence, Inc.
State Director (1986-1999), Oklahoma Department of Vocational and Technical
Education
Oklahoma’s CareerTech System “Best in the Country”
Oklahoma’s storied vocational technical – CareerTech – education
system is known as the “best in the country.” Even without
a national means of measurement, there are a number of reasons why
that statement rings true. Oklahoma has built its reputation on a
strong commitment
to quality vocational technical education; a consistent mission of
preparing Oklahomans for the workplace; and committed professionals
who have made
the system a national leader.
In 1987, the 50 state directors
of vocational technical education systems were asked their opinion
on
the best state systems in the country. Oklahoma
came out a clear winner with Florida and Ohio rounding out the
top three. My doctoral dissertation was based on this survey. I looked
carefully
at why these three states were identified. While opinions varied,
there was consistent mention of these three states having a clear
mission for
their vocational technical education system; having strong state
leadership with a commitment to quality programs; and a system
with
committed professionals
running their schools and teaching in their programs.
The reputation
through the years of Oklahoma’s CareerTech system
remains consistent. In June representatives from New Mexico’s
Public Education Department, legislatively charged with developing
the design,
construction and equipping of career technical-vocational education
centers, wanted to see a system that had been proven effective
over the years.
They said that Oklahoma kept coming up in conversations across
the country, so they decided to come here and see what everyone
was talking
about.
Business, political and educational
leaders from around the world have always visited Oklahoma to see our
system. Some
recent visitors
include
China, Mexico, Bulgaria, Germany, Pennsylvania and Virginia.
Through the years Oklahomans have also traveled to such countries
as China,
Siberia, India, Brazil, Amsterdam and Germany and to most every
state making presentations
about our system.
From its beginning, Oklahoma
took the lead in vocational and technical education. In 1917 when President
Woodrow
Wilson
signed legislation
authorizing federal funding for vocational education Oklahoma
was one of the first
states to immediately expand its vocational offerings with
programs in agriculture and home economics (now family and
consumer sciences
education),
which were taught in public schools.
This early and quick
reaction to federal vocational legislation established a base for
our reputation in the field of vocational
education. About
50 years later in 1967, Congress passed new legislation.
According to historian Danney Goble, “In a stunningly
short time, Oklahomans reinvented almost everything about
their state's vocational education – it's
mission, its organization, its governance, its funding,
everything – even
its name (in 2000).”*
As these mid-1960 changes
were planned, Oklahoma made a decision that sets this system
apart from the rest of the
country – pooling
our resources. Our state leaders realized a strong vocational
technical system
would be nearly impossible if resources were spread among
its 600-plus school districts and running them from the
state level, similar to
most of the other 50 states.
While Henry Bellmon was
governor, the state constitution was changed allowing
regional districts— area schools—to be
formed. A local tax could be collected and a locally
elected
board would control schools. While the schools (now
called technology centers)
are governed
locally, they must recognize they are part of the state
system. That state system sets standards of quality
that must be met.
A lot of credit for our reputation
and success goes
to Gov. Dewey Bartlett who became known as the “job
gettingest governor ever.” Early
on he recognized the vital role a successful vocational
education system would play in the state’s
economic future. Governor Bartlett found that North
and South
Carolina had excellent vocational technical
education
systems. Teams of educators, business, and political
leaders went to the Carolinas to see their operations.
Those leaders took the
best
ideas from both states and created a system that
now includes 29 school districts
operating 54 sites. Locally governed, largely locally
funded, but a part of a state system.
Over the decades,
the system added programs in marketing education,
business and information technology education,
technology education,
health careers
education and trade and industrial education, along
with the associated student organizations. Also,
business and industry
training, adult
career development and web-based education along
with training for soon-to-be
released inmates through CareerTech Skills Centers
located
within prison walls continue to prepare Oklahomans
for the success in
the workplace.
While CareerTech programs
in junior and senior high schools such as Agricultural Education, Technology
Education
and Family and
Consumer Sciences are
still vitally important to the system’s
reputation, these technology centers have allowed
us to pool
our precious resources (tax dollars)
to build a system that contribute directly to
our economic development efforts and our ability
to
keep our young people in Oklahoma because
they can find a job.
There is an expectation
of consistent quality and help to make that
happen in each classroom.
In
addition to professional state staff who supervises
programs to insure quality, there also is a
strong system in
place to prepare teachers of the highest quality.
A
system will only
be as good
as each individual teacher. They maintain a
continuous improvement
attitude.
In addition, the state system
operates the largest and most comprehensive vocational technical
curriculum development department in the world. Sales are made to
most every state and many
foreign countries.
Those sales help support future curriculum
development in new and emerging fields and keeps revisions current.
The curriculum helps
insure consistent
quality within each career tech program.
Oklahomans who support this
superb system should be justifiably proud of what we have.
