On Monday, Vice President Kamala Harris visited the Wisconsin Regional Training Partnership/BIG STEP program in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to meet with residents affected by lead pipe contamination and the workers replacing lead pipes in the city to discuss how the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act would help modernize American infrastructure.

Vice President Harris was joined by Rep. Gwen Moore (D-WI), Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael Regan. Sen. Baldwin is a Senate CTE Caucus co-chair. 

Harris noted that at its core, this issue is about more than just public health. "It is about developing the skills to do the work that must be done to strengthen the United States of America and our infrastructure," Harris said. 

Concluding her remarks, Harris added that replacing aging infrastructure will help create jobs in a wide variety of in-demand career fields, including construction and manufacturing, as well as boost support for the apprenticeship programs that train workers to complete these upgrades.

This winter, ACTE has created a new Sector Sheet on CTE’s role in developing the education and training workforce with the latest details on occupational demand, the role CTE plays in preparing the workforce for this sector, and descriptions of exemplary programs in education and training.

With the average educator impacting 3,000 learners during their career, the U.S. education and training sector plays a critical role in shaping society. Educators are in high demand, with two-thirds of school district leaders reporting shortages, particularly for special education teachers. The sector is expected to add 920,500 new jobs by 2030, with strong growth for preschool educators, postsecondary instructors, and career counselors and advisers.

CTE programs are at the forefront of preparing individuals for careers in education and training. One example on the secondary level is the Education Career Academy at Millard Public Schools in Omaha, Nebraska. During their senior year, students complete a 108-hour practicum where they work with teachers and build a portfolio of lesson plans. After graduation, learners can receive up to 30 college credits at Metropolitan Community College and the University of Nebraska–Omaha. On the postsecondary level, Mount Wachusett Community College (MWCC) in Gardner, Massachusetts, offers the Child Development Associate program, which prepares students to work in preschools and child care centers by completing 120 hours of supervised training supported by a video-based classroom observation tool. Program completers can apply their credits toward MWCC’s Associate in Early Childhood Education program.

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

On Tuesday morning, Sen. Todd Young (R-IN), Senate CTE Caucus Co-Chair, spoke with Punchbowl News to discuss the bipartisan U.S. Innovation and Competition Act (USICA), S. 1260, which the House plans to consider in the next few weeks. 

Asked what should be done to address workforce shortages in high-tech fields, Sen. Young noted the need to skill, reskill and upskill workers to remain globally competitive.  

“Skilling and reskilling needs to be informed by the needs of the market,” Young said. “We need investments in our people – workforce training – for the modern economy.” 

Young added that he expects the USICA to be considered by the House, then the bill will go to conference or back to the Senate pending any changes made by the House to the Senate-passed bill. The goal is to have the bill completed by Memorial Day. 

Over the summer when the Senate was debating USICA, Sens. Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Rob Portman (R-OH) introduced an amendment that would have expanded Pell Grants to short-term CTE programs. The amendment was modeled after the JOBS Act, a bipartisan bill that had been introduced and championed by these senators over the past few years. While the amendment was not ultimately adopted during the Senate process, as the bill moves to the House, we will continue advocacy efforts on this issue.

With the House and Senate both in session this week, it was still a quiet week for CTE-related measures in Washington. Most of the focus in Congress was on voting rights legislation before adjourning for the week. Both chambers will be in recess the week of January 24, but could return to the debate on the Build Back Better Act when they return. In the meantime, here is the most important news from Washington this week: 

• Department of Education Announces Resources to Support Student Needs at Colleges and Universities: The Department of Education has announced more resources for students and postsecondary institutions to help reduce barriers to success address the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. An additional $198 million in American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act funds was announced to help support community colleges and other institutions with the greatest needs, while new guidance on how colleges can use these new and existing federal funds to meet students’ basic needs such as housing and food security was released. In addition, guidance on how colleges can use existing data to connect students to other federal benefits was provided. First Lady Jill Biden and Secretary Cardona visited Bergen Community College in New Jersey to spotlight these new resources. 

