Task force reviews career and technical education funding, CTE weighting and Excel in CTE (SB 155)

Jason Long, a Legislative Research staff member, told the task force that the K–12 career technical education weighting remains 0.5 under KSA 72‑51‑155: “It’s a 0.5 weighting for students who are enrolled in an approved career technical education program.”

The issue matters because that weighting multiplies a student’s FTE to increase state foundation aid to districts that offer approved CTE pathways, while separate Excel in CTE funding (Senate Bill 155, 2012) distributes appropriated dollars to community and technical colleges for CTE courses they deliver to secondary students.

Long and Jennifer Light, senior fiscal analyst with the Legislative Research Department (KLRD), walked the task force through how the two funding streams operate. Light described a second CTE support stream — transportation aid — and noted that it is not part of state foundation aid and is appropriated separately. She said the transportation appropriation was moved from the State Highway Fund to the State General Fund in 2019 and has generally been…