20 Techniques February 2014 www.acteonline.org

In Celebration of CTE

Carl Schaefer circa 1941.

Photo courtesy of JoAnn Schaefer

February 2014 Techniques 21 www.acteonline.org

In Celebration of CTE

areer and technical educa-

tion (CTE) is built on the

hard work and dedication of

those who came before us.

So at a time when CTE has so much to

celebrate, it is important that we honor

our forefathers. Having been involved in

CTE for over 40 years, I have had the

opportunity to meet and interact with a

variety of thought leaders, many of whom

have helped mold CTE and guide its

quality and growth. I consider it an honor

and a privilege to recognize one of CTE’s

strongest advocates, Carl J. Schaefer. I am

certain he had no idea of the impact his

legacy would have on the future of CTE.

Schaefer focused on helping his students

succeed and engaged others in recogniz-

ing the importance of CTE.

CTE’s ConsistencyOne of our greatest challenges in CTE is

the continuation of a national, uniform

quality education system. U.S. Sec. of Ed-

ucation Arne Duncan used the term “is-

lands of excellence” during a 2011 speech1

when referring to the lack of uniformity

in CTE. The reality is that this term has

conjured up images of CTE being discon-

nected from the mainstream, but this

could not be farther from the truth. CTE

has consistently been in touch with the

needs of multiple communities, educa-

tional reformists, special needs communi-

ties, labor, commerce, the military and of

course, the workforce. The “islands” anal-

ogy does, however, hold some measure of

truth when referring to the consistency of

available resources at the local level. CTE

does not lack consistency when it comes

to the heritage of leadership and initia-

tive. Carl Schaefer is an ideal example of

leadership and forethought.

The consistency of CTE, in part, is

based on the quality and competence of

the instructors teaching the programs.

At a time when vocational education was

starting to take on new life in the 1960s,

local administrators realized that there

were few available tools to determine a

potential instructor’s competence. The

Vocational Education Acts of 1963 and

1968 allowed funds to be utilized for the

building of new shared-time facilities.

These acts led to the growth of facili-

ties around the country and spurred the

ullk"mvy"x¦hspälk"{lhjolyz"{v"z{hmm"{olt5"Pukp}pk¦hsz"ässpun"{olzl"wvzp{pvuz"ullklk"to have four unique skill sets:

ª" A love of their craft

ª" The desire to help others grow

ª" A willingness to commit to

lifelong learning

ª" Competence in their craft

The documentation of competency is a

factor that helped drive Schaefer.

A CTE Superhero In 2010, I had the honor of meeting

Schaefer and his wife JoAnn during a

NOCTI Board of Trustees meeting held

at the Association for Career and Techni-

cal Education’s (ACTE) headquarters.

Schaefer was a special guest and was

honored by the then-current Board of

Trustees as the last surviving founding

By John Foster

Celebrating

22 Techniques February 2014 www.acteonline.org

In Celebration of CTE

board member. Also during this meet-

ing, which happened on his 90th birth-

day, Brenda Dann-Messier, the assistant

zljyl{hy\"mvy"{ol"Vmäjl"vm"]vjh{pvuhs"and Adult Education, presented Schaefer

with a Lifetime Recognition Award. This

meeting was the only time I would have

the opportunity to meet him in person.

The CTE community lost a great leader

later that year when he passed away on

December 12.

Early Life and EducationSchaefer’s life should provide inspiration

to those reading this article. In many

ways his life parallels the drive of all CTE

educators. (If it doesn’t, it should.) His

focus was always on making things better.

As a youth, he earned the rank of Eagle

Scout with the Boy Scouts of America.

He started his “work life” as a carpenter

and a machinist after graduating from

Buffalo Technical High School in New

York. After a brief teaching experience

from 1942–1943, Schaefer served his

country during World War II with Gen.

George Patton in the European Theater,

earning the Bronze Star with an oak leaf

cluster for his bravery. He was part of the

94th Infantry Division and is mentioned

in two World War II books: Patton’s Pawns:

The 94th US Infantry Division at the Sieg fried

Line by Tony Le Tissier and Patton’s Ghost

Corps: Cracking the Sieg fried Line by Nathan

Prefer.

After his military service, Schaefer

earned his Ph.D. from Ohio State Univer-

sity. In addition to his roles as a teacher,

coach and supervisor at the secondary

level, he also served on the faculty of Penn

State University and Rutgers University.

H{"Y¦{nlyz3"ol"zly}lk"hz"{ol"äyz{"johpy-wlyzvu"vm"{ol"]vjh{pvuhs"[ljoupjhs"Lk¦-

jh{pvu"Klwhy{tlu{"huk"z{hy{lk"{ol"äyz{"graduate vocational education program

in the nation. During his tenure in higher

education, he authored well over 100

articles, books and chapters, and helped

over 170 students receive their doctoral

degrees.

