2026 KACTE Summer Program: Full Schedule

Get the big picture on everything impacting Career and Technical Education in KY. This session offers a strategic overview of state-level updates, including legislative shifts, accountability, and so much more. Join us to ensure your programs are aligned with the latest state priorities and equipped with the tools necessary for student excellence. EILA certificate awarded at the conclusion of the session.

Speakers

Dr. Beth Hargis

502-564-4286, KY Department of Education, Office of Career and Technical Education

Associate Commissioner Of Education
Office of Career and Technical Education

Tuesday July 21, 2026 1:00pm - 4:00pm EDT
Archibald - West - 3rd Floor

Administration

Audience Administration
Area EILA

4:00pm EDT

Cultivating Capacity for AI Leadership in Schools

Tuesday July 21, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT

Carroll Ford - East - 2nd Floor

As artificial intelligence rapidly enters classrooms, schools are facing pressure to adopt tools faster than they can fully understand their impact. This session takes a balanced approach to AI in education, grounded in research, child development, and lessons learned from past waves of technology adoption accelerated by COVID.Participants will examine national trends in AI use, school spending, and emerging evidence on inequities, unintended harms, and engagement-driven design. Rather than framing AI as something to race toward or resist, this session centers the need for pre-investment in capacity, guardrails, and shared understanding to avoid repeating mistakes made during large-scale edtech adoption.This session explores who should lead AI decision-making, how to evaluate tools through a developmental and instructional lens, and how to build staff and student readiness before implementation. Participants will leave with strategies to guide AI use thoughtfully, align decisions with student well-being and learning goals, and lead with clarity during uncertainty. This session focuses on leadership, preparation, and systems-level thinking rather than reactive adoption.

Speakers

Jane Kim

703-909-8029, KindEd

Founder and CEO

Tuesday July 21, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT
Carroll Ford - East - 2nd Floor

Administration

Audience Administration

4:00pm EDT

Stukent CTE - Courses, Simternships, Certification Prep, and Certifications

Tuesday July 21, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT

Morrow - East - 3rd Floor

Stukent CTE provides access to world-class courseware, simulations, cert prep, and certifications.Business Content Areas: Business, Marketing, Entrepreneurship, Finance, Agriculture Content Areas: Intro to Ag, AgBiz, Plant Science, Animal Science, Ag Mechanics, Culinary ArtsAll CTE: Generative AI, Personal Finance, Career Readiness, Cert Prep (Practice): The platform also aligns to third-party Cert Prep through Certiport and iCEV.Certifications (Certify): Stukent CTE offers 10+ Industry-Recognized Certifications that help teachers certify student understanding.The Teacher Dashboard provides real-time measuring and monitoring tools, standards-based analytics, group management, tracks student leader efficacy, and custom rubrics.The platform is fully integrated with Google Classroom, Canvas, Schoology and MS Teams.

Speakers

Hayley Johnson

Teacher Success Manager, Stukent CTE

Hayley serves as a Teacher Success Manager with Stukent CTE, where she is dedicated to making curriculum both effective and easy to implement. She especially enjoys partnering with educators to customize the platform to meet the unique and ever-evolving needs of their classrooms... Read More →

Tuesday July 21, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT
Morrow - East - 3rd Floor

Administration

Audience Administration

8:00am EDT

The Power of Visual Storytelling: Showcasing Your School’s Success

Wednesday July 22, 2026 8:00am - 8:50am EDT

Fields - East - 3rd Floor

Every day, Kentucky schools accomplish remarkable things, but if those stories aren't told visually, they can get lost in today's fast-scrolling digital world. This session equips participants with practical strategies for capturing compelling photos and videos, editing them efficiently, and writing engaging captions using tools they already have. Attendees will learn how to involve students in authentic content creation and build a simple, sustainable content plan to keep their school visible year-round. Real examples from Kentucky classrooms and CTE programs will provide plug-and-play ideas and ready-to-use prompts participants can implement immediately.

