Perkins Implementation
2008 marked two years since the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act was signed into law. The highlight of the year was the Department of Education's approval of each state's five-year Perkins plan. These plans were officially due on April 1, and states received their approval letters over the summer allowing new grant funds to be distributed on July 1. With the approval of the state plans, the full work of implementation could begin in earnest.
National activities also continued to ramp up in 2008 as required in the Perkins law. In August, the Department of Education officially announced six state grant awards to help promote rigorous CTE programs of study through statewide articulation agreements. The grants will support partnerships that will develop or adapt programs to better align secondary and postsecondary education.
Later in the fall, the Office of Vocational and Adult Education hosted a virtual Data Quality Institute (DQI). The focus of the event was to help states better capture and report on student attainment of technical skills as required by Perkins. This focus on technical skill attainment has been a priority since the law was passed, and OVAE funded a feasibility study on the development of a national technical skill assessment clearinghouse and/or item bank this year, with the project still under discussion.
Work on the National Assessment of Career and Technical Education is also well underway. The Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Policy Development (OPEPD), Policy and Program Studies Service (PPSS) in the Department of Education is currently working with an independent advisory panel to determine which research projects should be funded to help answer the major study questions of Perkins-mandated assessment, which is due to Congress on July 1, 2011. Finally, the new National Research Center for Career and Technical Education, housed at the University of Louisville, has begun implementing a number of research, dissemination, professional development and technical assistance activities, all targeted toward improving CTE students' engagement, achievement and transition.
Appropriations Work
In terms of budget and appropriations work, Fiscal Year (FY) 2009 was an unproductive year since only one bill, the Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and Continuing Appropriations Act, was signed into law. In February, President Bush released his proposed budget for FY 2009. This budget proposed to eliminate all funding for the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act (including the Perkins Basic State Grant, Tech Prep, and National Programs) and proposed the elimination of 44 other programs at a total cost of $3.2 billion.
Congress began work on their budget resolution and appropriations allocations shortly after President Bush released his proposal. On February 26, Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings testified before the House Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee in defense of the Administration’s proposed budget for Fiscal Year (FY) 2009. During this hearing, Secretary Spellings suffered extreme criticism from Democrat and Republican Subcommittee members who believe that the proposed budget “shortchanges” education.
In the spring, the House of Representatives and the Senate passed their respective versions of the FY 2009 budget resolution. The budget resolution sets funding caps for broad funding areas and sets the stage for appropriations work later in the year. Both the House and Senate budget resolutions increased the overall funding cap for education and training programs. Although the budget resolution only provides the spending caps that the appropriations committees will use to fund individual programs, the budget committees can recommend allocations for specific programs. Therefore, early in the budget process, Senator Collins (R-ME) initiated a letter with ACTE’s feedback requesting that the Senate Budget Committee include a restoration of funds for the Perkins program when reviewing its budget assumptions for FY 2009.
After the Budget Resolution was finalized, ACTE worked with the House and the Senate to circulate “Dear Colleague” letters requesting that the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations Subcommittees restore the Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 cuts and increase the Perkins Act to “keep pace with inflation, rising enrollments, and new program requirements.” The House letter, which was initiated by Congressional CTE Caucus Co-Chairs Rep. Baird (D-WA) and Rep. English (R-PA), was sent to Chairman Obey (D-WI) and Ranking Member Walsh (R-NY) on March 21. The letter received support from 63 Representatives.
Similarly, the Senate letter, which was initiated by Senators Durbin (D-IL), Collins (R-ME) and Clinton (D-NY) was sent to Chairman Harkin (D-IA) and Ranking Member Specter (R-PA) on April 1. The Senate letter collected 35 signatures.
Toward the end of June, the House and Senate full Appropriations Committees met to finalize their respective FY 2009 Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Appropriations bills. While the Senate was able to pass their education spending bills, funding Perkins at FY 2008 levels, the House was not as productive. During the House committee “mark-up” of its bill, Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-CA) proposed an unusual “substitute amendment” which would have replaced the Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Appropriations bill with the Interior and Environment Appropriations bill. The Democrats on the committee responded by moving to adjourn and the Appropriations Committee “mark-up” ended abruptly. This adjournment ended all appropriations work in the House for the rest of 2008.
Although the adjournment ended all appropriations work, the House subcommittee was able to secure a $20 million increase for the Perkins Basic State Grant and a slight increase for the Tech Prep program. As of the end of 2008, both chambers were working together to reach an agreement on education funding allocations. ACTE sent alerts asking all members to contact their Senator to encourage the adoption of the House increased allocations for Perkins. The FY 2009 appropriations spending bill is expected to be one of the first orders of business when Congress convenes in January.
