This week in Washington a new Speaker of the House was elected after weeks of discussion and failed candidates. Congress can now move forward on pressing legislative issues. One of those key issues is the looming deadline of November 17 for appropriations bills. Congress must complete work on these bills or pass a new continuing resolution by this date to avoid a government shutdown. Now that work has resumed on appropriations bills, it is critical to continue letting Members of Congress know how important Perkins funding is to CTE programs across the country. You can find an updated action alert here. More news and updates below:

• House Elects GOP’s Mike Johnson as New House Speaker: The House of Representatives has elected Representative Mike Johnson (R-LA) as the new speaker of the House earlier this week in what turned out to be a unanimous Republican vote in favor of Johnson. With the election of the Speaker now finalized the House and the Senate can now fully return to business as usual and resume their efforts on finalizing the appropriations process. Read more about this development in the CTE Policy Watch Blog.
• House Oversight Committee Holds Hearing on Community Colleges and Apprenticeships: On Wednesday, the House Oversight Committee’s subcommittee on Economic Growth, Energy Policy and Regulatory Affairs held the hearing titled, “The Power of Apprenticeships: Faster, Better Paths to Prosperous Jobs and Less Waste in Higher Education.” This hearing discussed ways to draw more youth into exploring career options through CTE, apprenticeships and other work-based learning models.OCTAE Releases New Perkins Program Memo: The Department of Education’s Office of Career, Technical and Adult Education (OCTAE) released a memo this week outlining critical policy levers that states could consider through the Perkins V state planning process. This non-regulatory guidance memo could inform state decision-making as they update their Perkins plans this school year.

• Department of Commerce Designates Multiple Tech Hubs Across America: The Department of Commerce has announced the designation of 31 Tech Hub locations across the nation as a part of an economic development initiative designed to drive innovation and job creation by strengthening each region’s capacity to manufacture, commercialize and deploy technology. The Tech Hubs will be located across 32 states and Puerto Rico representing a cross-section of urban and rural regions to invest directly into burgeoning, high-potential U.S. regions to transform them into globally competitive innovation centers. 

• Department of Education Releases Additional Rules on Accountability for Colleges and Consumer Protection for Students: ED has announced final regulations that aim to strengthen ED’s ability to protect students and taxpayers from the negative effects of sudden college closures and require institutions to communicate more clearly about the financial aid each student will receive, among other things. This new set of rules is set to go into effect July 1, 2024.

• White House Requests Emergency Domestic Funding Package to Address Array of Issues: The Biden-Harris Administration has asked Congress for $56 billion in supplemental appropriations to tackle issues such as childcare access, natural disaster relief, low-income broadband internet subsidies and security for U.S. based religious institutions being affected by the Israel-Palestinian conflict.

• New Dual Enrollment Research Fund Opens Call for Proposals: The Dual Enrollment Research Fund has announced that it is looking for applications for a grant of at least $1 million aimed at supporting research that expands and deepens the body of knowledge and evidence on dual enrollment as a tool for increasing college access and success. The initiative is seeking rigorous research projects that will answer urgent questions and directly inform the adoption of dual enrollment policies and practices to benefit students.

• IES Releases FY 2024 Applications for Research Network Grant Opportunities: The Institute for Education Sciences (IES) has released a request for applications (RFA) for the Research Networks Focused on Critical Problems of Education Policy and Practice program. Through this RFA, interested parties can form a part of research teams for the Career and Technical Education Network, which will be made up of up to five teams, and the Digital Learning Platforms Network, which will be made up of up to 10 teams. For further information visit the IES funding opportunities web page.

The U.S. Department of Education has released data for program year 2021-22, the second year that states reported performance data under Perkins V.

In a previous blog post, we announced the data release and shared high-level takeaways. This post will offer a more in-depth look at the new data, which is accessible through the Perkins Collaborative Resource Network. This data hub includes national- and state-level summaries, a dashboard of national- and state-level performance data and the customizable Perkins Data Explorer tool.

CTE Participants: In 2021-22, there were 11.5 million CTE participants nationwide, including more than 8.1 million secondary participants and more than 3.3 million postsecondary participants. The number of male and female CTE participants is divided roughly evenly, with slightly more males at the secondary level (53%) and slightly more females at the postsecondary level (54%). The data disaggregated by race and ethnicity provides the following insights:

• 2 million CTE participants identified as white
• 3 million identified as Hispanic/Latino
• 7 million identified as Black or African American
• Over 600,000 identified as Asian
• Almost 500,000 identified as two or more races
• About 155,000 identified as unknown race
• Approximately 109,000 identified as American Indian or Alaska Native
• About 43,000 identified as Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander

In addition, below are several highlights of participation by special population status:

• 3 million CTE participants identified as individuals from an economically disadvantaged family
• 6 million were preparing for career fields nontraditional to their gender
• Over 1 million identified as individuals with disabilities
• More than 700,000 were English learners
• About 500,000 were out-of-workforce learners
• More than 150,000 were individuals experiencing homelessness