Speakers

Nathan Lyttle

5025644286, Kentucky Department of Education

Marketing Consultant

Wednesday July 22, 2026 8:00am - 8:50am EDT
Fields - East - 3rd Floor

Administration

Audience Administration

8:00am EDT

Perkins 101

Wednesday July 22, 2026 8:00am - 11:00am EDT

Ballroom B - East - 2nd Floor

This new session will provide an essential role orientation for new/recently hired Perkins coordinators and provide a useful refresher for anyone in any role seeking to deepen knowledge of Perkins V and associated compliance requirements. Session highlights include an overview of Perkins V; the Perkins funding allocation process; allowable/unallowable Perkins expenses; the Perkins CLNA process; the new Perkins Programs of Study application process; and a deep dive into new Perkins performance indicators. Please expect an interactive workshop format, and please bring your laptop. The session will also include a live demonstration of GMAP and provide real-time GMAP support for local ATC, district, and PS Perkins basic funding applications.

Speakers

Lori Looney

8592746753, Kentucky Department of Education Office of Career and Technical Education

OCTE Data & ROI Branch Manager

Wednesday July 22, 2026 8:00am - 11:00am EDT
Ballroom B - East - 2nd Floor

Administration

Audience Administration

9:00am EDT

KTS Data Exchange for High School Schedulers

Wednesday July 22, 2026 9:00am - 9:50am EDT

Ballroom C - East - 2nd Floor

Attention high school counselors and principals - this session will help you understand how to set up courses in Infinite Campus for the syncing of KTS Data Exchange data.

Speakers

Sarah Kiper

2706171327, OCTE

IT Business Analyst Senior, KTS Data Exchange

Wednesday July 22, 2026 9:00am - 9:50am EDT
Ballroom C - East - 2nd Floor

Administration

Audience Administration

10:00am EDT

DIY Data-Dual Credit and Work Based Learning

Wednesday July 22, 2026 10:00am - 11:30am EDT

Lily - West - 2nd Floor

The focus will be on looking at dual credit and work-based learning data at your school. You will be learning what reports in Infinite Campus can assist you in your data cleanup/data check process and have the opportunity to work on your data during this session and get help for any questions you might have around these topics.

Speakers

Amy Tracy

8593240726, KDE/OCTE

OCTE Data Manager

Wednesday July 22, 2026 10:00am - 11:30am EDT
Lily - West - 2nd Floor

Administration

Audience Administration

10:00am EDT

TEDS Secondary Schools Update

Wednesday July 22, 2026 10:00am - 11:30am EDT

Ballroom C - East - 2nd Floor

TEDS is the authoritative source for all CTE data in Kentucky. Anyone working with secondary TEDS data should attend this session for important reminders and updates.

Speakers

Claude W Christian

8593969820, Kentucky Department of Education, Office of Career and Technical Education

State TEDS Coordinator

Wednesday July 22, 2026 10:00am - 11:30am EDT
Ballroom C - East - 2nd Floor

Administration

Audience Administration, Teaching and Learning

3:00pm EDT

Employer Engagement in CTE

Wednesday July 22, 2026 3:00pm - 3:50pm EDT

Ballroom B - East - 2nd Floor

This new session was developed in direct response to conference feedback indicating strong interest in employer engagement resources. The session will demonstrate how intentional employer engagement drives high‑quality CTE program design, implementation, and funding eligibility. Perkins V emphasizes meaningful and continuous stakeholder engagement - including structured collaboration with employers - informing strategic decisions, validating program quality, and guiding state and local planning processes. This interactive presentation will equip participants with case studies and replicable strategies to build sustainable employer partnerships that enhance program relevance, improve student outcomes, and strengthen funding opportunities.

Speakers

Lori Looney

8592746753, Kentucky Department of Education Office of Career and Technical Education

OCTE Data & ROI Branch Manager

Wednesday July 22, 2026 3:00pm - 3:50pm EDT
Ballroom B - East - 2nd Floor

Administration

Audience Administration

4:00pm EDT

DIY Data-Dual Credit and Work Based Learning

Wednesday July 22, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT

Lily - West - 2nd Floor

Speakers

Amy Tracy

8593240726, KDE/OCTE

OCTE Data Manager

Wednesday July 22, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT
Lily - West - 2nd Floor

Administration

Audience Administration

4:00pm EDT

The Redesign of a Successful High School

Wednesday July 22, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT

Willis - East - 2nd Floor

McCracken County High School is a high-achieving and successful student-focused high school; however, in the fall of 2024, things needed to change. In March 2025, MCHS launched our move toward becoming an academy model high school. This undertaking has resulted in creating and implementing the Freshman Academy, evaluating our CTE pathways, generating new scheduling and pathways materials, and enhancing existing community partners. This session will provide attendees with a toolkit to evaluate what they are doing well, what may be needed, and the collaboration needed between internal and external stakeholders.

Speakers