Liz Anstine believes a child’s passions for what they may want to pursue later as a career should be fostered by Career and Technical Education (CTE) principles all along the continuum of a student’s education. 

“Maybe in third grade, you wanted to be a firefighter, maybe in fourth grade you wanted to paint nails, maybe in fifth grade, all of a sudden, you're interested in feeding the homeless because you did that as a project,” said Anstine, the 2025 Kansas Teacher of the Year. “So now we want to help drive that (passion) for them and help them make sure that they're keeping that purposeful curiosity. I'm so big on that because it's going to make their story bigger because they've kind of learned about all of these things along the way.” 

Anstine, a business teacher at Leavenworth High School, Leavenworth USD 453, said a significant part of her job as a teacher is to help students figure out how they will fulfill their other adult responsibilities while building a career, like how they will pay their student loans or rent. She also encourages them to find a career path that will allow them to pursue other passions like she did as a coach for Special Olympics during high school and college. 

“I knew I couldn't make money at it because I was volunteering, so I just made sure that whatever I did gave me the time to do that and allowed me to continue to do that,” she said. “Don't ever lose that spirit of what you want to do, but you do have to prioritize. You can't do everything.” 

In addition to the business-related courses that Anstine teaches, CTE pathways are well-represented on the 2025 KTOY team. 

Whitney Aves, a family and consumer science (FCS) teacher at Hutchinson High School, Hutchinson USD 308, and a member of this year’s KTOY team, said CTE can serve as the connective tissue for students’ other core classes. 

“When they're sitting in a geometry class, they may not see where that geometry is going to take them,” she said. “But when they get into a construction class, then they see it. When we're doubling and tripling recipes, they need to use some of that knowledge from their math classes. They have a very real-life example of how to do that.” 

Aves believes the skills taught in FACS, as part of CTE, can help temper some of the stressors high school students will eventually experience as young adults.  

“We're also kind of in the business of prevention,” she said. “Once they have the tools, they can make healthier choices. We're helping families kind of break cycles that they may be in, helping them learn healthy eating habits and better relationships strategies so they can build stronger families and futures.”  

Ryan Mellick, another member of the 2025 KTOY team and industrial arts teacher at Bonner Springs High School, Bonner Springs USD 204, believes - in addition to teaching a trade - CTE helps teach students the essential skill of time management in the workplace.  

“That helps them correlate that into the workplace when they leave high school and go to college or their career,” Mellick said. “It’s asking the question, ‘What can I do to set myself up to get this job done the most efficient and effective way?’” 
Mellick said CTE also helps a student figure out much earlier what they’re likely going to do as a career, setting themselves up for potential advancement and more long-term job satisfaction.  

“In the past, if I felt like I wanted to be a carpenter, then I graduated from high school and went out and did framing and hated it. I’d have to start back over at ground one,” he said. “Whereas right now in high school CTE I can try out something for a semester, like maybe I want to be a chef and do culinary arts or maybe I want to do something in business because I really like crunching numbers. CTE provides that insight into the career choices that get students to where they want to be or where they need to be.”  

For information about CTE in Kansas, go to https://www.ksde.gov/Agency/Division-of-Learning-Services/Career-Standards-and-Assessment-Services/CSAS-Home/Career-Technical-Education-CTE