Mid-Del Technology Center in Midwest City posted student completion rates in the upper 90s and a 92.85% rate for employment or continuing education to earn the Oklahoma Association of Career and Technology Education's Gold Star School Award, the center's first such recognition in 13 years.

Superintendent Becki Foster announced the designation at the Mid-Del Board of Education meeting Aug. 10, telling board members, "I am very proud. It took all of us to achieve the Gold Star."

The award, which recognizes excellence in student success, instructional quality, leadership, innovation and community partnerships, required the center to clear several performance benchmarks, according to Central Oklahoma Weeklies. Mid-Del exceeded each one:

• At least 80% of secondary students must complete or be retained in their programs. Mid-Del's rate landed in the upper 90s.
• At least 82.5% of students must be employed in a related field, join the military or continue their education. Mid-Del posted 92.85%.
• Schools must follow up with every student who completed at least 240 hours of instruction, with fewer than 5% unaccounted for. Mid-Del's unaccounted rate: 0.04%.
• At least 50% of secondary students must participate in career and technical student organizations. Mid-Del reported 69.65%.

Foster and her team received the award at a ceremony roughly a week before the board meeting, according to the board agenda.

Enrollment climbing fast

The Gold Star comes as enrollment in Mid-Del Technology Center's K-12 programs surges. The center added 341 students in the most recent year and has grown by more than 600 students over the past two years, Foster told the board.

Mid-Del maintains programs connecting with district schools from fifth-grade tours through offerings for high school sophomores. A ninth-grade career exploration program that brings students onto the technology center campus has more than 250 people on a waiting list, Foster said at an Aug. 6 State of Schools forum in Choctaw, as reported by Central Oklahoma Weeklies.

National recognition follows

Days after the Gold Star announcement, Mid-Del Technology Center also appeared among 13 Oklahoma vocational schools to earn a five-out-of-five-star rating in USA TODAY and Statista's 2026 ranking of America's Top Vocational Schools, The Oklahoman reported. That ranking judged schools on graduation rate, graduates' salary, years required to pay off net cost, social mobility and diversity.

At the Choctaw forum, Foster urged local employers to give schools candid feedback on whether graduates are workplace-ready. "If we're sending you students that don't have those skills or employability skills, shoot straight with us," she said Aug. 6. "We can teach them."