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Section:
Most Recently amended by the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education: May 20, 2025
Each school district requesting full approval of a state-designated career technical education program shall demonstrate that the program meets the following approval criteria:
(1) Organization
(a) Each career technical school district and agricultural school shall employ a career technical superintendent and career technical principal licensed pursuant to 603 CMR 4.00.
(b) Each school district that conducts five or more approved career technical education programs in public comprehensive high schools must employ a licensed career technical supervisor/director of career technical education to plan and supervise the programs. A supervisor/director of career technical education who is assigned to a single school within a district shall report to the principal of that school. The supervisor/director reports to the superintendent in cases where the supervisor/director supervises programs in more than one school in the district or supervises programs that are not under the principal.
(c) Each school district seeking approval for a career technical education program shall demonstrate that the program has been planned in consultation with the following advisory committees:
Program Advisory CommitteeEach school committee shall appoint a Program Advisory Committee for each program area under its control. The Program Advisory Committee shall consist of representatives of local business and industry related to the program, organized labor, postsecondary institutions, parents/guardians, students and representatives from registered apprenticeship programs if the program area has such registered programs; provided however, that no member of the school committee, or other school official or school personnel shall serve on the committee. Every effort shall be made to promote membership on the Advisory Committee that includes diverse perspectives, and reflects the communities eligible to be served by the school. The members shall appoint a facilitator who in most cases would be a program teacher or a program supervisor/director. The Program Advisory Committee shall meet at least twice per year. Meetings shall comply with the Open Meeting Law, M.G.L. c. 30A, § 18–25. It shall be the responsibility of the Program Advisory Committee to advise, assist and support school personnel in order to improve planning, operation and evaluation in its program area. Such advice shall be based on adequate and timely information as to workforce and job development demands or job market trends, technological developments, training alternatives and other factors affecting the quality of the program.
General Advisory CommitteeEach school committee shall appoint a General Advisory Committee for all career technical education programs under its control. The General Advisory Committee shall include, but not be limited to, chairpersons of the program advisory committees. Every effort shall be made to promote membership on the General Advisory Committee that includes diverse perspectives, and reflects the communities eligible to be served by the school. The General Advisory Committee shall meet at least twice per year, provided that one of the meetings is with the school committee. Meetings shall comply with the Open Meeting Law, M.G.L. c. 30A, §§ 18–25. It shall be the responsibility of the General Advisory Committee to advise the school committee, based on adequate and timely information, as to the planning, operation and evaluation of career technical instruction provided by programs under its control. The chief administrative officer of the school committee, or designee, shall act as facilitator to the General Advisory Committee.
(2) Control. Each school district that conducts one or more state-designated career technical education programs shall be under the control of a school committee.
(3) Location (Facilities) and Equipment
(a) Each career technical education program shall be conducted in facilities that meet current occupational standards.
(b) Equipment shall be industry validated to meet current occupational standards and be sufficient in quantity and variety to allow students to attain competencies necessary for the occupation and the Certificate of Occupational Proficiency and to enable each student, or student team, to work continuously.
(c) The facilities shall meet all applicable building and safety codes and shall be inspected by building and safety officials per applicable local, state and federal laws and regulations.
(d) The school shall develop and implement a comprehensive safety and health plan to safeguard the safety and health of all students and school personnel. The regulations of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) governing work sites shall serve as the minimum standards for safety in the career technical education program. The plan should include provisions for safety inspections of all facilities, safety training for all students and staff and the use, storage and disposal of toxic and hazardous materials.
(4) Program of Study and Methods of Instruction
(a) The program of study shall:
(b) A Program of Studies including both academic and technical programs and courses and the admission policy shall be published and a copy shall be provided to each student and parent/guardian.
(c) The career technical education program shall include a process for assessing and documenting the attainment by each student of the technical and academic competencies. Assessment methods may include portfolio and performance assessment.
(d) Career guidance and placement services shall be provided to each student, consistent with the requirements of 603 CMR 26.04, and shall include assessment of all career technical education students to determine individual technical and academic aptitude, interest and learning styles and assistance with the development of a four-year career plan based on the assessments. Services shall be provided to assist each student in making the transition to the workforce, postsecondary education and apprenticeship programs.
