Career Equity Resource Center (CERC)
The Career Equity Resource Center (CERC) provides data-informed research based professional development and technical assistance to secondary schools and county colleges operating or planning to operate career and technical education (CTE) programs. The aim of CERC is to assist schools in building their own internal capacity to broaden access and opportunity to prepare special populations to high-skill, high-wage, or in-demand CTE careers. The delivery of CERC services is a voluntary process that schools may wish to undertake to proactively address specific equity issues or to develop comprehensive equity plans. All CERC workshops align with the goals of the Perkins V required Comprehensive Local Needs Assessment (CLNA).
Goals & Objectives
- Increase the awareness of CTE programs among parents, students, and school district and county college personnel as viable pathways to assist special population students to prepare for the 21st century workplace and the global economy.
- Increase the recruitment, participation, and retention of special population students in high-quality CTE programs in order to broaden their options and opportunities and prepare them to secure high-wage, high-skill, and high-demand employment.
- Decrease disproportionate enrollment and increase successful completion of special population students participating in CTE programs and programs of study.
Who Are Special Populations?
Special populations, as defined by Perkins V are:
- Individuals with disabilities.
- Individuals from economically disadvantaged families, including low-income youth and adults.
- Individuals preparing for nontraditional fields.
- Single parents, including single pregnant women.
- Out-of-workforce individuals.
- Homeless individuals.
- Youth who are in, or have aged out of, the foster care system.
- Youth with a parent who is a member of the armed forces and is on active duty.
- Individuals with other barriers to educational achievement, including individuals with limited English proficiency
Modules
The delivery of CERC services is a voluntary process that schools may wish to undertake to proactively address specific equity issues or to develop comprehensive equity plans. All CERC workshops align with the goals of the Perkins V required Comprehensive Local Needs Assessment (CLNA) and are offered free of charge to any Perkins funded CTE programs in the state of New Jersey. A sample of the professional development workshops offered by CERC follows:
Module | Session Overview | Suggested Audience | Minimum Duration |
---|---|---|---|
Equity 101 | An introduction to basic equity principles focusing on special populations defined in Perkins. | Middle/High School and County College administrators, leadership teams, school counselors and CTE teachers. | 1.5 hours |
Equity 102 | Create a sustainable special populations equity plan that leads to institutional transformation over time at your institution | Middle/High School and County College administrators and leadership teams. | 2 hours |
Equity at Your Institution: The Cultural Competency Continuum | This session is designed to help practitioners take the first step towards providing culturally responsive education. Participants will examine specific equity issues at their institution through the lens of a cultural competence continuum. | Middle/High School and County College administrators, leadership teams, school counselors and CTE teachers. | 2 hours |
Equitable Instructional Strategies: Recruitment, Retention, and Instruction for Marginalized Students | Learn about how viewing instructional strategies through an equity lens can enhance your professional practice and increase positive educational outcomes for special population students. | Middle/High School and County College administrators, school counselors and CTE teachers. | 2 hours |
Increasing Participation in Nontraditional Fields | Participants will be introduced to strategies to increase the recruitment and retention of nontraditional students in traditionally gendered programs and courses. | High School and County College administrators, leadership teams, school counselors and CTE teachers. | 1.5 hours |
Leadership for Change: Becoming a Change Agent for Equity | Learn about the basic equity principles that educational leaders must be willing to address to improve outcomes for underrepresented students at their institution(s). | High School and County College administrators and/or leadership teams and school counselors. | 2 hours |
Micromessages: The Little Things that Make All the Difference | This workshop addresses gender and culturally based implicit biases that are manifested through various types of “micromessages”, which includes how gestures, looks, tone of voice, or the framing of feedback shape our overall culture, our classrooms, and individuals. | Middle/High School and County College administrators, school counselors and CTE teachers. | 1 hour |
Understanding Implicit Bias | In this session participants will learn about implicit (or unconscious) bias and its impact on individuals and institutions, as well as strategies for raising awareness and addressing these matters in their classrooms. | Middle/High School and County College administrators, school counselors and CTE teachers. | 1.5 hours |
Understanding Root Causes | Address the root causes of inequities in nontraditional careers and programs. | Middle/High School and County College administrators, leadership teams, school counselors and CTE teachers. | 2 hours |
1 Perkins V legislation defines special populations as individuals with disabilities; individuals from economically disadvantaged families, including low- income youth and adults; individuals preparing for non-traditional fields; single parents, including single pregnant women; out-of-workforce individuals; English learners; homeless individuals described in section 725 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11434a); youth who are in, or have aged out of, the foster care system; and youth with a parent who is a member of the armed forces and is on active duty.
Resources
All Students Must Thrive – Transforming Schools to Combat Toxic Stressors and Cultivate Critical Wellness (Tyrone C. Howard et al.)
Privilege, Power, and Difference (Allan G. Johnson)
Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria (Beverly Daniel Tatum)
Why We Can't Wait (Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.)
We Want to Do More Than Survive (Dr. Bettina Love)
Articles and Publications:
- Making Good on the Promise (8 Part Series)
- Broadening the Path: Design Principles for Middle Grades CTE
- Four Strategies to Address Equity in CTE
- Does Technology-Based Advising Promote Equity in Career and Technical Education?
- Practitioner Perspectives on Equity in Career and Technical Education
- Social Justice in the Science Classroom
Media:
- Beyond Measure (Movie)
- The Cult of Pedagogy (Podcast)
- This American Life: Episode 550 [“Three Miles”]
- Every Kid Needs a Champion (Rita Pierson)
- The Grow Kinder Podcast
For more information, contact:
Office of Career Readiness
cerc@doe.nj.gov
DISCLAIMER: Please note that these materials are provided as resources, and for informational purposes only. Neither the New Jersey Department of Education nor its officers, employees or agents specifically endorse, recommend, or favor this particular entity over any other, and make no representation about the quality of service to be provided.