Districts, Cooperatives and Charter Schools need to submit an application for Program Approval to the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) if they are:

• Applying for a new program, or
• Scheduled for five-year program renewal, or
• Amending an existing approved program, such as teacher or course change.

The programs and courses identified for each district within the Program Approval Database are the programs and courses that districts report to MDE in their P-file (Perkins data submission). Find more information about program approvals and your data submission below.

Forms

Complete a Program Approval application form as part of the five-year approved program review cycle or if your district is seeking approval for a new CTE program. Program Approval application forms are accepted from June 1 to November 1.

Program Approval Application Form – [April 2025]

Complete an Amendment form to submit teacher and/or course changes to existing state-approved CTE programs. Amendments are accepted from June 1 to January 5. There are two options to submit an amendment:

• Program Approval Amendment Form—Spreadsheet Entry  [April 2025]
• Program Approval Amendment Form—Online Entry  [April 2025]

Technical Assistance

Table C [May 2025]

List of all Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs, Courses, and Teacher Licensure requirements for Minnesota’s program approval and data collection.

Program Approval Checklist and Timeline [April 2025]

Overview of the CTE program approval process. Document includes specific preparation suggestions as well as a sample district timeline.

Program Approval Database [March 2025]

This Career and Technical Education (CTE) file displays programs approved under Minnesota Rule 3505.

Building Effective Advisory Committees [April 2022]

Guidance on effective CTE advisory committees, which are a required component of CTE program approval.