Come ready to work! This hands-on session will provide support for completing the Perkins Grant Pre-Application. While the full application will not yet be available, participants will receive assistance with the required assurances and other pre-application components. Districts, State-Tribal Education Compact schools, and skill centers that submit their Pre-Application by August 28 will be eligible to obligate grant funds back to the date of Pre-Application submission, once the full application has been submitted and approved.

Participants will receive guidance on all aspects of the Perkins grant process, including determining eligibility, preparing required documentation, uploading documents, completing application requirements, and submitting Perkins-funded grant applications. Please bring your laptop and ensure you have district-level EGMS access for Perkins grants as well as your multi-factor authentication (MFA) sign-in credentials.

This session will also provide dedicated time for questions related to the Comprehensive Local Needs Assessment (CLNA). Whether your questions are about timelines, processes, documentation, or specific CLNA requirements, staff will be available to provide assistance and answer your questions. Bring your CLNA questions, regardless of where you are in the process.

Speakers

Clarisse Leong

Director of Operations, Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction

Clarisse serves as the Director of Operations in the Pathway and Preparation Division at OSPI.

Sunday August 2, 2026 1:00pm - 2:45pm PDT
Terrace West Second Floor Davenport Grand

WACTA

2:00pm PDT

Course Launch Lab

Monday August 3, 2026 2:00pm - 2:45pm PDT

Maple Ballroom

“Welcome to the Course Launch Lab—your guide to turning innovative ideas into approved courses. This session provides an in-depth look at the entire submission process, including required components, approval criteria, and what program supervisors are truly looking for. Through detailed examples and a review of common mistakes, you’ll gain valuable insights into how to build a clear, comprehensive, and compelling proposal. By the end, you’ll have the tools, knowledge, and confidence to successfully move your course from concept to approval.”

Speakers

Courtney Peart

CTE Program Supervisor, OSPI

Courtney Peart is the Education, Health, Human and Public Services CTE Program Supervisor at the Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI), where she leads statewide efforts to strengthen career-connected learning and improve student outcomes. She brings expertise... Read More →

Monday August 3, 2026 2:00pm - 2:45pm PDT
Maple Ballroom

WACTA

3:00pm PDT

Beyond the Checkbox: Advisory Boards that Deliver

Monday August 3, 2026 3:00pm - 3:45pm PDT

Maple Ballroom

It’s time to stop checking the box and start making an impact. This session will help you rethink your approach to advisory boards, focusing on engagement, strategy, and results. Discover how to create meetings that generate meaningful input and lead to action. Leave with practical tools to turn your advisory board into a true asset.

Speakers

Courtney Peart

CTE Program Supervisor, OSPI

Monday August 3, 2026 3:00pm - 3:45pm PDT
Maple Ballroom

WACTA

3:00pm PDT

CTElink Framework Builder: Create, Review, and Export OSPI-Ready Course Frameworks

Monday August 3, 2026 3:00pm - 3:45pm PDT

Meeting Room # 4

Introducing CTElink’s Framework Builder: a centralized district system for creating, reviewing, storing, and exporting CTE course frameworks. Maintain a shared framework library with section-by-section editing, version history, standards-grounded AI review, and OSPI-ready export. Built around Washington State Learning Standards, OSPI framework resources, CIP/course data, and industry standards, the system supports meaningful alignment rather than generic AI output. We’ll also demo CTE Advisor updates for CLNA, program planning, grants, and continuous improvement.

Speakers

Taylor Smith

Director of Data and Analytics, NuMetrics

Taylor brings over 20 years of experience in data analysis, programming, and software development, with expertise in education data systems and workforce analytics. He serves as the Director of Data and Analytics at NuMetrics and is the lead developer of the CTElink Dashboard, a platform... Read More →

Monday August 3, 2026 3:00pm - 3:45pm PDT
Meeting Room # 4

WACTA

9:00am PDT

Beyond Points: Implementing Competency-Based Grading and Employability Skills Across Career Pathways

Tuesday August 4, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am PDT

Birch Ballroom

How do we ensure grades in Career and Technical Education truly reflect skill mastery, workplace readiness, and student growth? This session highlights how Sno-Isle TECH Skills Center and New Market Skills Center are transitioning from traditional grading to competency-based grading (CBG) systems designed to improve clarity, consistency, and equity across programs. Partnering with SREB, both centers defined shared employability skills, performance levels, and descriptors applicable across pathways while preserving flexibility for program-specific competencies. Through teacher leadership teams and full-staff collaboration, each center developed its own employability rubric, building shared ownership, stronger expectations, and alignment with industry standards. Participants will engage in an interactive learning experience that includes analyzing sample rubrics, participating in calibration conversations, and applying guiding questions to their own schools or districts. Attendees will leave with practical tools, implementation strategies, and a professional learning framework to support the transition to competency-based grading in their own CTE programs.

Speakers

Danielle Morton

CTE Leadership Coach, Southern Regional Education Board (SREB)

Danielle Morton, with over 30 years in education, is a champion for CTE and empowering school improvement. Danielle serves as a School Improvement Leadership Coach at the Southern Regional Education Board, guiding schools towards excellence. But her heart beats loudest for Career... Read More →

Tuesday August 4, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am PDT
Birch Ballroom

WACTA

11:00am PDT

Using Data to Improve Your District's CTE Course Catalog

Tuesday August 4, 2026 11:00am - 11:45am PDT

Meeting Room # 3

CSTA Washington has launched public dashboards and reports to help districts analyze their CTE enrollments by career cluster, gender, race, income, ELL, and disability status. Attendees will learn to interpret this data to understand local enrollment trends and compare their performance against statewide, ESD, and peer district averages. Attendees will also learn to use these data dashboards and reports to identify participation gaps and drive data-informed program improvements to CTE course catalogs.

Speakers

Lawrence Tanimoto

VP Communications, CSTA Washington

VP Communications, CSTA Washington. Although now retired, Lawrence taught Computer Science as a CTE Teacher at Ingraham High School in north Seattle from 2014-2021. Prior to teaching, Lawrence worked for 28 years in the international computer industry - the last 18 with Microsoft... Read More →

Tuesday August 4, 2026 11:00am - 11:45am PDT
Meeting Room # 3

WACTA

2:00pm PDT

Beyond the Classroom: The Power of the Simulated Workplace Model

Tuesday August 4, 2026 2:00pm - 2:45pm PDT

Birch Ballroom

Bring your classroom to life through the Simulated Workplace Model. In this engaging session, learn how CTE programs are transforming instruction by embedding authentic workplace expectations, student leadership, and industry-aligned practices into everyday learning. Participants will explore practical implementation strategies, hear real classroom examples, and leave with tools to strengthen student engagement, expand equitable access to work-based learning experiences, and improve career readiness outcomes across programs.

Speakers

Dr. Linda Floyd

Director of State and District Partnerships/Technology Centers That Work, Southern Regional Education Board (SREB)

Dr. Linda Floyd has many years of experience with continuous school improvement. She has been a director with SREB since 2017. Prior to joining SREB, Dr. Floyd worked for the Kentucky Department of Education, providing leadership and supervision of principals for 27 state-operated... Read More →