Iowa Association for Career and Technical Education

Overview:
The Iowa Association for Career and Technical Education Awards Program seeks to promote excellence in career and technical education by recognizing individuals who have made extraordinary contributions to the field, programs, divisions, and organizations that exemplify the highest standards and that have conducted activities to promote and expand career and technical education.

There are five categories of IACTE awards.
1. Career and Technical Teacher of the Year
2. Outstanding Career and Technical Educator
3. Iliff Leu Outstanding New Career and Technical Teacher
4. Oran Beaty Leadership Award
5. Honorary Life Membership Award

State winners of the Career and Technical Teacher of the Year, Outstanding Career and Technical Educator, and Iliff Leu Outstanding New Career and Technical Teacher will be advanced to regional competition if eligible under ACTE guidelines.

Eligibility

Forms will be accepted from either external or self-nominations.

Career and Technical Teacher of the Year:
Individuals who are currently employed as full-time classroom/laboratory teachers in a career and technical education program other than at the baccalaureate level are eligible recipients for this award. Nominees must be classroom/laboratory teachers at the time of selection. Contributions and achievements on which the nomination is based should have been made within the past ten years.

Outstanding Career and Technical Educator:
Individuals who are currently employed as full-time career and technical teacher educators, administrators, career and technical guidance counselors, program specialists and other individuals involved in career and technical education other than full-time classroom/laboratory teachers are eligible recipients for this award.

Iliff Leu Outstanding New Career and Technical Teacher:
Individuals who are currently employed as full-time classroom/laboratory teachers in a career and technical education program other than at the baccalaureate level are eligible for this award. Nominees must have taught for a minimum of three but not more than five years, but the applicant may be in their sixth year of teaching at the time of application.

Illiff Leu was a polio survivor and machine tool and die instructor and department chair at Fairfield High School in the 1950s and 1960s. He was a strong advocate for the mentoring of new career and technical teachers by experiences career and technical teachers. He also believed that the best way of initiating such mentoring relationships was by first having fun. To ensure that everyone would have fun at the state conference, after the evening banquet, he would bring out his accordion and banjo and initiate a song fest and play on into the late hours of the evening.

This award is to honor his belief that the organization is only as strong as its members and that new members are needed to make an organization grow.
Oran Beaty Leadership:
Individuals who have made significant contributions to career and technical education. The candidate may be from the middle/junior high school, high school, or postsecondary level, or from a governmental agency or office, or from a vocational agency, office or association.

The Oran Beaty Leadership Award is named for a man who served as the trades and industry Section Chief for the Iowa Department of Education and the Dean of Career and Technical Education at Iowa Western Community College in Council Bluffs.

Oran was a lifetime member of ACTE and IACTE. Along with his wife, Teresa Oran attended ACTE and IACTE conferences annually until his health in his 90s no longer allowed it (50 consecutive years).

Approximately 20 years ago and prior to Oran’s death, Teresa Beaty, Oran’s wife approached IACTE with the idea of establishing a lifetime award in Oran’s name to be presented to someone who exhibited the same type of passion and dedication for career and technical education that Oran had. This person would also provide the leadership to exemplify that passion.

Honorary Life Member:
Individuals who have been a member of IACTE for at least the past ten years and who are retiring from career and technical education and have reached the established retirement age or are retiring due to permanent disability. The candidate may be from the middle/junior high school, high school, or postsecondary level, or from a governmental agency or office, or from a vocational agency, office or association.