A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

The Emergence of Tech-Prep at the State and Local Levels - 1995

Composition of Tech-Prep Consortia

Although the Tech-Prep Education Act specifies the minimum definition necessary for a consortium to receive Title IIIE funding, membership across consortia varies considerably. Consortia differ by the types of secondary and postsecondary entities that are included, and by the other organizations that are considered members.

Secondary districts are represented in all Tech-Prep consortia

It is not surprising that virtually all of the consortia reported including a secondary education agency, as these agencies were cited in the Perkins Act as a primary secondary partner required for Title IIIE funding (Figure IV.1). The number of secondary districts in consortia ranged from 1 to 64; the average was 7.8 districts. The average number of schools (10.8) was slightly higher than the number of districts, because many districts have more than one school. Suburban consortia had the highest average number of member districts, and urban consortia had the lowest. 

                               FIGURE IV.1                     MEMBERSHIP IN TECH-PREP CONSORTIA      TYPES OF MEMBERS        (NUMBERS OF         INSTITUTIONS)   Secondary Districts =============================================>100%        (5,489)   Vocational Centers =====================>52%         (738)    Two-Year Colleges ==========================================>96%         (975)   Four-Year Colleges =================>39%         (420)  Proprietary Schools ====>10%         (164) Postsec. Apprentice. ======>16%         (349)      Business/Corps. ================================>72%         (12,168)      Bus./Trade Assoc. ===================>42%         (1,383)         Labor Groups ========>18%            (246)                      +--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+                      0        20       40       60       80       100                                  PERCENTAGE OF CONSORTIA  SOURCE: Inventory of Local Tech-Prep Planning and Implementation, Fall 1993

Slightly more than half of the consortia included vocational districts or area vocational centers; suburban consortia were more likely than urban consortia to include these institutions as members. Consortia located in the Western census region were much less likely than those in other census regions to include vocational districts or centers.

Two-year colleges are the primary postsecondary partners

Consortia include different configurations of postsecondary partners. In fall 1993, slightly less than half involved more than one type of postsecondary institution. Community, junior, or technical colleges were reported as members of virtually all consortia (Figure IV.1). Only four percent of consortia did not include a two-year college as a postsecondary partner; however, these consortia included four-year colleges or proprietary schools.

Almost 40 percent of all consortia reported having at least one four-year college or university as a member. Small percentages of consortia included postsecondary proprietary schools (10 percent) or postsecondary apprenticeship programs (16 percent).2

Postsecondary membership varies with geographic location. Suburban consortia and those located in the Northeast were most likely to include proprietary schools. Rural consortia were least likely to include postsecondary apprenticeship programs and four-year institutions. However, consortia in all regions of the country were equally likely to include four-year colleges as members.

Business, industry, and labor are relatively well represented as members of Tech-Prep consortia

Businesses and labor groups are widely designated as consortium members. In the fall of 1993, almost three-fourths of the consortia reported including businesses and corporations, 42 percent included business/industry or trade associations, and 18 percent included individual labor groups or unions (Figure IV.1).

The likelihood of business, industry, or labor group membership did not vary much by census region, but did vary by metropolitan status. Rural consortia were least likely, and urban consortia most likely, to include these groups as members.

The year in which a consortium received its first Title IIIE grant does not affect the likelihood of having business, industry, or labor groups as members. We might have expected consortia to focus initially on developing relationships among educational agencies and institutions, and to delay efforts to include businesses until later in the development stage. Of course, business, industry, and labor input at earlier stages can be extremely important in defining competencies and outcomes, reviewing curricula, assisting in promotion and staff development, and other activities. The survey findings suggest that consortia commonly perceive the benefit of early participation by these groups.

2 The national Tech-Prep survey asked coordinators to report the number of postsecondary apprenticeship programs involved in the consortium, rather than the number of institutions that are sponsoring these programs. Because many apprenticeship programs are operated by community colleges, there may be some overlap between the estimate of apprenticeship programs and of community colleges.
-###-
[Defining Membership in a Consortium] [Table of Contents] [Role Of Business, Industry, And Labor In Tech-Prep]