The Office of Vocational and Adult Education (OVAE) prepares people for work. The office develops programs to improve literacy; raise student achievement; guarantee equal access to technical and adult education; and present a unified nationwide approach to high school, technical, and adult education. It also shares education technology and instructional methodology. OVAE runs several centers including the National Dissemination Center for Career and Technical Education and the National Research Center for Career and Technical Education. Its Community Technology Centers provide access to technology for those living in economically distressed communities. Congress created the OVAE in 1998.