ACTE Postsecondary CTE Summit 2026

In this session, the Community College Research Center will describe findings from a national study focused on how community college and K-12 partnerships are using “dual enrollment” college courses to expand college and career opportunities for high school CTE students. Attendees will learn about approaches partnerships are taking to build related dual enrollment courses into CTE programs and help CTE students develop plans to continue postsecondary training and pursue career-path jobs after high school. The session will highlight strategies from highly-effective dual enrollment partnerships that have scaled dual enrollment opportunities as a part of their CTE programs. Leaders from Patrick and Henry College will use examples from their work to illustrate the report's findings, including key practices that they have scaled with their partners, how they are finding ‘win-wins’ through their partnerships, and the outcomes that they are seeing as a result.

Postsecondary CTE leaders are under unprecedented pressure to expand enrollment, meet workforce demand, maintain accreditation, and retain faculty and administrators—all while operating in increasingly complex systems. Yet one of the most powerful drivers of postsecondary CTE effectiveness is often overlooked: psychological safety as organizational infrastructure.


This session reframes psychological safety not as an individual wellness concept, but as a core system condition that enables instructional quality, compliance, innovation, and staff retention. Drawing from postsecondary CTE leadership practice across community colleges, technical colleges, and workforce-aligned programs, participants will  examine where psychological safety breaks down during periods of change, growth, or accountability pressure—and how leaders can intentionally rebuild trust without compromising standards.


Participants will engage in structured reflection and applied discussion and will leave with tools to operationalize psychological safety as a
retention, performance, and impact strategy in postsecondary CTE environments.

As career pathways become more dynamic and nonlinear, career development systems must extend beyond one-time guidance into continuous, skill-based support across learning and work environments. While many institutions provide strong foundational counseling, there remains a growing need for approaches that sustain personalized development over time—particularly as individuals transition between education, training, and employment.
This session focuses on the role of micro-learning and feedback as a practical, scalable approach to support ongoing career development. Research suggests that short, targeted learning experiences can improve engagement, retention, and transfer of learning (Hug, 2005; Buchem & Hamelmann, 2010). Additionally, timely, specific feedback has been shown to significantly enhance skill development and self-regulation (Hattie & Timperley, 2007). Together, these elements create a continuous learning experience that fits naturally into learners’ daily routines.
Participants will explore how career development can be embedded into small, repeatable learning moments supported by feedback loops. The session will also share anticipated insights from pilot users engaging in micro-learning-based career development models, including patterns in engagement, skill progression, and clarity in career decision-making.
Designed for educators, counselors, and workforce professionals, this session provides practical strategies and tools to integrate micro-learning and feedback into existing career development practices.

This session will explore how strong partnerships between education and industry can create seamless pathways into high-demand skilled trades careers. Moderated by National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER), the discussion will feature representatives from Germanna Community College, a regional high school partner, and an employer leader working collaboratively to address workforce needs through career and technical education. Panelists will share how aligning secondary, postsecondary, and industry efforts helps students gain relevant skills, industry-recognized credentials, and meaningful work-based learning experiences that lead directly to employment opportunities.  Participants will leave with actionable strategies for developing collaborative programs that respond to regional workforce demands and support student success from classroom to career.

Many states offer professional development opportunities for secondary CTE teachers, yet dedicated learning spaces for postsecondary CTE educators are often limited. This session shares the development and outcomes of Utah’s first statewide professional development summit designed specifically for postsecondary Career and Technical Education educators.


The Utah ACTE Postsecondary and Adult Continuing Education (PACE) division designed the summit to create space for educators to learn directly from one another through structured, small-group discussions rather than traditional conference presentations. The event is organized around facilitated roundtable conversations where educators share instructional practices, explore common challenges, and engage in cross-disciplinary collaboration.


Participants will learn how the summit was structured to support meaningful dialogue, how facilitators guide conversations, and how discussion topics are selected to address issues that matter most to postsecondary CTE educators. Early outcomes and participant feedback from the inaugural event will also be shared.
During the session, attendees will engage in brief discussion activities to experience elements of the roundtable approach and reflect on professional development needs within their own states or institutions. Participants will leave with practical ideas and a simple framework for creating educator-centered professional learning opportunities that emphasize peer learning, collaboration, and shared problem solving.


Participants will receive a planning framework, sample discussion prompts, and facilitation strategies that can be used to organize similar educator-focused professional learning events.

Zero-Budget Security challenges the assumption that improving school safety requires additional funding, technology, or infrastructure. This session emphasizes that many of the most effective security measures rely on human behavior, awareness, and organizational culture rather than financial investment. Participants will examine how everyday actions—such as situational awareness, active supervision, communication, reporting, and ownership of space—directly influence school safety. The session also highlights common vulnerabilities that exist even in well-resourced schools and demonstrates how these gaps can be addressed through consistent practices and the effective use of existing personnel and policies. Through practical examples and discussion, the session reframes security as a shared responsibility across all staff roles, strengthening prevention and preparedness without requiring additional resources.