Stimulus Work
In response to the nation's economic situation, Congress approved H.R. 1424, the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, signed into law on October 3, 2008. The House passed the final bill 263-171 and the Senate passed it by a vote of 74-25. The bill granted authority for the federal government to purchase and insure certain types of troubled assets for the purposes of providing stability to and preventing disruption in the economy and financial system and protecting taxpayers; provided tax incentives for energy production and conservation, and extended certain expiring tax provisions. While the biggest portion of the bill was by far the $700 million economic rescue package, other popular provisions were included in an attempt to ensure its passage. Several of the provisions will assist the education community:
A two-year extension of tax benefits relating to education tuition and expenses, and out-of-pocket teacher expenses.
An $800 million extension of the Qualified Zone Academy Bond (QZAB) program. QZABs can be used for school construction and renovation, developing curricula, purchasing equipment, and training school personnel in schools that have 35 percent or more of their students eligible for the National School Lunch program. Schools located in an empowerment zone or enterprise community are also eligible.
A $3.3 billion four-year extension of the Secure Rural Schools program, which provides funds to rural schools and counties that are home to national forests, and have been hurt by cutbacks in logging revenue.
Disaster relief for victims of the 2008 Midwest floods, including increased Hope and Lifetime Learning Credits for individuals that track the increased benefits provided with respect to Hurricane Katrina.
Members of Congress were discussing plans for a second stimulus package as the 110th Congressional session ended.
Higher Education Act Reauthorization
After numerous starts, stops and extensions, for the first time in 10 years, a new, comprehensive version of the Higher Education Act was signed into law. Members of Congress achieved this victory over the summer in an effort to clear at least one domestic bill before the election.
The new Higher Education Opportunity Act (H.R. 4137) was passed overwhelmingly by the House and the Senate and signed into the law by President Bush on August 14, 2008, as Public Law 110-315.
The new law addresses a broad range of issues, largely focusing on financial aid for postsecondary students and teacher education. It has received mixed reviews from the higher education community, but there is a general feeling of relief that work is finally complete. A few highlights of the bill, both positive and negative, include:
The bill raises the ceiling on the maximum Pell Grant to $8,000, subject to Congressional appropriations, and allows for students to receive Pell Grant funds year round, instead of just during the traditional academic year. Allowing students to receive Pell Grants year round should be particularly beneficial for the average CTE student, who may need to take courses throughout the year.
The bill makes changes to Academic Competitiveness Grants, including making them available to part-time students and those seeking certificates. It also leaves the decision about which high school programs qualify up to state officials, instead of the U.S. Secretary of Education.
The bill creates a total of over 60 new programs, including four that ACTE had advocated for: Student Success Grants, Business-Workforce Partnership Grants, College Partnership Grants and Bridges from Jobs to Careers Grants.
The bill makes numerous changes to simplify the federal student aid process, including making it easier for students to get aid information, and shortening the free application for federal student aid from seven pages to two.
The bill creates many new federal reporting and regulatory requirements dealing with textbooks, tuition and fees, cost of attendance, alumni activities, foreign gift reporting, fire safety, graduation rates, drug violations, vaccines and peer-to-peer file sharing. According to the American Council on Education, "Complying with these requirements will be time-consuming and inevitably will increase administrative and personnel costs on campuses."
The bill consolidates three teacher education programs into one single program for training and professional development and raises standards for teacher education programs.
The bill makes further changes to federal student loan programs, aiming to crack down on conflicts of interest and tighten regulation of private loans.
No Child Left Behind Reauthorization
In early 2008, both the House and Senate unofficially put consideration of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) on hold. Many candidates on the campaign trail ran on tickets promising to “fix” NCLB and lawmakers in office introduced NCLB bills throughout the year to mark their position on the reauthorization, but no significant action occurred as Congressional leaders eventually faced the realities of the Congressional schedule and the need for more time to complete work.
The Bush Administration, however, persistently called for NCLB reauthorization and expressed frustration at the lack of Congressional action. Eventually the Administration made the decision to move forward to make changes to the law allowed through the regulatory process.
In March, U.S. Education Secretary Margaret Spellings announced a new “differentiated accountability” pilot program that invited up to 10 states to create more nuanced ways of distinguishing between schools in need of dramatic intervention, as opposed to those schools closer to meeting NCLB goals. Six states - Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, and Ohio - were approved to participate for the 2008-09 school year, and plans were made to expand the program for the 2009-10 school year.
