Mission
Learn more about mission of the NRCCTE in this video: An Introduction to the Mission and Activities of the National Research Center for Career and Technical Education with Director Jim Stone (video; closed captioned)
The National Research Center for Career and Technical Education (NRCCTE) at the University of Louisville is committed to providing evidence-based solutions to the most vexing problems confronting CTE today, including how to better engage students in the school experience; how to improve academic as well as technical achievement; and how to improve the transition of college and career ready young people from high school to continuing education beyond high school.
To this end, the NRCCTE carries out scientifically based research and evaluation of methods to improve
- the integration of CTE with academic instruction
- the integration of secondary and postsecondary CTE
- the use of education technology and distance learning
- the transition of CTE participants to high-skill, high-wage, or high-demand occupations
- the use of state-adjusted levels of performance to improve CTE programs and student achievement
The NRCCTE is currently funded by the Office of Vocational and Adult Education at the U.S. Department of Education.
Our Partners
The NRCCTE at the University of Louisville brings together the capacity of the foremost institutions and organizations involved in CTE. Our consortium partners include:
- Four major research universities—the University of Louisville, the University of Minnesota, Cornell University, and Clemson University;
- the Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE), the professional association of CTE educators;
- the National Association of State Directors of Career Technical Education Consortium (NASDCTEc), the association of state leaders of CTE;
- the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB), the organization leading the major reform initiative in CTE, High Schools That Work;
- NOCTI, a leading provider of high-quality occupational competency assessment products and services to secondary and postsecondary educational institutions; and
- FHI 360, a nonprofit organization working globally to improve education, health, civil society, and economic development.