(e) School districts that offer five or more State-Designated Career Technical Education Programs shall provide a minimum of a one half year exploratory program approved by the Department for all incoming ninth graders. The programs shall meet the standards in the Department's guidelines for exploratory programs. The exploratory program must be based on the applicable Career Technical Education Framework and the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks. If a district no longer offers five or more programs approved pursuant to M.G.L. c. 74, it may not report itself as having an approved exploratory program, unless it is an agricultural school.
(5) Qualifications of Personnel
(a) All personnel in the career technical education program including academic teachers shall have an appropriate educator license and endorsement, if needed, in accordance with the requirements set forth in 603 CMR 4.00, 7.00: Educator Licensure and Preparation Program Approval, and 14.00: Education of English Learners.
(b) Non-licensed substitute teachers and teacher (instructional) aides shall be supervised by an appropriately licensed career technical education teacher while serving in a career technical facility and shall not be allowed to supervise students using hazardous equipment.
(c) The Commissioner may exempt a school district for any one school year from the requirement to employ individual career technical education personnel licensed under 603 CMR 4.00 upon the request of a superintendent for a waiver and demonstration to the Commissioner that the district has made a good-faith effort to hire licensed personnel. Persons employed under waivers must demonstrate that they are making continuous progress toward meeting the requirements for licensure in the field in which they are employed. During the time that a waiver is in effect, service of an employee of a school district to whom the waiver applies shall not be counted as service in acquiring Professional Technical Teacher status.
(d) The Commissioner may deem a district to have a critical shortage of licensed career technical education teachers for the purpose of M.G.L. c. 32, § 91(e) upon request of a superintendent and demonstration that the district has made a good-faith effort to hire personnel who have not retired under M.G.L. c. 32. A district deemed to have a critical shortage of licensed technical teachers for the purposes of M.G.L. c. 32, § 91(e) may employ retired career technical teachers subject to all laws, rules and regulations governing the employment of teachers. The period of determination of a critical shortage of licensed career technical teachers shall not exceed one year, but a district may seek to invoke this provision in consecutive years upon a new demonstration of a good-faith effort to hire personnel who have not retired. The Commissioner shall notify the Teachers' Retirement Board of each determination of a critical shortage made for the purposes of M.G.L. c. 32, § 91(e). In each instance when, after a good-faith effort, a district is unable to hire a licensed career technical education teacher who has not retired under M.G.L. c. 32, the superintendent of the district has discretion to choose whether to seek a waiver, pursuant to 603 CMR 4.03(5)(c) or to seek a determination of critical shortage, pursuant to 603 CMR 4.03(5)(d).
(e) Persons with special expertise related to the career technical area of instruction who can strengthen the career technical education program may be employed without a career technical teacher license. Such persons shall work in concert with, and under the direct supervision of, an appropriately licensed career technical education teacher at all times.
(f) The qualifications of the Pilot Program Teacher(s) shall be subject to approval by the Commissioner according to industry standards. Employment as an approved Pilot Program Teacher may be counted towards Professional Teacher Status.
(6) Admission of Students
(a) Career technical education schools and programs at comprehensive high schools shall develop and implement an admission policy that is consistent with federal and state law and any relevant guidelines issued by the Department or the U.S. Department of Education. Career technical education schools and programs shall condition admission on a student having been promoted to the grade that they have been admitted to enter. Resident students who meet the minimum requirements for admission shall be admitted prior to acceptance of any non-resident students seeking the same program.
(b) Beginning with the 2025-2026 admissions cycle, for students entering in Fall 2026, where there are more applicants than available seats, students shall be accepted for admission by a lottery conducted by the career technical education school or program. All lotteries for career technical education school or program seats shall be conducted in a public place and with reasonable public notice given at least one week prior to the lottery. Such lotteries may be conducted electronically; provided that the methods must be shared publicly, the process must be fair, and selection must be random. If there is a local agreement among sending districts concerning seat allocation, career technical education schools and programs may run a lottery for each sending district, consistent with the seat allocation requirements of any local agreement.
(c) If a career technical education school or program holds at least two in-person information sessions and at least two virtual information sessions each school year, it may require applications for admission to contain an indication of student awareness in career technical education. Students must be able to demonstrate their awareness by any of the following: attendance at an open house or in-person or virtual student information session; participation in a tour of a career technical education school or program; completion of a video module created either by the school or program or by the Department regarding career technical education; or other measure proposed by a career technical education school or program and approved by the Department.
