Ken Gray Honored with NCLA’s Distinguished Service Award

by Joe Savrock (December 2007)

University Park, Pa. - Kenneth C. Gray, professor emeritus of education, has received the 2007 Distinguished Service Award from the National Council of Local Administrators (NCLA). Gray received his award December 14 during the Association of Career & Technical Education (ACTE) National Convention and Career Tech Expo, held in Las Vegas, Nev.

Each year, NCLA bestows its Distinguished Service Award on an individual who, through his or her work in career and technical education (CTE), has positively influenced the profession.

Douglas R. Major, NCLA president, recognized Gray for his work in “researching and promoting career and technical education from both an educational and workforce development standpoint. I realize how critical it is to have champions such as Dr. Gray working at the national level to ensure that CTE continues to evolve over time.”

Gray is an international authority on high school and postsecondary pre-baccalaureate technical education, workforce development public policy, technician class workers, and the transitional experiences of recent high school graduates to college or work. He is most noted for his advocacy of teens from the academic middle who chose alternatives to baccalaureate education.

ACTE is the largest national education association dedicated to the advancement of education that prepares youth and adults for careers. NCLA is an affiliate program of ACTE.