Iowa § 256.136 - 256.136 Regional career and technical education planning partnerships.

§ 256.136. 256.136 Regional career and technical education planning partnerships.

1. Regional career and technical education planning partnerships are established to assist school districts in providing an effective, efficient, and economical means of delivering high-quality secondary career and technical education programs. Regional career and technical education planning partnerships shall do all of the following: a. Provide for the active participation of local school districts and community colleges in the delivery of career and technical education in the region. b. Provide for the participation of representatives of business and industry and representatives of sector partnerships and community stakeholders. c. Promote career and college readiness through thoughtful career guidance and purposeful academic and technical planning practices. d. Promote high-quality, integrated career and technical education programming, including career academies, comprised of secondary exploratory and transitory coursework to prepare students for higher-level, specialized academic and technical training aligned with labor market needs. e. Provide for increased and equitable access to high-quality career and technical education programs through the planning and development of a system of regional centers. 2. Regional career and technical education planning partnerships shall be established in accordance with section 256.129, subsection 5, to serve each community college and all of the school districts in the state no later than June 30, 2017. 3. A regional career and technical education planning partnership shall be responsible for the following activities: a. Ensuring compliance with standards adopted by the state board under section 256.129, subsection 5, for regional career and technical education planning partnerships. b. Developing a multiyear plan addressing the delivery of quality career and technical education programs by school districts in fulfillment of the requirements of section 256.11, subsection 4, and section 256.11, subsection 5, paragraph “h”. The plan shall be updated annually. c. Securing collaboration with secondary schools, postsecondary educational institutions, and employers to ensure the creation of high-quality career and technical education programming, including career academies, for students that aligns career guidance, twenty-first century career and technical education and academic curricula, and work-based learning opportunities that empower students to be successful learners and practitioners. d. Reviewing career and technical education programs of school districts within the region based on standards adopted by the state board, and recommending to the department career and technical education programs for approval. e. Coordinating and facilitating local advisory councils for career and technical education programs. As necessary, establishing regional advisory councils to serve in the same capacity as local advisory councils. f. Planning for regional centers with the purpose of achieving equitable access to high-quality career and technical education programming and concurrent enrollment opportunities for all students. As a condition for approval, a regional center shall comply with standards adopted by the state board and shall consist of a minimum of four career academies. A regional center shall be compatible with development of a statewide system of regional centers serving all students. A regional center shall serve either of the following: (1) A combined minimum of one hundred twenty students from no fewer than two school districts. (2) A minimum of four school districts. g. Meeting regularly. 4. The membership of each regional career and technical education planning partnership shall consist of stakeholders in a position to contribute to the development and successful implementation of high-quality career and technical education programs and shall include but not be limited to the following: a. The superintendent of a school district within the regional planning partnership, or the superintendent’s designee. Thu Dec 11 19:19:19 2025 Iowa Code 2026, Section 256.136 (32, 0) §256.136, DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 2 b. The president of a community college within the regional planning partnership, or the president’s designee. c. The chief administrator of an area education agency within the regional planning partnership, or the chief administrator’s designee. d. Representatives of regional economic and workforce entities including local workforce development boards established under section 84A.4. e. Representatives of business and industry. f. Career and technical education teachers and faculty. 5. Convening the regional career and technical education planning partnership shall be the joint responsibility of the area education agency and community college located within the region. In convening the regional career and technical education planning partnership, the area education agency and the community college shall include stakeholders from each member district of the partnership. 6. A regional career and technical education partnership may use funds received from state and federal sources on behalf of school districts and community colleges participating in the regional career and technical education planning partnership to convene, lead, and staff the regional career and technical education planning partnership; to offer regional career and technical education professional development opportunities; to coordinate and maintain a career guidance system pursuant to section 279.61; to purchase career and technical education equipment; and to purchase standard classroom consumable supplies other than consumable supplies that will be made into products to be sold or used personally by students, teachers, and other persons. 2016 Acts, ch 1108, §46 C2017, §258.14 2017 Acts, ch 29, §73 – 75; 2018 Acts, ch 1130, §3, 4; 2023 Acts, ch 19, §2535 C2024, §256.136 2024 Acts, ch 1162, §6 – 8 Referred to in §256.125, 256.129, 256.131, 256.137, 282.7 Thu Dec 11 19:19:19 2025 Iowa Code 2026, Section 256.136 (32, 0)