This action was followed by an April announcement that the federal Department of Education would begin moving toward requiring a uniform graduation rate and the disaggregation of graduation rate data to allow for the direct comparison of federally-reported graduation rates across states.
Finally, in late October as the Bush Administration's tenure drew to a close, Secretary Spellings announced a series of new regulations pertaining to NCLB focusing on three areas that the Department termed: 1) “improved accountability and transparency,” 2) “uniform and disaggregated graduation rates,” and 3) “improved parental notification for Supplemental Education Services and public school choice.” The timing of the announcement was criticized by some organizations and individuals as occurring too close to the election and as the Bush Administration was preparing to leave office. Secretary Spellings defended the timing saying that it would take some time for the new President and Congress to begin real work on the reauthorization in 2009 and that the release was needed since Congress did not reauthorize the law in 2008.
Workforce Investment Act Reauthorization
After several years of varying levels of activity, reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) progress essentially stalled in 2008. While there was a great deal of discussion about how to best use federal resources to spur economic development and job growth, most of that discussion occurred in the context of the stimulus packages that were being considered. Late in the year, however, the reauthorization of WIA began to gain some attention. On November 17, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee held a listening session with education and workforce development stakeholders to hear comments and inputs on the reauthorization. ACTE attended and submitted its reauthorization priorities. The Senate staff has said that they hope to move forward with WIA early in 2009 and complete the long-awaited reauthorization as soon as possible.
Congressional CTE Caucus
The Congressional CTE Caucus was very active during 2008. On January 17, 2008, Representatives Brian Baird (D-WA) and Phil English (R-PA), co-chairs of the Congressional CTE Caucus, introduced a House resolution supporting the goals and ideals of national Career and Technical Education Month. The resolution, H. Res. 930, was passed on February 25 by a vote of 380-0. This was the first time in recent history that Congress has recognized the annual CTE celebration. ACTE worked closely with the House on the development, introduction and promotion of the resolution.
The Co-Chairs of the CTE Caucus continued supporting CTE by circulating a Congressional CTE Caucus Recruitment letter requesting that other Members of Congress join the Congressional CTE Caucus. To date, 59 Representatives have joined.
In September, ACTE with the cooperation of the CTE Caucus hosted a “CTE Goes Green” reception on Capitol Hill. The event featured students from the Career Tech Student Organizations (CTSOs) showcasing the projects they are working on in regard to energy sustainability. Over 70 Capitol Hill staffers attended the event which provided great visibility for the CTE community.
In November, Democrats secured their majority in Congress by unseating over a dozen Republican incumbents. Unfortunately, one of those was Congressional CTE Caucus Co-Chair, Phil English. This upset was disappointing to the CTE community, but ACTE reached out to other Republicans interested in CTE issues to identify a new Co-Chair for the caucus.
National Conversation on CTE
Many national organizations took interest in career and technical education in 2008, particularly related to school reform from the perspective of student engagement and academic-CTE integration. Organizations including Achieve, the National Governor's Association (NGA), and the National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE) produced reports and/or undertook significant policy work related to CTE. ACTE worked with these organizations in an advisory capacity throughout the year.
Achieve
Achieve's American Diploma Project (ADP) works with states to develop a public policy structure to ensure all students complete high school ready for college courses and entry-level jobs with opportunities for employment through skilled advancement. Achieve produced a policy paper, “The Perkins Act of 2006: Connecting Career and Technical Education with the College and Career Readiness Agenda,” to inform state ADP leaders about opportunities included in the Perkins Act. The report makes a number of recommendations such as coordinating Perkins planning with school improvement planning and assuring portability of CTE dual enrollment credits.
National Governor's Association
Noting that “career technical education rests at the nexus of governors' efforts to improve their states' K-16 education system and develop an economy supportive of innovation,” NGA released an issue brief, “Retooling Career Technical Education,” in 2007. This year, NGA built upon the issue brief work by issuing grants to six states (Arizona, Nebraska, New Jersey, Ohio and Oklahoma) as part of a national policy academy. The grants are intended to connect CTE courses to high-paying, skilled jobs; infuse greater academic rigor into CTE courses; and, build a system of CTE centered around standards, curriculum, assessment and accountability that prepares students for transition to postsecondary opportunities such as community college.
National Association of State Boards of Education
NASBE produced a report entitled “Learning to Work, Working to Learn” in October 2008 based on the work of a year-long study group that examined CTE issues. The report includes recommendations for state boards of education including: develop policies to address quality, recruitment, and compensation for CTE instructors, and address the poor image of CTE with educators, parents, guidance counselors, and the public.