(d) Career technical education schools and programs whose admission policies include criteria may only use one or more of the following criteria, and only as part of a weighted lottery system:
student attendance: students with fewer than 27 unexcused, full-day absences over the 270 school days prior to the date of their application, provided that no data prior to an applicant's seventh grade year may be considered;
student discipline: students who have not been suspended or expelled pursuant to M.G.L. c.71 §37H or §37H1/2 for either of the following on school premises or at school-sponsored or school-related events over the 270 school days prior to the date of their application: possession of a dangerous weapon or assault of educational staff, provided that such suspensions or expulsions were in connection with felonies that have been adjudicated or in which the student has made an admission of guilt in court, provided that no data prior to an applicant's seventh grade year may be considered;
student interest: students who demonstrate an interest in pursuing career technical education. Students must be allowed to demonstrate their interest by participating in any of the following: a non-evaluative interview with a career technical education school or program staff member; submission of an audio or video presentation, personal essay, or letter of recommendation from a non-family member; or other measure proposed by a career technical education school or program and approved by the Department.
All students who apply to a career technical education school or program will be entered into its lottery. Career technical education schools and programs that choose to use any of the above criteria will not score students on these criteria. A student who satisfies a criterion is assigned one additional weight in the lottery.
(e) Criteria shall be approved annually by the school's board of trustees or school committee. The superintendent of the career technical education school or program shall submit an annual attestation to the Department that the admissions policy of the school or program complies with federal and state law, including laws addressing discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, or disability.
(f) Each career technical education school and program shall submit its admissions, recruitment, and retention policy to the Department by November 1, 2025, and by November 1 of any subsequent years if the school or program has revised its policy. Each school and program shall annually publish it its admission, recruitment and retention policy in its Program of Studies, post a copy on the school website, and provide a copy to each student applicant and their parent/guardian. Career technical education schools and programs shall ensure that all admissions materials are in both English and the primary language of the home, if such primary language is other than English.
Each policy shall include the following:
(g) Career technical education schools and programs shall maintain a record of all students who apply for admission, and students who enroll in the school, or are placed on a waitlist, and their admission criteria weight, if used, to facilitate an analysis and evaluation of the admissions system and its compliance with 603 CMR 4.03(6). The school or program shall provide such information to the Department upon request. Career technical education secondary schools that have more applicants than available seats shall also maintain a waitlist for the current school year for all students in the lottery who do not gain admission to the school, and report such data to the Department.
The Department will take actions it deems necessary to address cases where the admissions policies and practices of career technical education schools and programs do not comply with applicable state and federal laws and regulations, and order compliance actions, including revisions to, or replacement of, existing admission policies. Such intervention may include a requirement that such career technical education schools and programs shall not use criteria.
(h) Beginning in the 2025-2026 school year, all career technical schools will adhere to the following admissions cycle for school level admission:
Applications received by the published deadline will be entered into the lottery. Applications received after the published deadline will be drawn from a lottery if additional seats become available in accordance with the district's published admission, recruitment, and retention policy.
(i) Access for Middle Schools Students. Sending districts shall offer career technical education schools and programs opportunities to provide middle school students with information about career technical education programs and careers on-site at their middle schools, as well as through mail and email, and through inclusion on their public facing websites, by October 15 of each school year. Sending districts may not count middle school student tours of career technical education schools or programs during the school day as unexcused absences if the career technical school or program confirms the student's participation, and may not withhold student access to tours of career technical education schools and programs during the school day. Beginning in the 2025-2026 school year, all sending districts will maintain a districtwide Middle School Pathway Exploration Policy that documents how middle school students in the district are made aware of and gain exposure to career technical education schools and programs available to them in their district, regional, agricultural, and other public high schools. The district policy shall include processes for:
Middle School Pathway Exploration Policies must be submitted to the Department by November 1, 2025 and as amended. Annually, all districts will sign an attestation that the Middle School Pathway Exploration Policy is implemented. Districts will make their Middle School Pathway Exploration Policy available on the district website and provide written copies to students and parents, upon request.
(j) Non-resident students. Students who reside in cities and towns not maintaining state-designated career technical education programs in the career technical education program area sought by the student may apply for admission to a school of another city, town or district offering the desired instruction as set forth in M.G.L. c. 74, § 7.
