Brenda Dann-Messier, assistant secretary for vocational and adult education, will provide opening remarks at an event hosted by New America Foundation to release a major new assessment of higher education in the United States at 9 a.m. Wednesday, July 10, in Washington, D.C.
Conducted by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the report focuses on the most rapidly growing segment of higher education — career and technical education (CTE) – which research shows will be required for one in three American jobs in the next decade. Dann-Messier will discuss the Administration’s blueprint for transforming CTE programs to be well-aligned with college- and career-readiness standards, as well as the needs of employers, industry, and labor. She will also discuss the importance of including CTE as part of a broader pathway system for all students, highlighting the need for new strategies to engage all types of non-traditional learners.
Funded by the Department of Education, the report is part of OECD’s Skills beyond School project that looks at postsecondary CTE in more than 20 countries. Research for the U.S. country report was conducted from May 2012 through March 2013 and included three state case studies – Florida, Washington and Maryland.