How successful is career and technical education? Graduation rates provide a valuable clue.

Students who take part in career and technical education (CTE) programs are seeing more success graduating high school.That’s among the finding in a new report by the Tennessee Comptroller. According to the report, the four-year graduation rates of CTE students in school year 2020/2021 was eight percent higher than all Tennessee students.“Over the past several years, Tennessee has introduced multiple initiatives to promote career and technical education (CTE) for students across the state. In order to measure the success of CTE programs, data is collected at the state level and federal level through narrative reports, financial records, and performance data,” wrote Comptroller Research Analyst Allison Pams.High school CTE students included in the analysis have completed at least two courses in a single CTE program.The Comptroller analyzed annual reports that detail the performance data of CTE participants in middle and high school, and college to create its analysis.Those annual reports are required under the federal Perkins V Act, which provides federal funding for CTE programs from 2019-2924.“Tennessee’s CTE initiatives and Perkins V legislation emphasize the importance of CTE programs leading to high skill, high wage, and in-demand occupations in current or emerging professions. Data reporting requirements can highlight how CTE students perform academically, as well as how closely aligned current CTE programs are with workforce needs at a local, regional, or state level,” wrote Pams.This CTE report is the latest the the Comptroller has been releasing throughout the summer on the topic along with CTE infographics and an interactive dashboard. Then goal of the project is to help the public learn more about CTE education and encourage students to consider taking CTE courses.