WHAT OTHERS SAY

"The GetREAL organization is generating broad support among Career Technical Education instructors and organizations, as well as industry groups as a champion for change in our education system. The California Community College Agriculture and Natural Resources Statewide Advisory Committee - which is comprised of business leaders in the livestock landscaping, fruit and nut production, mechanics, forestry and natural resources, commodity packing, and financial industry - supports the efforts, actions and ideas of the GetREAL organization. We agree that California schools should provide a balanced education that includes challenging academic studies and career technical education for “hands on” learning — so our children are prepared for 21st Century jobs and have the skills to succeed, whether they attend college or not."
The California Community College Agriculture and Natural Resources Statewide Advisory Committee


"I have been a long-time supporter of career technical education because it’s the best opportunity to give our students a first-class ticket to quality jobs. A four-year college education is not the only pathway to success ... By expanding career tech education, we are giving them options to succeed in good paying jobs in cutting edge industries after graduation."
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger


"A renewed emphasis on career technical education (CTE) is essential if California and the United States are to remain preeminent in the global space enterprise marketplace. This is a matter of national security, not merely an issue of economic and workforce development."
Eric Daniels
Director, State and Local Government Relations
California Space Authority


"Expanding CTE instruction will bring better balance to today’s educational curriculum, make education more relevant and equip our students with the skills needed for 21st Century jobs, whether they choose college or not."
Jack Stewart
President
California Manufacturers & Technology Association


"Today’s good-paying 21st Century jobs require advanced learning, special skills and technical education, but not necessarily a four-year degree. By expanding CTE, we’ll help ensure that all our students are prepared for meaningful and essential work in California’s new economy."
Bob Balgenorth
President
State Building & Construction Trades Council


"California must ... address the workforce development needs for occupations not requiring college degrees or postsecondary vocational education ... these jobs will constitute a majority of employment and are also critical to the future health of the state economy."
"Keeping California’s Edge"
California Business Roundtable
Campaign for College Opportunity
April 2006


"It’s the right time to force some change in our public schools. We’ve gotten out of focus in terms of practical connection to real-world jobs and making schools seem relevant."
Senator Tom Torlakson


"To create a larger and technologically educated workforce, we must pursue an aggressive expansion of California’s career technical education system."
Assemblymember Loni Hancock


"Executives tell us schools should teach job readiness skills in addition to the basics, and rate communications, work ethic, and personal responsibility on par with reading and even above writing and math."
Loren Kaye
President
California Foundation for Commerce & Education


"To support intellectual life and the joy of learning, we should expand the possibilities, not narrow them. Part of our job as educators is to offer opportunities, to open the door to a world of intellectual possibilities."
Nel Noddings
Professor Emeritus
Stanford University


"The new wave of vocational education has a host of prominent boosters, including unions, business groups and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger ... Their hope is that career-oriented education can help keep potential dropouts in school by motivating students who might otherwise see little link between classwork and the real world."
"High School Is More than Their Love"
Los Angeles Times
April 4, 2007