Beginning in the fall of 2011, ODCTE began to put in place the
introduction phase of the Movement from Programs of Study to Rigorous Programs
of Study in Oklahoma.
The movement began with the I3 Conference. The I3 Conference
- Integration, Innovation, Imagination, was held with Oklahoma’s Tech Prep
Coordinators in October 2011. The purpose of this conference was to put closure
to the Tech Prep movement and introduce the Rigorous Programs of Study concept
as the next evolution of CTE.
In December 2011, ODCTE answered a request for proposals
from the National Research Center for Career and Technical Education for the
National Programs of Study Institute. ODCTE was notified of its acceptance in
January 2012 and began its participation at the first national meeting in
February. A series of five additional meetings were held with a national
facilitator and the institute concluded in July 2012 when the report entitled
“Moving from POS to RPOS in Oklahoma, National Programs of Study Institute Final
Report” was submitted to the NRCCTE.
During the national summit, Oklahoma partnered with
university researchers on a special project entitled “Analysis of Stakeholder
Interpretations of Programs of Study in Oklahoma.” Oklahoma’s participation in
the national institute was recognized as a Best Practice by the National
Association of Career Pathway Leadership.
During the January 2012 and April 2012 Tech Prep Quarterly
Meetings, a portion of the agenda was dedicated to the discussion of RPOS. The
State Tech Prep coordinator officially changed duties in July 2012 and became
the State Programs of Study coordinator and beginning in August 2012 presentations
were given to several groups including the Oklahoma Association of Career and
Technical Education’s Summer Conference, Technology Center Superintendents
Meeting, Student Services Endorsement Program, GuidanceFest and the Southern
Oklahoma Impact Coalition. These presentations have included those responsible
for administrative leadership, instructional leadership and guidance leadership
in CTE as well as business and industry partnerships.
During the fall of 2012, ODCTE conducted the Oklahoma
Programs of Study Institute using the model developed at the national level.
The OkPOSI was intended to further support schools in improving the quality of
career and technical education instruction provided to secondary and
postsecondary students. The institute was specifically designed to support
secondary, technical and post secondary schools in addressing barriers to more
fully implementing Rigorous Programs of Study and the ten components of the
RPOS framework.
Using lessons learned from the national and state
institutes, ODCTE and state institute participants developed the Oklahoma
Programs of Study Summit conducted in February 2013. Perkins LEA’s at the
secondary and post secondary level were invited to hear from national and state
experts as they spoke on Rigorous Programs of Study.
In March 2013 Perkins recipients received a survey using the
Programs of Study: Local Implementation Readiness and Capacity Self-Assessment
developed by the Office of Vocational and Adult Education. The Oklahoma RPOS
Self Assessment was made available electronically to all Perkins LEA’s with a
survey response rate of 84% with 147 individual responses on behalf of high
schools, technology centers, community colleges and universities were received.
The results of this survey are being used to address the
current status of RPOS framework implementation and to develop technical
assistance identified by institutions as Oklahoma further prepares all Perkins
recipients to being the implementation stage of the movement to Rigorous
Programs of Study.
A Carl Perkins supplemental grant was made available in
March for secondary and post secondary institutions to apply for. The grant, entitled “Moving from Programs of
Study to Rigorous Programs of Study” was intended to further support local
schools or consortiums in improving the quality of career and technical
education instruction provided to secondary and post secondary students by promoting
and improving local development and implementation of RPOS. Recipients will
participate in two state led meetings and be challenged to develop innovative
solutions to moving a piece of the framework forward for their institution.
The Movement from POS to RPOS in Oklahoma was recognized with NACPL's Innovation in Career Pathways National Award at their national conference in 2013.