CTE Concentrators: School year 2021-22 recorded 2.8 million concentrators and approximately 1.8 million postsecondary concentrators nationwide for a total of about 4.6 million CTE concentrators. Similar to CTE participants, the percentages of male and female concentrators were roughly equal, with more male CTE concentrators at the secondary level and more female concentrators at the postsecondary level. Disaggregated data by race and ethnicity provides the following insights:

• 3 million CTE concentrators identified as white
• 2 million identified as Hispanic/Latino
• Over 600,000 identified as Black or African American
• Over 200,000 identified as Asian
• Almost 200,000 identified as two or more races
• 65,000 identified as unknown race
• About 42,000 identified as American Indian or Alaskan Native
• About 16,000 identified as Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander

The following are highlights of the data when disaggregated by special population status:

• Approximately 2 million CTE concentrators identified as individuals from an economically disadvantaged family
• 1 million were preparing for career fields nontraditional to their gender
• Over 380,000 identified as individuals with disabilities
• More than 200,000 were English learners
• Over 90,000 were out-of-workforce learners
• About 46,000 were individuals experiencing homelessness

Note that cross-state comparisons should be proceeded with caution since states have different ways of operationalizing the legislative definition of concentrator in Perkins V.

Concentrator Performance: 2021-22 marked the second year that local recipients and states reported CTE concentrator performance on the Perkins V accountability indicators.

Secondary Performance

• School year 2021-22 saw an average graduation rate across the nation of approximately 96%, the same as in school year 2020-21.
• 40 states out of 53 states, districts and territories met their targets for reading and language arts proficiency, 35 met targets for mathematics proficiency and 34 met targets for science proficiency.
• 47 states met their targets for post-program placement, defined as concentrators who are in postsecondary education, advanced training, military service, national service, the Peace Corps or are employed after graduation.
• 41 states met their targets for nontraditional program concentration, measuring the percentage of concentrators from underrepresented gender groups studying for career fields in which individuals of that gender comprise less than 25% of the workforce.
• 20 out of 22 states, districts and territories met their targets for attainment of recognized postsecondary credentials.
• 11 out of 12 states met their targets for attainment of postsecondary credits.
• 24 out of 29 states met their targets for participation in work-based learning experiences.

Postsecondary Performance

• 49 states out of 53 states, districts or territories met their targets for postsecondary placement, which is defined as concentrators who remain enrolled in postsecondary education or pursue advanced training, military service, national service, the Peace Corps or employment after graduation.
• 50 states met their targets for attainment of recognized postsecondary credentials.
• 46 states met their targets for nontraditional program concentration.

Cross-state comparisons and data aggregated across states should be interpreted with caution due to different measurement approaches and definitions.

Framing Parents' Attitudes Toward CTE: The CTE Research Network recently published a report that analyzes the perceptions and opinions of CTE held by the general public and parents’ support of CTE policies. Researchers discovered that CTE enjoys widespread support by the public and that it may see even more support when framed as a workforce development pathway. 

The following are findings from the survey: 

• Parents who value individualism and who are especially sensitive to labor market trends are more positively inclined to support CTE when it is presented as an in-demand jobs preparation pathway. 
• Respondents identified that around 32-35% of school hours should be spent on CTE. 
• Black and Hispanic/Latino parents both value CTE more highly than parents from other demographics in regard to time that should be spent on CTE and tax dollars that should be spent on CTE-related programs.  
• Higher levels of education are associated with a greater willingness to pay more tax dollars to support CTE programs. 

Researchers note that perceptions of CTE vary widely among demographics, so programming and marketing should be designed with the needs of the particular community in mind.   

Condition of Career Readiness in The United States: The Coalition for Career Development Center recently published a national snapshot of students’ college and career readiness outcomes. Findings and insights from the report are below: 

• 60% of high school graduates enter either a two- or four-year postsecondary institution in the fall.  
• 75% of students attending a postsecondary institution full-time continued their education into their second year. 
• 47% of students attending a postsecondary institution part-time continued their education into their second year. 
• Participating in personalized career and academic plans as early as middle school positively impacts future earnings. 

On October 25, the House Oversight and Accountability subcommittee on Economic Growth, Energy Policy and Regulatory Affairs held the hearing titled, “The Power of Apprenticeships: Faster, Better Paths to Prosperous Jobs and Less Waste in Higher Education.” This hearing discussed ways to draw more youth into exploring career options through CTE, apprenticeships and other work-based learning models.  

Those testifying were: 

• Paul Winfree, President and CEO of the Economic Policy Innovation Center 
• Erin Davis Valdez, Policy Director of the Texas Public Policy Foundation 
• Casey Sacks, President of Bridge Valley Community and Technical College (and former Deputy Assistant Secretary at OCTAE) 
• Tony Ewing, President of Advanced Fixtures, Inc. 
• Apryle Gladney, Associate Vice Chancellor for Human Resources at Washington University in St. Louis 

Sacks testified that one of the key strengths of community colleges is their ability to create tailored educational pathways for students. These pathways are designed in close collaboration with local industries, ensuring that the curriculum remains current and relevant. Sacks also noted the push among many community colleges and other workforce advocates to expand Pell Grant eligibility to cover short-term workforce education programs. And while she stated that the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) already provides vouchers known as individual training accounts (ITAs) that would cover those programs, she emphasized how challenging those ITAs are to use. “ITAs pay for what essentially short-term Pell would be, but it’s a lot more burdensome,” she said. 

