Today, the congressional conference committee that was tasked with negotiating a final Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education appropriations bill announced that it had reached an agreement to increase funding the Perkins Basic State Grant by $70 million–bringing the total to nearly $1.263 billion for next school year!

As we have reported, the Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill that was passed by the Senate in August proposed to maintain the current funding level for the Perkins Basic State Grant. It significantly differed from the FY 2019 funding measure in the House, which would have increased the Perkins Basic State Grant by $102 million above the current level. It was the job of the conference committee members to reconcile the differences between the two versions and produce a consensus bill. The full House and Senate will likely begin consideration of the compromise measure, and hold votes on its final passage, starting next week. The hope is that Congress can pass the bill and send it to the president to be signed into law before the official beginning of the new fiscal year on October 1.

The conferees also weighed in on the Department of Education’s proposal to consolidate the Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education with the Office of Postsecondary Education into a new Office of Postsecondary and Lifelong Learning. They expressed concerns that the elimination of OCTAE would “undermine the ability of the Department to fulfill not only its mission, but also congressional directives to implement relevant programs and purposes.” The conferees also noted that “OCTAE is authorized expressly in statute and cannot be consolidated or reorganized except by specific authority granted by Congress.” ACTE strongly opposes the consolidation plan, and we are working closely with Reps. Glenn Thompson (R-PA) and Jim Langevin (D-RI), co-chairs of the House CTE caucus, to push back on the proposal and highlight the important role of OCTAE in supporting state CTE systems. 

While we had hoped to secure the higher funding level included in the initial House bill, we are very pleased that Congress has provided, for the second year in a row, a significant increase in the federal investment in CTE and we will work to build on these funding gains going forward. This would not have been possible without the tireless efforts of CTE advocates nationwide!

UPDATE: On Tuesday, September 19, the Senate voted 97-3 to approve the funding bill. The House is expected to vote on final passage before the end of the month.

On November 6, voters all across the country will head to the ballot box. Every seat in the U.S. House of Representatives will be on the ballot, along with one-third of U.S. Senate seats. Most states will have a governor's election, with many also having state legislative and local elections.

As CTE advocates, we can play an important role in framing the dialogue this election season. In addition to supporting candidates that embrace CTE, advocates can attend town halls and meetings, posing questions to prospective policymakers about how they will support CTE. At the federal level, with Perkins now reauthorized the major issues in the new Congress could include reauthorization of the Higher Education Act, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, an infrastructure bill and more. Additionally, securing robust, forward-looking investments in CTE through the appropriations process will become even more of a priority as we work to implement Perkins V.

You can follow ACTE's continuing coverage of the 2018 election here on the CTE Policy Watch Blog. To learn about voting information, voter registration, grassroots efforts and more, visit Nonprofit Vote.

Note: ACTE is a nonpartisan organization that does not—and will not—support or oppose any candidate for public office.

Last week, Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos participated in a G20 Education Ministerial Meeting in Argentina. The G20 is an international coalition of countries that make up the world's leading economies. The theme for the conference was "Building Consensus for Fair and Sustainable Development," and focused on three major issues: the future of work, infrastructure development, and food sustainability.

At the meeting, the education ministers (or equivalent) for the entire G20 signed a declaration. The declaration recognized the value of education in helping individuals acquire the skills necessary to realize their full potential, stating "access to quality education is a human right."

Specifically, the declaration highlighted the importance of teacher training and recruitment, noting the need to "attract and retain the most suitable and passionate individuals from a diversity of backgrounds into the teaching profession." Indeed, "invest[ing] in teacher education" was included as a primary policy endorsement.

The document also noted how changing labor markets will have a significant impact on the workforce, and in response, education and training systems must be flexible and "curricula should be highly responsive to evidence-based practices, future employment trends, and design[ed] in collaboration with key stakeholders." Working with stakeholders, promoting connections to industry, and encouraging intergovernmental cooperation between national education and labor departments was a continuing theme of the declaration. Additionally, ensuring "the opportunity for work-integrated learning experiences" was featured as a policy endorsement.

The declaration also noted last year's statement from Hamburg, Germany, where the group noted the need "to educate and train people with the necessary skills for the future of work, [and] the importance of opportunities to re-and upskill [individuals] throughout their working lives…" Building upon this past statement, the G20 highlighted "the importance of promoting multiple and flexible pathways into lifelong education and training," including "technical and vocational education and training" and promoting more female participation in STEM fields.

In prepared remarks during the meeting, Sec. DeVos echoed many of these themes. “This gathering provides an important opportunity to learn from each other, acknowledging the vital link between education and the economy. Here, we can discuss our respective challenges, and, importantly, discuss ways to improve education for all students on their lifelong learning journeys as they prepare for today's and tomorrow's careers,” she said.