Students who reside in cities and towns that do not maintain a ninth grade state-designated exploratory program may apply for admission to a school of another city, town or district offering a state-designated exploratory program. Ninth grade students who reside in cities and towns that offer a state-designated exploratory program shall attend the exploratory program provided by the district of residence; provided however, that students may apply for non-resident admission for the purpose of exploring aviation maintenance technology, or specialized agriculture and natural resources programs, or concentrations therein, designated by the Commissioner, and not available in the student's district of residence.
Non-resident students shall submit an application of admission to the receiving school no later than March 15 of the preceding school year and shall be subject to the admissions criteria of the receiving school. A non-resident student must submit the Chapter 74 Career Technical Education Program Non-resident Student Tuition Application to the district of residence no later than April 1 of the preceding school year. If the receiving school has a waitlist, resident students will be admitted via lottery before non-resident students may be admitted via lottery. If a student moves to a non-resident district after April 1, the student shall submit a new Chapter 74 Career Technical Education Program Non-resident Student Tuition Application to their district of residence as soon as practicable. Upon receipt of the application, the superintendent in the district of residence must either approve or disapprove the application and submit it to the receiving school and the non-resident student's parent/guardian within 10 school days of receipt. If the application is disapproved, the reason for disapproval must be clearly stated. The non-resident student's parent or guardian may request that the Department review the disapproval. The request for a review and any supporting documentation shall be submitted in writing to the Department no later than May 1, or in the event of a student move after April 1, within 14 school days of the application's disapproval. The decision of the Commissioner shall be final. In making the decision, the Commissioner shall take into consideration the following:
Once a non-resident student has been accepted to a receiving school for an approved career technical education program and has been approved by the district of residence or the Department, the city or town of residence shall pay tuition to the receiving school at the rate established by the Department. The receiving school shall notify a non-resident student in writing that admission is program specific and that a change in program by a non-resident student will require the submission of a new state-designated Career Technical Education Program Non-resident Student Tuition Application. The non-resident student is entitled to the same rights and privileges of students who reside in the receiving school district, including the right to remain in the receiving school until completion of their secondary program, unless the student changes their program or moves out of their district of residence. If the non-resident student requires additional time to complete the program and a resident student would have been offered the right to continue until completion at the expense of member districts, the city or town of residence must continue to pay tuition for the additional time. If a non-resident student leaves the program but returns within one year, the student shall be entitled to be reinstated if that privilege would have been extended to a resident student. Schools must pro-rate the tuition if the student attends for less than a full year.
In instances where there is no tuition agreement in place between sending and receiving districts, the Commissioner shall establish tuition rates for the purposes of M.G.L. c. 74, s. 7C. In calculating and establishing said tuition rates the Commissioner:
(k) Each school shall have a code of conduct which shall include standards and procedures for suspension and expulsion of students in accordance with M.G.L c. 71, § 37H. The code shall be published in the Student Handbook and a copy shall be provided to each student, parent/guardian. Expulsion for reasons not included in the code shall not be allowed.
(l) Each school with postsecondary career technical education programs shall develop and implement an admission policy for the postsecondary programs. The policy must be submitted to the Department prior to implementation, and as updated.
(m) Each school that admits postgraduate students shall develop and implement an admission policy for the postgraduate openings. The policy must be submitted to the Department prior to implementation, and as updated.
(n) In order to provide students and their parents with information on the availability of career technical education, a school shall release the names and addresses of grade 7 and grade 8 students no later than October 15 of each year to authorized school personnel of a regional career technical school education district if the city or town in which the school is located is a member of the regional career technical education school district; provided that the school shall give public notice that it releases this information and allows parents and eligible students, as defined by 603 CMR 23.02: Definition of Terms, a reasonable time after such notice to request that this information not be released without the prior consent of the eligible student or parent.
(7) Employment of Students (Cooperative Education)
(a) Career Technical Cooperative Education Programs must be approved by the Department prior to implementation.
(b) Each approved program shall:
(8) ExpendituresEach school that conducts one or more career technical education programs shall provide resources that are adequate to enable the programs to meet current industry and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations with respect to facilities, safety, equipment and supplies.
Disclaimer:For an official copy of these regulations, please contact the State House Bookstore, at 617-727-2834 or visit Massachusetts State Bookstore .
Last Updated: June 16, 2025