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Director's Message

Dear Parents, Students, Teachers, and Community Members :

Thank you for your interest in the Mission Trails Regional Occupation Program (MTROP) and for visiting our website. To learn more about MTROP CTE programs, I invite you to browse our website, visit the Career Center at your high school, and schedule an appointment with a Career Counselor.

MTROP’s mission is to prepare students for careers by providing relevant skills. We accomplish this by developing students’ hands-on technical skills and equipping them with essential soft skills like critical thinking, collaboration, communication, and creativity.

At Salinas Union High School District, our Career Technical Education (CTE) program is transforming students' lives through real-world learning, workforce alignment, and equity-driven impact. In 2024–25, we empowered over 5,300 students through 80 unique CTE courses across 28 pathways and 13 industry sectors. Our students earned more than 6,500 industry and employability certifications, completed over 120,000 hours of community service, and participated in 142 work-based learning experiences—including job shadows and industry visits.

We celebrated a greater than 20% increase in pathway completers, as well as a remarkable 32% growth in English Learner participation in CTE, while expanding CTE offerings district-wide. Our students shined in showcasing their career readiness skills, with 65 SkillsUSA state qualifiers, 7 podium finishes, and I national qualifier. Through 14 newly added CTE college courses and strategic use of labor market data, we are closing the gap between education and employment. With a 100% grant application success rate during the 2024-25 school year, we’re maximizing every opportunity for our students’ success.

Looking ahead to 2025–26, we’re doubling down on impact:

  • Aligning our CTE pathways with labor market data, evolving industry needs, model CTE standards, and the SUHSD’s portrait of a graduate
  • Growing our pre-apprenticeships and other WBL opportunities 
  • Providing dual enrollment college courses for our CTE students, expanding access to work-based learning for our students with disabilities (SWD) by augmenting our contract with the Department of Rehabilitation
  • Expanding access to CTE courses for our at-promise students, including multilingual learners.

Our mandate this year is clear: to empower students with purpose, skills, and confidence to thrive in the present and future workforce. On behalf of MTROP teachers and staff, thank you again for your interest in career technical education programs. I look forward to another great year focused on preparing our students for success.

Sincerely,
Rob Appel
Director of Mission Trails ROP/CTE