GCISD had 3,346 students enrolled in the CTE program during the 2024-25 school year, the highest since the 2021-22 school year, according to data from the Texas Education Agency.
There were 3,121 students enrolled in CTE in 2021-22, but that number dropped below 3,000 in both 2022-23 and 2023-24.
GCISD added new industry-based certificates during the past two school years, according to CTE director Stephanie Speaks. Some of the new courses for the 2025-26 school year include:
- EMT
- Adobe
- Small business/QuickBooks
- American Welding Society sheet metal certification
- Welding
- Automotive Service Excellence certification
Last year, 220 GCISD seniors took part in internships or externships, according to a social media post. The new CTE programs added last year were marketing, floral design, veterinary tech, pharmacy tech, patient care and AutoCAD.
“We look to see what is relevant and necessary to be in that industry after graduation, but then we also look to see what is the most beneficial for students and what will help make them marketable once they leave high school, whether they're going into a four-year college or directly into a trade school, into the military or right into the workforce,” Speaks said. “We want them to be career-ready and have some credentials behind them to show that they are experts in what they've been learning while they've been with us in GCISD.”
What you need to know
Speaks said some of the partnerships are forged through community events. TriVAN Roofing, based in Grapevine, is doing an internship this year where company instructors will teach students how to do commercial roofing. She said the opportunity came from meeting owner Dave Custable at a Grapevine Chamber Luncheon.
GCISD also partners with The Gaylord Texan in culinary department studies and Baylor Scott & White Medical Center for pharmacy studies, to name a few.
Speaks said that community members like John Adkins, the director of programs and events at the Grapevine Chamber of Commerce, have helped forge relationships and partnerships through the Grapevine Young Professionals group.
What they're saying
The GCISD program features three areas of study: business and industry; public service; and science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM.
Jack McDonald, a 2025 Grapevine High School graduate, landed a year-long paid internship through Bell Helicopters as an engineering student last year.
“It’s a great opportunity to help me discover the type of engineer I want to be,” McDonald, who was a data scientist intern, said in a GCISD interview. “When I’m there, I’m actually learning how to be part of the workforce. I’m learning a variety of skills, and most importantly, they’re making me career-ready.”
What’s happening?
GCISD started planning ahead for mock job interviews by sending out emails Aug. 25 to recruit volunteers. Last year, 60 community volunteers came in for interviews at Grapevine High School or Colleyville Heritage High School, according to previous reporting. Mock interviews will be held this fall at the two high schools.
“We have actually received a lot of really good feedback, not only from the kids, but also from the volunteers, just to hear how excited they are to see the next generation coming up,” Speaks said. “A big piece of what we teach is those professional skills of professional dress, how to communicate with adults, how to represent yourself in the best possible manner to get a leg up on a potential job that they're applying for. We really emphasize those professional skills and those employability skills to make sure that they're going to be career-ready.”
