This February, Business Professionals of America will celebrate CTE Month® 2019 in collaboration with the Association for Career and Technical Education. CTE Month is a public awareness campaign that is held each February by organizations nationwide to celebrate the achievements and accomplishments of innovative CTE programs and to make educators, students, policymakers, employers, parents, and others aware of the value of CTE. Business Management & Administration, Marketing, and Information Technology are a few of the many fields that encompass CTE.
 
CTE Month is also a great time to recognize and celebrate the CTE community members’ achievements and accomplishments nationwide.

There are many opportunities for BPA members who wish to get involved with CTE Month, whether you are seeking to inform others of the value of CTE or to learn more yourself.

• Encourage your students to participate in BPA Week (February 11-15). With a different theme each day, it's a great way to take pride in your local chapter. Don’t forget to share your photos with us!
• Participate in the BPA National Officer Team's 2019 Tweet-a-Thon scheduled for February 13 from 5:00 - 11:00 PM (EST).
• Host a school visit and invite your school’s superintendent, school board members, members of your local business community, and local and state elected officials to learn about your school's strong CTE programs firsthand. 
• Communicate with policymakers including your school board, your mayor and your members of Congress to inform them of the importance of CTE.
• Reach out to the media to encourage them to attend events and advise them of the benefits of CTE, or use social media to do the same.
• Work with Business and Industry Leaders to ensure they understand the role CTE plays in readying their future workforce. Invite them to an activity, ask them for mentorship while you prepare for competition, or even ask to set up a job shadowing experience.

Check out and utilize ACTE’s other relevant resources, including their fact sheets on the educational and economic benefits of CTE, and sharing their video!

ACTE supports BPA’s mission of helping students to succeed by developing their real-world skills and problem solving abilities in business, finance, management, IT, and computer applications. Visit ACTE’s CTE Month page to learn more about how you can get involved in CTE Month, as well as visit ACTE’s websites and social media pages regularly throughout the month to get updates on CTE Month activities that are occurring throughout the nation.
 
Let’s get the word out and join the conversation about CTE! CTE Month is celebrated nationwide, including on social media. We encourage you to join in on Twitter chats, upload photos of your events, feature student work, and engage in discussion with CTE advocates from across the country using the #CTEMonth hashtag.