Vocational education in the United States

There is, however, an issue with vocational or "career" schools that have national accreditation, instead of regional accreditation. Regionally-accredited schools are predominantly academically oriented, non-profit institutions.[5][6] Nationally-accredited schools are predominantly for-profit and offer vocational, career, or technical programs.[5][6] Every college has the right to set standards and refuse to accept transfer credits. However, if students have gone to a nationally-accredited school, transferring credits or even obtaining credit for a degree earned may be particularly difficult to transfer credits (or even credit for a degree earned) if they then apply to a regionally-accredited college. Some regionally-accredited colleges have general policies against accepting any credits from nationally-accredited schools. Others are reluctant to do so because they feel that nationally-accredited schools have lower academic standards than their own or because they are unfamiliar with a particular school. Students who plan to transfer to a regionally-accredited school after studying at a nationally-accredited school should ensure that they will be able to transfer the credits before they attend the latter school.[5][6][7][8]

There have been lawsuits regarding nationally-accredited schools that lead prospective students to believe that they would have no problem transferring their credits to regionally-accredited schools, most notably Florida Metropolitan University and Crown College, Tacoma, Washington.[9][10][11] Schools that have been targeted but not been found guilty include University of Phoenix and Vatterott College.[12]

The US Department of Education has stated, however, that its criteria for recognition of accreditors "do not differentiate between types of accrediting agencies, so the recognition granted to all types of accrediting agencies — regional, institutional, specialized, and programmatic — is identical." However the same letter states also that "the specific scope of recognition varies according to the type of agency recognized."[13]

A relatively recent innovation, Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs have begun to appear that supplement or replace vocational schools. CTE provides opportunities to earn certificates and degrees that teach in-demand skills but provide a fast track to the work force. Unlike the former "vocational" programs, CTE programs and degrees are meant to be academic and stackable. They bear credits, and individuals can build on to them through continued education. These programs can span from culinary arts and hospitality management to fire science, computer science, and nursing. However, all offerings include a one-year certificate or two-year degree and with a high-skilled hands-on learning experience. Some jurisdictions are introducing CTE alternatives to standard high schools as a means of addressing student engagement and drop-out issues.[17] CTE programs are shown to promote engagement for students who feel disconnected from traditional education models.[17]

In 2008, the New York City Department of Education began to rethink vocational education in high schools.[18][19] Mayor Michael Bloomberg, in his State of the City 2008 address, said, "This year, we're going to begin dramatically transforming how high school students prepare for technical careers in a number of growing fields. Traditionally, such career and technical education has been seen as an educational dead-end. We're going to change that. College isn't for everyone, but education is. Building on work by the State Education Department, we'll do what no other public school system in the nation has done- create rigorous career and technical programs that start in high schools and continue in our community colleges"[20][21] A hallmark of New York City public education is school choice. One category of schools students could choose since the early 20th century has been the vocational high school.[22][23] In recent years, several new CTE high schools have been started in New York City[19] or reforged with a new perspective.[18] The idea behind this reconfiguration of CTE is that vocational positions are becoming increasingly sophisticated, and a high school degree will not be sufficient. Future professionals will need more advanced education. The new CTE schools prepare students for college courses in addition to providing a vocational courses.[24] A new vocational high school, called City Polytechnic High School, will allow students to take college courses while still in high school. While many high schools in New York City offer college courses as part of their curriculum, City Poly, as the school is known, is the first to offer programs in technical fields.[25] Students will graduate in five years, instead of the usual four, with a high school diploma and an associate degree.

Some New York City Career Technical Education (CTE) schools are the following:

• Brooklyn Technical High School, founded in 1922, offers two-year major courses in civil, chemical, mechanical, and electrical engineering, as well as architectural design and computer science.
• Aviation Career & Technical Education High School, founded in 1925, known for supplying 12 percent of all of the workers on aircraft worldwide and sending several graduates to high-level engineering programs, such as Columbia School of Engineering and Applied Science and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Famous alumni include Whitey Ford and Michael Bentt.
• High School of Art and Design, founded in 1936. Famous alumni include Tony Bennett, Lenny White, and Tom Sito.
• New York Harbor School, founded in 2003, is known for being the first organization not in the US military to be housed on Governors Island in New York City Harbor since the Lenape. The school is also known for sending graduates to Cornell University and other prestigious schools in addition to supplying well-trained workers on New York City's 600 mi waterfront. This school has the second certified SCUBA program in a high school in the United States.