Board approves expanded CTE plan as district readies new facilities

The Orting School District board approved the district’s annual CTE plan following a presentation by Matt Carlson and Chris Hunke that described program growth and future partnerships.

Presenters said the district now offers roughly 50 different CTE classes across the district and that, when counting all class periods, more than 2,000 student enrollments are involved in CTE programming. Growth cited by staff included business, marketing and computer‑science pathways, expanded middle‑school CTE exposure and increasing numbers of students receiving dual credit that can transfer to college.

Carlson and Hunke noted the district is employing budget strategies to keep student costs low for travel and competitions but warned that rising hotel, transportation and food costs may require some family contributions over time. They referenced House Bill 1660 (mentioned in discussion) as a mechanism the district can use to consider supports for free and reduced‑price lunch students.

Staff also described interlocal agreements with regional skill centers — including the Maritime 253 skill center in Tacoma — and said transportation remains a hurdle as the district explores Pierce Transit or grant funding to provide student access.

The board moved to approve the career and technical education program as presented and the motion passed by voice vote. The transcript records the votes as “Aye” with the chair proclaiming the motion passed; no numeric roll call totals were recorded in the transcript.

Board members praised program growth and noted opportunities to align new CTE facilities with instruction during upcoming design work for the high‑school redevelopment.