U.S. Department of Education
CTE Makeover Challenge

We are thrilled to share that today the U.S. Department of Education announced the ten prize winners in the CTE Makeover Challenge. Johan Uvin, Acting Assistant Secretary for Career, Technical, and Adult Education, announced the prize winners at the White House Champions of Change for Making event this afternoon. The Challenge launched in March, calling on high schools to design makerspaces that strengthen next-generation career and technical skills. Over 640 schools from all 50 states and Washington, D.C. entered the Challenge. Eligible schools were invited to participate in a 6-week Bootcamp program to further develop their makerspace ideas, and submit their final plans to be considered for prizes.

Join us in congratulating the prize winners!

• Burlington Technical Center, Burlington, VT

• Capital City Public Charter School, Washington, DC

• Carl Schurz High School, Chicago, IL

• Clearwater High School, Piedmont, MO

• Dominion High School, Sterling, VA

• John H. Reagan Early College High School, Austin, TX

• Palisades Charter High School, Pacific Palisades, CA

• Theodore Roosevelt High School, San Antonio, TX

• THINC College & Career Academy, Lagrange, GA

• William B. Travis Early College High School, Austin, TX

The prize winners were recommended by a panel of judges composed of high-profile leaders in maker education, tech, and industry. Each winner will receive $20,000 in cash and a share of in-kind prizes from the $375,000 sponsor prize pool to build or renovate their makerspace. Please check back here later this summer for more information on the prize winners’ makerspace plans.

We are thrilled with the tremendous participation in the Challenge from schools across the country, and are inspired by your love of maker education. We look forward to following the development of your making programs, and hope all schools will continue to connect with other makers.

Stay tuned for details about a CTE Makeover Challenge showcase at World Maker Faire this October in New York City!

We are thrilled to share that tomorrow, June 17th, the U.S. Department of Education will announce the CTE Makeover Challenge prize winners at the White House Champions of Change event. We would love for you to join this celebration that kicks off the National Week of Making by tuning into the livestream at wh.gov/live from 1:00 to 3:00 PM EDT.

We hope you are able to watch the live announcement and join the conversation on Twitter using #CTEMakeover and #NationOfMakers. We’ll be tweeting throughout the day from @EdPrizes and look forward to honoring the prize winners tomorrow!

Note: Prize winners were previously referred to as the CTE Makeover Challenge honorees.

Welcome to the first day of the CTE Makeover Challenge Bootcamp! Whether you have been making for years or are just getting started, the six-week CTE Makeover Bootcamp has been designed to help you turn your school’s vision for a makerspace into a reality.

Detailed lesson plans, including links to supporting materials, are available here. You can also access the second round (“Blueprint”) submission form using the Luminary Lightbox login you created to complete your first round submission.

To help you get the most out of your Bootcamp experience, please:

1. Save the Date: The Orientation webinar is this Wednesday at 4:00 PM EDT, where we will cover the basic details of the Bootcamp and answer your questions. If you cannot attend, a recorded version will be posted on the Challenge website by the end of the week. You can access the webinar here.
2. Review The Teacher’s Guide: (download here) Designed to complement the Bootcamp lessons. Use this document to help you get the most out of this experience based on your unique interests and needs.
3. Use the School Communications Toolkit: (download here) Share your progress through social media, email, your school’s website, and with your local newspaper using the sample messaging and images in the Toolkit.

As a reminder, add hello@ctemakeoverchallenge.com to your address book so that you receive all Challenge communications. Also, please note that moving to the Bootcamp phase does not indicate eligibility. All entrants will be subject to an eligibility confirmation process that we are currently undertaking. 

We look forward to seeing all that you plan to make, break, invent, and create!

Today, the U.S. Department of Education launched the CTE Makeover Challenge with a cash prize pool of $200,000 and additional prizes from Challenge sponsors, including Autodesk, Dremel, Etsy Manufacturing, Fab Foundation, LEGO Education, littleBits, Maker Ed, MakerBot, ShopBot, and Snap-on Incorporated. The Challenge seeks to inspire high schools across the country to design makerspaces that strengthen next-generation career and technical skills.

The Challenge was first announced last year at the 2015 White House Maker Faire in support of President Barack Obama’s Nation of Makers initiative, an all-hands-on-deck call to give students access to a new class of technologies – such as 3D printers, laser cutters, and desktop machine tools – that are enabling Americans to design, build, and manufacture just about anything.

The Department seeks models of sustainable makerspaces that it can share with educators to encourage the creation of affordable, scalable, and replicable makerspaces. Schools interested in participating in the Challenge should submit their first round submission consisting of school details and makerspace goals by April 1, 2016.

Following close of submissions, all eligible schools will gain access to the CTE Makeover Bootcamp, a 6-week virtual program that provides resources and expertise in makerspace design, lesson planning, sustainability strategies, and community engagement. At the completion of the Bootcamp, schools will submit a second round submission that will include detailed design plans, budgets, and implementation strategies.

A multidisciplinary panel of judges will evaluate second round submissions, and up to 10 schools will be announced as award recipients at the National Week of Making this summer. They will each receive $20,000 in cash, as well as additional sponsor prizes, to create or renovate their makerspace.

Want to learn more? Read about making and makerspaces, and find the selection criteria and the rules, terms, and conditions. Also, save the date for our informational webinar next Thursday, March 17 from 4:00 to 5:00 PM EDT to hear an overview of the Challenge and discuss questions.

We look forward to seeing what schools envision for their makerspaces – spaces that will provide our students the tools and resources to imagine, create, and tinker as they prepare for exciting futures ahead.