The Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education (OCTAE) administers and coordinates programs that are related to adult education and literacy, career and technical education, and community colleges.

OCTAE's Career and Technical Education initiatives are designed to:

Administer state formula and discretionary grant programs under the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act (Perkins);
Provide assistance to states to improve program quality, implementation, and accountability; and
Establish national initiatives that help states implement rigorous career and technical education programs.

OCTAE's Adult Education and Literacy initiatives are designed to:

Administer the Adult Education formula grant program to the states;
Provide assistance to states to improve program quality, accountability, and capacity; and
Establish national leadership activities to enhance the quality of adult education.

OCTAE's community college initiatives are designed to:

Build public support for community colleges as centers of innovation and providers of excellent education and training that are affordable and accessible to all Americans;
Facilitate the dissemination of timely and actionable guidance on community college educations for teachers, administrators, students, parents, and employers; and
Promote the development of strategies that support students in the completion of their postsecondary certification and degree programs.