State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Announces Award of Career Pathways Trust Grants

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson, awarded $244 million in grants today to 40 programs that blend academic and career technical education, connect employers with schools and train students for jobs in high-demand fields, such as health care, advanced manufacturing, information technology, legal pathways and software development.

The grants are provided through the California Career Pathways Trust (CCPT) program, which is the largest program of its kind in the nation. The program has provided nearly $500 million in career tech grants over two years.

Under the fiscal lead of the Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District (LVJUSD), the Tri-Valley Educational Collaborative (TEC): Expanding/Enhancing Dual Enrollment & Middle College Opportunities grant proposal was awarded in the up to $6 million category. The grant dollars will be spent over the next two years in collaboration with Dublin and Pleasanton Unified School Districts, the Tri-Valley Regional Occupational Program (TVROP) and Las Positas College. The grant committee represented the interests of the region and exemplifies the strength of our regional partnership.

Amy Robbins, Director of Curriculum and Special Projects for LVJUSD, one of the team members who was instrumental in developing the grant proposal, commented, “We are excited to expand opportunities for students in partnership with Dublin and Pleasanton Unified School Districts, the Tri-Valley ROP, Las Positas College, and our business and community partners. This partnership, the Tri-Valley Educational Collaborative (TEC), has been active for more than 24 years. The grant awarded today showcases the TEC’s innovative commitment to expand and enhance 21st Century college and career opportunities, further connecting students to real life, relevant skill sets and opportunities.”

The State Legislature created CCPT in 2013 and allocated $250 million for the program in the state’s 2013-14 budget. Last year, Torlakson awarded grants to 39 recipients. After seeing the program’s popularity – the State received 123 applications requesting $709 million in CCPT grants last year – lawmakers approved an additional $250 million for this year. The program builds on Torlakson’s Career Readiness Initiative.

“This is a great opportunity for our region to continue to develop career and technical education opportunities for our students, increasing students’ accessibility to cutting edge programs. Thank you to our grant committee for their hard work and our community and business partners, whose expertise and support made this project a reality; this is a powerful example of what we can accomplish when we work together on behalf of our students,” states LVJUSD Superintendent Kelly Bowers.

For more information from the California Department of Education, please visit:

http://www.cde.ca.gov/nr/

Additional Contacts:

School Board President Kate Runyon,krunyon@comcast.net (925) 454-1139

Assistant Superintendent Cindy Alba, calba@lvjusd.k12.ca.us (925) 606-3224

Director of Curriculum and Special Projects Amy Robbins, arobbins@lvjusd.k12.ca.us (925) 606-3202

Communications and Community Engagement Consultant Sam Tobis, stobis@lvjusd.k12.ca.us (925) 724-9078