Secretary of Labor Alexander Acosta was also present at the meeting. The G20 includes the United States, European Union and 18 other countries: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, France, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey and the United Kingdom.

Secretaries Acosta and Devos are in the front row, sixth and seventh from the left, respectively.

This week, both the House and Senate appointed Members of Congress from their respective chambers to serve on a conference committee that will negotiate a final Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education funding bill. As we have reported, the Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill that was passed by the Senate proposes to maintain the current funding level for the Perkins Basic State Grant. It significantly differs from the FY 2019 funding measure in the House, which would increase the Perkins Basic State Grant by $102 million above the current level—bringing the total to nearly $1.3 billion. It will fall to the members of this conference committee to reconcile the differences between the two versions and decide whether or not to include the increase in Perkins funding in the final bill. It is an important time to let your senators and representative know that you want to see this much needed boost in Perkins funding—especially if your Member(s) of Congress serve on the conference committee (listed below). Please take a few minutes to help with this effort!

TAKE ACTION

• Contact your Members of Congress using the CTE Action Center or by phone through the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121.
• Let them know that a conference committee will soon consider the FY 2019 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education appropriations bill.
• Ask them to support a $102 million increase for the Perkins Basic State Grant program in the Labor-HHS-Education funding bill, as proposed by the House!

Explore CTE’s role in developing the workforce in financial services with ACTE’s updated Sector Sheet. This brief has been revised with the latest on job demand, talent shortages and exemplary CTE programs.  

There are almost four million “good jobs”—jobs that pay an average of $55,000 annually—in financial, consulting and business services. In addition, almost 800,000 new jobs are projected in business and financial services by 2026, fueled by an expanding global economy and an intricate regulatory and tax environment.

To engage and prepare students for careers in this sector, the Academy of Finance at Como Park Senior High School in Saint Paul, Minnesota, offers a career-themed smaller learning community with counseling, coordinated wraparound services and work-based learning experiences such as internships with the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Students in the academy have the opportunity to earn up to 16 college credits and a certificate from Saint Paul College.

On the postsecondary level, Arizona’s Glendale Community College, Mesa Community College and Rio Salado College have responded to demand in the state’s insurance sector by teaming up to offer a postsecondary certificate in insurance studies. The 18-credit certificate curriculum was developed in collaboration with professionals from 20 insurance companies and articulates to associate and bachelor’s degree programs.

ACTE’s Sector Sheet series is generously supported by Pearson.

As the dust begins to settle on the fast-paced end to the Perkins reauthorization process, ACTE is assembling more resources to help you move into implementation and ensure you are ready to meet all the requirements of the new Act.

Several new pieces have been added to our Perkins implementation page (www.acteonline.org/perkins-implementation). You can now find a one-page summary, in addition to our full-length, more in-depth summary document. A page of FAQs has also been developed, containing questions we have received along with their answers. Remember, if you have questions for us, you can ask them via Twitter by using #AskPerkinsV to tweet at our new Twitter account (@AskPerkinsV), which is dedicated solely to answering Perkins V questions. Alternatively, you can email questions to publicpolicy@acteonline.org with the subject line "Perkins V Question."

Since the text of the full, integrated Public Law isn’t available yet, we’ve also posted a “redline” showing changes made by the bill to current law that can help you to see where edits made in the bill fit with current requirements.

Finally, we are in the process of putting together our “Perkins V:The Official Guide” which is now available for pre-sale and will ship mid-October. You can find all the details about ordering this guide on the Perkins implementation page.

Resources are also in the works around the new local needs assessment, and will be available later this fall! If there are other tools and resources you’d like to have, please let us know!

This week, the Senate voted to approve the chamber’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education funding bill. The Senate bill proposes to maintain current levels of funding for the Perkins Basic State Grant at $1.192 billion and CTE National Programs at $7.4 million.

The Senate measure significantly differs from the FY 2019 education funding bill that passed out of committee in the House in July, which proposes to increase the Perkins Basic State Grant by $102 million above the current level—bringing the total to nearly $1.3 billion. That measure is expected to go before the full House in September, and the two chambers will then negotiate a compromise bill through a conference committee. It is an important time to let your senators and representative know that you want to see this much-needed increase in Perkins funding. Please take a few minutes to contact your Members of Congress.

TAKE ACTION

• Contact your Members of Congress using the CTE Action Center or by phone through the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121.
• Let them know that the House FY 2019 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations bill proposes to increase funding for the Perkins Basic State Grant program by $102 million.
• Ask them to support this increase in funding for Perkins state grants in FY 2019!