Get AI Briefings, Transcripts & Alerts on Local & National Government Meetings — Forever.
Onslow County highlights CTE expansion: middle‑school redesign, 9,390 credentials earned and Trades Day set for Feb. 28
Loading...
Summary
District officials reviewed a midyear Career and Technical Education update that highlighted a middle‑school CTE redesign, credential gains (9,390 credentials earned in 2023–24), a near‑100% graduation metric for CTE concentrators and an upcoming Trades Day event on Feb. 28 at Coastal Carolina Community College.
District academic leaders told the Onslow County Board of Education they are expanding career and technical education (CTE) at the middle‑school level and celebrating student credential gains and program achievements.
Dr. Chris Barnes, the district’s chief academic officer, introduced a midyear CTE update and credited system leaders for focusing on industry‑recognized credentials. Mr. Lane, executive director for secondary schools and CTE, and coordinators Lenny Westmoreland and Ken Brown described a middle‑school CTE redesign that created nine one‑semester courses organized by career clusters (agriculture, architecture/construction, arts/AV, business, health sciences, human sciences, information technology, law/public safety, and STEM). The district supplemented incomplete state modules with Paxton Patterson modules while NCDPI rolled out EY30 resources.
Officials said participation is high: more than 10,000 students took part in CTE programs and 9,390 industry‑recognized credentials were earned during the 2023–24 school year, figures the presenters said place the district seventh in the state for credential attainment while being the eleventh‑largest district. Presenters said the credential‑attainment rate rose from roughly 22% to about 51% over three years. The presenters also noted the district’s graduation rate for CTE concentrators was approximately 99.3%.
The district recognized Jacksonville High School for receiving the College Board AP Computer Science Female Diversity Award for expanding female participation in AP Computer Science Principles. Presenters also noted local gains in welding certifications (about 57 students earning welding certificates in the first year of a program) and other industry credentials such as OSHA and ServSafe that local employers value.
Ken Brown and coordinators promoted the annual Trades Day event on Feb. 28, 2025, at Coastal Carolina Community College, which will include competitions across automotive, construction, culinary, welding, woodworking, robotics and other pathways. Lenny Westmoreland described classroom and outreach efforts that begin with fifth‑grade career-awareness activities and feed into middle‑ and high‑school CTE pathways.
Board members thanked staff for the update and asked about community impact; presenters pointed to employer partnerships and a business advisory council that helps keep programming aligned with local workforce needs. No formal action was required.