• Federal Agencies Announce Working Group on Telecommunications Workforce: The Departments of Labor and Education, along with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced a cross-agency working group that will collaborate to identify current and future needs of the telecommunications industry workforce. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act directed the FCC Chair to work in partnership with the Secretary of Labor to establish an interagency working group that will ultimately prepare a report to Congress on its recommendations to address the needs of the telecommunications industry by January 2023.  
   
• House CTE Caucus Co-Chair Rep. Jim Langevin (D-RI) Announces Retirement: Rep. Langevin announced he will not be running for reelection in Rhode Island’s Second Congressional District. Langevin has served as co-chair of the House CTE Caucus since 2011. 
   
• ACTE Launches Key Legislation Blog Series: The first in a series of blog posts highlighting key pieces of legislation that will be the focus of ACTE’s 2022 federal advocacy efforts has been posted on the CTE Policy Watch blog. The first blog covers the JOBS Act. 
   
• Secretary Cardona and Rep. Joe Courtney (D-CT) Highlight Connecticut CTE Programs: On January 14, Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona and Rep. Joe Courtney (D-CT) visited Ella T. Grasso Southeastern Technical High School and Thames River Magnet Elementary School in Groton, Connecticut, to highlight each school’s manufacturing programs. You can read a full recap of the visit on the CTE Policy Watch blog. 
   
• FAA Aviation Careers Task Force Holds Public Meeting: On January 20, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)’s Youth Access to American Jobs in Aviation Task Force held a public meeting to discuss expanding CTE pathways in aviation, as well as developing strategies that will lead to more students entering aviation careers. You can watch the full meeting here.

• Department of Labor Launches New Grants Page: Visit https://www.dol.gov/grants to access all available grant funding from the Department of Labor in one convenient location! 
   
• U.S. Presidential CTE Scholar Candidates Announced: The U.S. Department of Education has released the list of candidates submitted by states for the 2022 U.S. Presidential Scholars Program. Visit https://www2.ed.gov/programs/psp/2022/candidates.pdf to see the students nominated from your state! 
   
• Administration Announces "Good Jobs" Initiative: On January 21, Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh announced the Good Jobs Initiative to help empower workers and improve job quality. More details can be found on the Department of Labor website and more details on various projects will be forthcoming.

This second blog post in our CLNA series digs into one of the key challenges that CTE leaders shared with us for Lessons in Collaboration and Innovation: The Impact and Promise of the Comprehensive Local Needs Assessment, our new report co-published with Advance CTE – the authentic engagement of a full range of stakeholders during the first CLNAs.

Stakeholder engagement was noted by both state and local CTE leaders as an area for improvement in the first CLNAs. Several of the states interviewed could not speak with certainty about whether all stakeholders were substantively engaged, particularly learners and families. Local CTE leaders similarly shared that stakeholder engagement was not always as robust as desired, in part because COVID 19 required some local recipients to switch their engagement plans mid-stream.

Where local recipients were able to engage in intensive stakeholder engagement for the first CLNA, positive transformation was possible. In Mitchell County, North Carolina, a small rural district, CTE educators hosted 14 focus groups in fall 2019, each with cross-stakeholder participation that included learners, and followed each focus group with leadership team meetings, during which they reviewed and discussed the feedback received. This robust engagement led the district to develop several new courses and new professional development opportunities.

For this 2021-22 CLNA process, states are acting to help local leaders improve stakeholder engagement and local leaders are working to diversify consultation methods and do more in-depth engagement. For instance, the College of DuPage in Illinois planned to survey learners to find out if they identify as a member of a special population, what they know about existing supports and what other supports they need, as well as conduct focus groups for more of a deep dive.

Stay tuned for the next entry in this series, which will look at the role of data in the first CLNAs, and revisit our first post.

Key Legislation 

In March 2021, Sens. Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Rob Portman (R-OH), and Reps. Andy Levin (D-MI) and Anthony Gonzalez (R-OH) reintroduced S. 864/H.R. 2037, known as the Jumpstart Our Businesses by Supporting Students Act of 2021, or the JOBS Act, to expand federal Pell Grant eligibility to high-quality, short-term job training programs at public postsecondary institutions. This bill is one of ACTE’s top legislative priorities, and it will be a key focus of our federal advocacy efforts in 2022. 

