FUNDING GUIDE
Funding work-based learning with state CTE dollars
Not every school is a Perkins recipient, and for many small and rural districts, state CTE funding is the larger and more flexible source. This guide covers how state CTE funding works, how it differs from Perkins, and how to build the case in your own state.
Perkins, state CTE, or both?
Most districts use both. They are not substitutes, and the difference matters because they follow different rules.
Perkins V (federal)
- Flows to your district or consortium by formula, with a minimum local grant threshold
- Tied to needs identified in your CLNA and to approved programs of study
- Must supplement, not supplant, existing spending
State CTE funding
- Built into your state's school finance system: weighted funding, categorical grants, or cost reimbursement, depending on the state
- Generally scales with enrollment in state-approved CTE courses, and in some states with outcomes like credentials earned or work-based learning hours logged
- Typically tied to state-approved CTE programs and courses rather than to a federal needs assessment
If your Perkins allocation is small, your state CTE funding is usually the bigger lever, and in some states it grows as more students participate in approved work-based learning.
The four ways states fund CTE
States fund secondary CTE through four broad models. Knowing which one your state uses tells you what kind of case to build.
CTE is funded inside the general per-pupil formula, with no separate CTE stream.
Your case is a general instructional budget case.
There may be no separate CTE funding stream to point at, so the argument rests on the outcome your state counts rather than on a CTE-specific line item. Start with steps 3 and 4 below.
Funding is weighted by enrollment in approved CTE courses or programs. This is the most common model.
Your case is about the course.
Funding follows enrollment in state-approved CTE courses, so the question your state CTE office will ask is which approved course this runs inside. Growing participation in that course is part of your argument, not a side effect of it. Start with steps 1 and 2 below.
The state reimburses a share of documented program costs, often in the following fiscal year.
Your case is about the cost category.
Reimbursement turns on whether your cost sits in a category the state will reimburse for a board-approved program, and on whether another funding source already covers it. Start with steps 2 and 5 below.
A combination of the models above.
Your case is likely both.
Hybrid states combine enrollment-driven funding with a separate categorical or reimbursed stream, so expect to answer the course question and the cost-category question. Work through all five steps below.
Start with question one.
The first question in Find your state's rules below tells you which model you are in. Your state CTE office can answer it in a single email.
Where KANU fits in a state work-based learning definition
State work-based learning definitions are built around experience types, not vendors. Many state frameworks recognize categories that describe what KANU students actually do:
School-based enterprise
Student entrepreneurial experience
Workplace simulation
KANU students run real storefronts, sell to real customers, and the platform records the outcome. Whether that meets your state's definition, and whether the platform is an allowable expenditure, is determined by your state CTE office and your district business office. This guide is written to help you ask those questions precisely.
Find your state's rules
Every state publishes what you need, but rarely in one place. These are the five things to find, and where they usually live.
0 of 5 answered
Look for: your state education agency or state CTE office CTE funding page, or a current-year CTE funding memo.
Ask your state CTE office: is our CTE funding enrollment-weighted, reimbursed against documented costs, or inside the general formula?
Look for: a state work-based learning manual, toolkit, or menu of approved experience types.
Ask: do school-based enterprise, entrepreneurship, or workplace simulation appear as recognized experience types?
Look for: your state's approved CTE course catalog or course-code directory.
Ask: which approved course code would this experience be reported under?
Look for: state CTE allowable-use or allowable-cost guidance.
Ask: is instructional software an allowable expenditure when it is tied directly to an approved program of study and to classroom instruction?
Look for: your state's accountability framework, graduation requirements, or readiness indicators.
Ask: does this produce evidence for work-based learning hours, a credential, a diploma seal, or a readiness indicator we report on?
Two searches that usually surface most of this: "[your state] CTE allowable expenditures" and "[your state] work-based learning manual."
How to make the ask
State CTE funds are generally restricted to state-approved CTE programs and courses. A platform is fundable to the extent it supports instruction in one of those approved programs. That sentence is what your ask should be built around.
- Name the approved program or course. Identify the state-approved CTE course the experience runs inside and the code it will be reported under.
- Tie the platform to instruction in that course. Most state guidance allows instructional software when it is directly tied to an approved program of study and to classroom instruction, not as a general-purpose tool.
- Name the outcome your state counts, and say what evidence this will produce for it.
- Confirm allowability in writing with your state CTE office and district business office before you commit budget, and keep the response.
- Check for duplication. If another funding source already covers the same cost, most state programs require you to deduct it.
A template for the ask
This is written for you to send, not for us. Fill in the brackets and send it to your state CTE office, your district business office, or both.
Subject: Allowable use of state CTE funds, work-based learning platform Hi [name], We are looking at a work-based learning platform for our [course name] course and I want to confirm the funding path before we go further. Three questions: 1. Which approved CTE course code would a school-based enterprise or student entrepreneurship experience be reported under for us? 2. Is instructional software an allowable expenditure under our state CTE funds when it is tied directly to an approved program of study and to classroom instruction? 3. Which outcome would this count toward in our reporting: work-based learning hours, an industry credential, or a readiness indicator? If it is easier to talk it through, I am happy to find time. Thanks, [your name]
Before you rely on this
This guide is a starting point for a funding conversation, not a determination of eligibility. State CTE funding rules and allowable expenditures differ by state, change with each legislative session, and are interpreted at the state and district level. Whether KANU is an allowable expenditure in your state and district is determined by your state CTE office and your district business office.