High-Demand Career and Technical Education Programs Get Short Shrift in House Budget

Budgets from Governor and Senate Would Both Increase CTE Funding

LANSING – Funding dedicated specifically for increasingly popular Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs that prepare students for high-wage and high-skills careers is inexplicably absent from the State House budget approved last week, State Superintendent Michael F. Rice said.

Instead of designating funding specifically for CTE, the House budget would provide block grant funding for numerous purposes, including CTE, which would force the various programs to compete for the funding as local school districts set their budgets based on state funding.

“There is no specific money in the fiscal year 2026 House budget to fund let alone expand career and technical education even as Michigan has reached record CTE completion and near-record CTE participation and demand exceeds availability of CTE programs,” Dr. Rice said. “The lack of funding in the House budget is disappointing and puzzling. CTE programs contribute to meeting several goals in Michigan’s Top 10 Strategic Education Plan. Included are Goal 4, to expand secondary learning opportunities for all students; Goal 5, to increase the percentage of all students who graduate from high school; and Goal 6, to increase the percentage of adults with a post-secondary credential.”

The Michigan Department of Education (MDE) and State Board of Education have advocated with the legislature and governor to invest in CTE so that more children have opportunities to learn real-world skills through the programs. There are CTE deserts in many communities where program participation is lower than expected and access to the programs is limited.

“CTE programs are popular among students and parents—and there is widespread support for CTE among educators and the business community,” Dr. Rice said. “MDE and the State Board of Education are calling upon legislators to invest in CTE as a budget is negotiated.”

Enrollment in CTE programs has not only recovered from a brief but sharp decline during the pandemic but now exceeds enrollment from before COVID. In the 2023-24 school year, 112,156 students enrolled in CTE programs, the third year of increases totaling more than 9,000 students, or 9%, since the 2020-21 school year enrollment of 102,988 at the low point of the pandemic and more than the pre-pandemic, 2019-20 school year enrollment of 111,073.

CTE completers, students who finish an entire series of courses in a given career area rather than a single course or two, have also increased each of the last three years, a total increase of more than 8,000 students, or 19% from 44,226 in 2020-21 to 52,625 in 2023-24, and greater than not only the 2019-20 pre-pandemic number of 50,416 but also any single year pre-pandemic.

CTE programs prepare students for careers in areas ranging from agriculture to skilled trades, to public safety, to science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

The State Board of Education earlier this year passed a resolution urging the legislature to increase CTE funding. The resolution calls for the legislature and governor to provide additional funding to local and intermediate school districts to open new high-quality career and technical education programs—particularly those in CTE deserts—to ensure equitable access across all schools.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s budget recommendation supports the State Board of Education’s resolution for fiscal year 2026 by including $125 million to fund the expansion of CTE state-approved programs in local and intermediate school districts with limited and/or inequitable access to CTE. The Senate Budget provides $50 million for this purpose while the House budget neglects to fund CTE expansion.

The governor’s recommendation for fiscal year 2026 also includes moderate increases to critical funding for CTE, including a 4.3% increase ($41.6 million) to provide partial reimbursement to school districts and area centers for the additional costs associated with the operation of state-approved CTE programs. It provides a 5% increase ($8.4 million) for CTE early middle college and CTE dual enrollment programs; $20 million for equipment grants; and a 4.7% increase ($5.6 million) to increase the number of students who are college and career ready.

Over the next five years, an additional investment is needed to expand opportunities for students who, because of funding, geography, transportation, and cultural barriers, have not been able to access state-approved career-tech programming.

“CTE provides students with work-based learning experiences to help Michigan develop and maintain a highly skilled, sustainable workforce,” said Dr. Michele Harmala, MDE deputy superintendent for Educator Excellence, Career and Technical Education, Special Education, and Administrative Law. “In many cases, CTE programs keep children engaged in school when they might otherwise drop out. CTE prepares students both for successful career entry and advancement and for continuing education, including college.”

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