2018 December Paso Robles Magazine

Not Your Parents’ CAREER and
TECHNICAL EDUCATION
By James J. Brescia Ed.D
SLO County Office of
Education Superintendent
Career Technical Education
(CTE) in each of our
school districts provides
North County students of all ages
with the training, academic skills,
and technical knowledge necessary
to succeed in future careers. Our
schools not only promote “Future
Careers, Locally Grown” they support
lifelong learning. Across the
United States, nearly 12.5 million
high school and college students
are enrolled in CTE courses. CTE
prepares these learners for the
world of work by providing academic
content, introducing workplace
competencies, and exposing
students to providing a hands-on
context. The current
high school graduation
rate for CTE
concentrators is about
90 percent, which is
nearly 15 percentage points higher
than the national average.
The San Luis Obispo County
Office of Education established
SLO Partners in 2014 to address
college and career readiness among
the county’s student
population. SLO
Partners’ mission is
to engage business
partners and educators
in aligning
workforce needs
with career and college
pathways and
provide work experience
opportunities
to ensure that stu-
“A dream doesn’t become a reality
through magic; it takes sweat,
determination, and hard work.”
~Colin Powell
dents have the skills and knowledge
necessary for success in the
workplace and businesses have the
skilled workers required for a sound
growing economy. SLO Partners is
committed to collaborating with
local businesses and education for
pathways to opportunity
and skilled
local talent.
Templeton High
School is one such
example of a blossoming
CTE program
in our county
that has built up
their program pathways.
Energy and
Power Technology,
taught by Jason Diodati, is one
of the school’s most robust CTE
programs. This pathway includes
engineering, manufacturing and
energy. Many CTE courses are
dual-enrolled with Cuesta College,
allowing high school students to
earn college credit through their
high school courses. The program
fosters local participation
with large businesses such as
PG&E and smaller businesses
such as Dale Evers Arts Studio.
Programs originated through local
efforts of the school districts, the
San Luis Obispo County Office of
Education and legislators.
“The price of success is hard work, dedication
to the job at hand, and the determination
that whether we win or lose, we have
applied the best of ourselves to the task at
hand.”
~Vince Lombardi
40 | pasomagazine.com PASO Magazine, December 2018