This Career Academy Manual is a result of a year of collaboration between Baker, Clay, Duval, Nassau, and St. Johns County School District career and technical education directors.  In addition to the county directors, the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce, which represents all the above-mentioned county Chambers of Commerce, and several business partners from throughout the region worked together with the Schultz Center to create this manual.  The rationale for creating the manual is so there would be a common definition for Northeast Florida employers, postsecondary institutions, and school district.

The Guide will be used as a tool for creating and accrediting academies regionally; it mirrors National Career Academy Coalition (NCAC) standards with additional criteria localized for this region.  The cost of an NCAC accreditation team visit is typically over $5000 for a single academy; we will perform regional accreditations for a fraction of that cost, paid for through grants.  This regional accreditation will ensure that Clay County School District academies are meeting the national standards, and give the Clay County School District senior management assurance that our academies meet the highest standards.  With new standards and funding attached to career academies from DOE, CCSD will have assurances that the expectations from DOE will be met.