On apprenticeships, Rep. Russell Fry (R-SC) asked Sacks how states could remodel their funding structures to better accommodate pre-apprenticeships. She stated that WIOA state plans are grounded in federal compliance when they should be focused on the needs of local communities and employers. 

A recording of the hearing can be found here. 

On October 25, the House of Representatives selected a new speaker who has vowed to resume consideration of the House’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 appropriations bills, including the Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), and Education appropriations bill. Government funding runs out on November 17, and Congress has much work to do to complete the FY 2024 Appropriations process. 

Before the August recess, the Senate Appropriations Committee considered and approved its FY 2024 Labor, HHS, and Education appropriations bill on a bipartisan basis, which contains a $40 million increase to the Perkins Basic State Grant program and provides significantly more resources to education and workforce development programs than the House version of the bill does. As negotiations on how to move these bills forward resume, we must continue to emphasize to Members of Congress that we support the Senate bill and its higher funding levels! Wrapping up the FY 2024 appropriations process will be quite contentious, and your advocacy is critical to elevate the message that the Senate bill is preferable.  

ACTION NEEDED: CLICK HERE to urge your Members of Congress to support the Senate’s $40 million increase for Perkins and overall higher funding levels!     

You can send a message directly using the ACTE Action Center. You can also call or email directly any personal contacts that you have in your Members’ offices, such as from a meeting at NPS, or call the U.S. Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121, and an operator will connect you to your Member of Congress.    

On October 25, the House elected Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA) to be the 56th Speaker of the House of Representatives, capping off a contentious three-week period where the House did not have a speaker.  

Johnson, first elected in 2016, has served as chair of the Republican Study Committee, vice chair of the House Republican Conference, and on the Judiciary and Armed Services committees. Prior to joining Congress, Johnson was a partner at a law firm in Louisiana. He earned both his bachelor’s degree and Juris Doctorate from Louisiana State University. He has not worked much in the education or workforce development areas and is likely to focus primarily on other issues. However, he was a member of the House CTE Caucus, indicating at least some interest in CTE.  

Johnson faces many legislative priorities as Speaker with one of the first being government funding. The continuing resolution keeping the government open is set to expire on November 17. In a blueprint for the new few months that he circulated earlier this week, Johnson said another stopgap funding measure until January or April may be needed so that lawmakers can continue working on passing regular appropriations bills. He also suggested bringing the House FY 24 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations bill, which contains steep cuts to education and workforce programs, to the floor for a vote the week of November 13. Now is the time to redouble efforts to oppose this House bill and advocate for the higher funding levels proposed by the Senate.   

This week the attention of Capitol Hill continued to be largely focused on the election of the new House Speaker, with a number of developments throughout the week but no real progress. The Senate was also back in session but activity on appropriations continues to be at a standstill there as well, with no agreement on how to move forward on appropriations bills. In other news, the White House unveiled a request of over $100 billion in supplemental security aid for fiscal year 2024 aimed at supporting Israel and Ukraine, and addressing other defense and border security needs. Read more news and notes below:

• Representative Jim Jordan Loses Republican Vote for House Speaker a Third Time: After losing a third public vote, House Republicans met in a session behind closed doors and voted against electing Representative Jim Jordan (R-OH) as the party’s nominee for Speaker of the House. This development leaves the party with no immediate option for speaker, and the process will have to begin again next week.

• Department of Education Announces Funding For Fostering Diverse Schools Demonstration Grant Program: ED has announced an award of approximately $14 million to assist local- and state-driven efforts to create more diverse school communities through the Fostering Diverse Schools Demonstration Program, which will aim to build a more inclusive school environment and support districts working to enrich educational experiences, opportunities and school conditions for all students.

• OCTAE to Host Webinar Series on High-Quality Correctional Educational Programs: The Office of Career and Technical Education (OCTAE) is inviting CTE shareholders and members of the public to attend its recently announced webinar series titled Pipeline to Pell, focusing on advancing state and local implementation of inclusive, supportive, comprehensive, and high-quality correctional education programs that meet the diverse needs of students. The series will provide participants with information, best practices and resources for expanding high-quality CTE programs to incarcerated students. You can register for the initial two webinars in the series here and here.

• Department of Education Announces Funding Initiative to Preserve Native Languages, Increase Native Teacher Retention, and Support Tribal Educational Agencies: ED has announced a round of funding that totals more than $11 million aimed at strengthening and supporting the Native American teacher pipeline and the vitality of Native American languages and schools. The funding will be awarded to the new Native American Language Resource Centers (NALRC) program with the goal of ensuring that Tribal Educational Agencies can coordinate grant resources alongside state and local partners.

• Department of Education Releases Updated Perkins Data: The Office of Career and Technical Education has released an update to its Perkins Data Explorer with school year 2021-22 enrollment and performance data. Read more about it on the CTE Policy Watch Blog.