Schaefer amassed numerous awards

over his career, but according to his wife

JoAnn, he regarded his part in the found-

ing of the National Occupational Com-

petency Testing Institute (NOCTI) as

vul"vm"opz"tvz{"zpnupäjhu{"hjopl}ltlu{z5"NOCTI was established as a national

consortium (including all state directors

of CTE), which enables all states and

territories to take advantage of NOCTI

as a resource to improve both teacher and

student technical competence.

Recognizing ExcellenceSchaefer’s vision of the importance of

national technical competence and his

desire to see CTE, teachers and admin-

istrators continually improve and thrive

lives on through NOCTI. Shortly after

his passing, NOCTI established the Carl

J. Schaefer Memorial Award, which

recognizes the efforts of those individu-

als desiring to become CTE teachers.

As a result of a donation from his wife,

NOCTI has been given the opportunity to

recognize a second individual striving for

zlsm4ptwyv}ltlu{"p{opu"{ol"J[L"älsk5"JoAnn Schaefer said of her late husband,

“He just took each day at a time to help

his students, and tried to guide them in

the right direction. Educating people in

their trade was one of his achievements—

whether they wanted to be administra-

tors or journeymen at work.” This year,

NOCTI is pleased and proud to present

the inaugural Carl J. Schaefer Memorial

Award to two individuals.

[ol"äyz{"hhyk"puuly"pz"Klylr"Hazlett, a welding teacher at Carter

County Career and Technical School in

Kentucky. Hazlett was a graduate of the

program he now teaches. While a student

at Carter, he was listed on the national

honor roll and participated in the gifted

and talented program. After receiving

t¦s{pwsl"jly{päjh{pvuz"huk"y¦uupun"opz"own welding business, Hazlett decided

it was time to give back. After success-

fully passing the NOCTI teacher exam,

ol"w¦yz¦lk"iljvtpun"h"m¦ss\"jly{pälk"

Photo courtesy of JoAnn Schaefer

Carl and JoAnn Schaefer at ACTE headquarters for the spring 2010 NOCTI Board of Trustees meeting.

February 2014 Techniques 23 www.acteonline.org

In Celebration of CTE

CTE teacher. Hazlett’s goal for students

leaving his program is for them to be

job-ready welders, able to continue their

education or immediately start a welding

career. Hazlett is currently working on his

bachelor’s in occupation-based CTE from

Morehead State University in Kentucky.

Diana Penn has been named as the

second Schaefer Memorial Award win-

ner. Penn is pursuing her master’s from

Temple University in Pennsylvania. She

graduated from the Culinary Institute of

Htlypjh"huk"ohz"vyrlk"pu"oly"älsk"mvy"over 20 years. She has a BS in Organiza-

tional Behavior and Applied Psychology

from Albright College. Penn, like Ha-

‘sl{{3"ovskz"t¦s{pwsl"jly{päjh{pvuz"vm"kpz-{puj{pvu"pu"oly"älsk5"Zol3"{vv3"kljpklk"{v"give back to her profession and pursued

a teaching career at Upper Bucks Career

and Technical Center in Pennsylvania.

Even with her culinary background,

she diligently prepared for her technical

NOCTI assessment. She describes her

proudest moments as a teacher as being

those that allow her to see students’ con-

äklujl"nyv"hz"{ol\"thz{ly"z¦jjlzzp}ls\"tvyl"kpmäj¦s{"jvu{lu{5

Schaefer would have been proud of

these individuals because they both exem-

plify the drive to increase their knowledge

and to help their students be the best they

can become. He would also be proud to

know that he personally helped to shape

huk"ptwyv}l"{ol"älsk"vm"J[L"{oyv¦no"opz"passion and dedication.

Leaving a LegacyThere are two quotes that exemplify the

work of Schaefer and his legacy. The

äyz{"pz"myvt"{ol"whz{"wylzpklu{"vm"Y¦{nlyz"¥up}lyzp{\3"Ypjohyk"S5"TjJvytpjr3"during Schaefer’s memorial service. He

stated, “Dr. Schaefer was a man whose

success was measured in the accomplish-

tlu{z"vm"v{olyz5×"[ol"zljvuk"ylålj{z"

Schaefer’s passion for CTE. In 1962, he

was quoted in a local newspaper article as

saying, “The dignity of useful work is our

heritage, something to be proud of. ... It

is currently on the defensive and it should

never be.”2

As we celebrate the proud heritage of

CTE, let’s take a moment to remember

and recognize those who helped to pave

the way and those who have helped us

down our paths.

John Foster, Ph.D., is president/CEO of NOCTI.

He can be reached at nocti@nocti.org.

Endnotes

1. Sec. of Education Arne Duncan’s speech to the State Directors of Career and Technical Educa-tion, April 18, 2011. Retrieved from: www.careertech.org/news-events/events/2011-spring.html.

2. Waters, Bertram G. (1962, January 16). Survey brings new hope to education’s step-child. Centre Daily Times, State College, PA.

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