During her mid-year report at the Northwest ISD board’s regular meeting March 10, Kelley Henderson, executive director of college and career readiness, touted the district's CTE accomplishments so far this year.

As NISD continues to grow amid budget constraints, she said there is a growing need for advocates in the community to keep the program on track.

The gist

Henderson recognized several awards CTE students have earned so far in the 2024-25 school year. They include:
  • Aviation Academy students placing fifth at the National Advanced Vertical Robotics Competition
  • BME Academy VEI Blink Business placed first in the state for the Business Plan award and second in the southern U.S. region
  • NHStv won the Best Broadcast Excellence award at the national Student Television Network Convention
Other accomplishments CTE students have achieved during this school year include:
  • 139 Certified Medical Assistant students passed their certification on the first attempt, which represents an 89% pass rate
  • 100% of Culinary Academy Seniors passed the Certified Fundamentals Cook Certification
  • Aviation has a 100% pass rate for Part 107 exam and has the largest number of pilots in the Tarrant County College program
  • Cosmetology certification has a 99% pass rate
These successes comes amid budget constraints due to a lack of state funding, which has caused a projected $16 million budget shortfall for NISD for the 2025-26 school year.

Northwest ISD officials have already eliminated more than 100 teaching positions to help the district, which is one of the fastest growing in the state, deal with the shortfall brought on by state funding that hasn’t increased since 2019.


In order to continue to serve students in the CTE program under these budgetary constraints, Henderson and other staff members have introduced staffing efficiency and curriculum models. Henderson said she and CFO Jonathan Pastusek have fielded more than 300 requests from other districts across the state for that information.

“We are leading the state in a lot of things,” Henderson said. “It is due to having great support from [the board] and the community.”

A closer look

Board President Steve Sprowls recognized the amount of CTE opportunities there are in the district. However, he took the opportunity to request district families continue to advocate for the program.


“Please advocate," Sprowls said. "Don’t just assume someone else is going to do it, because [legislators in Austin] need to hear from us. We can’t [have these opportunities] without money.”

Enrollment growth in the CTE program has increased over 29% in the past three school years, according to previous reporting.

Northwest ISD will expand its career and technical education academies in the coming years. The district’s Construction Academy will open in August 2025 followed by the Transportation, Automation & Logistics Academy's opening in 2027.