Background 

Currently, Federal Pell Grants are not available to postsecondary CTE students in short-term certificate programs that provide industry-based credentials and ultimately employment in high-wage, high-skill industry sectors or careers. As a result, many students across the country do not have access to high-quality, short-term CTE programs that culminate in credentials that are proven to increase earning potentials and employment opportunities, especially in several high-need careers within health care, manufacturing and construction. This bipartisan bill aims to amend the Higher Education Act (HEA) to make high-quality programs that are at least 150 clock hours and 8 weeks in length Pell-eligible. ACTE, along with other education organizations and employers, has been actively promoting a solution for short-term Pell for a number of years, including in this Congress. For example, we sent a letter to congressional leadership in 2021 expressing strong support for the JOBS Act and asking for its immediate passage.  

In June 2021, a version of the JOBS Act was close to passing as Sens. Kaine and Portman introduced an amendment to the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act (USICA), S. 1260, that would expand Pell Grants to short-term CTE programs. This amendment was accepted into a larger package of amendments that was closely negotiated between party leadership. Unfortunately, the package that included the short-term Pell amendment was not included when Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) made procedural objections to the amendment package and the bill moved on to final passage. The JOBS Act was also briefly considered as a potential amendment to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act that was signed into law by President Biden this past November, but ultimately was not included there either.  

Next Steps 

Currently, there are 48 cosponsors in the Senate and 34 in the House of Representatives for the JOBS Act. ACTE’s public policy team is actively recruiting new cosponsors of the JOBS Act and urging Members of Congress to champion the bill. While a full reauthorization of the Higher Education Act, which would provide a prime opportunity to debate Pell grants for shorter-term programs, is unlikely to move forward, there are other avenues for the JOBS Act. It is still possible that the JOBS Act could be passed as part of a different large legislative package, or it could gain traction as a standalone bill. For example, during the Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 and FY 2023 appropriations processes, there may be opportunities to advocate for the JOBS Act to be included in appropriations packages. There is also a chance that the USICA, which has yet to be passed by the House, could be amended in that chamber to include the JOBS Act, or that other “must pass” legislation emerges to provide a vehicle for a short-term Pell solution.  

Momentum and support for the policy change continue to grow, and ACTE will continue to advocate for the JOBS Act, whether it is passed as a standalone bill or included as part of a separate legislative package. Please continue to monitor ACTE’s Policy Watch blog for more information as this proposal continues to make its way through Congress!

On January 14, Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona and Rep. Joe Courtney (D-CT) visited Ella T. Grasso Southeastern Technical High School and Thames River Magnet Elementary School in Groton, Connecticut, to highlight each school’s manufacturing programs. The programs are helping to meet workforce needs in eastern Connecticut and develop the next generation of highly-skilled workers across the state. In addition, the two policymakers reiterated the need for federal CTE and workforce development funding to train workers to do the in-demand jobs of the future. 

“Career [and] technical education is a priority for this administration. It's a priority for me,” Cardona told New London, CT’s The Day newspaper. 

At Grasso High School, 50% of students attending the manufacturing program have jobs lined up after they graduate, including one student who recalled being able to help their family replace a water heater on their own, saving time and money. Groton has expanded access to STEM courses across its public schools, as the district was recently awarded a Defense Education Activity grant from the Department of Defense to expand career pathways in STEM fields and health care. The school is also launching a co-op with nearby Fitch High School to send Fitch students to Grasso for after-school classes to earn credit. 

During the visit to Grasso, Rep. Courtney added to the conversation by explaining to students that their career paths and fields of study align with current and future workforce needs being seen across the country. Courtney cited the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act that was signed into law in November as just one example of a bill that will create jobs to be filled with skilled workers in in-demand fields, including electric vehicle technology, building technology and climate change. 

Grasso also hosts the Three Rivers Community College Manufacturing Apprenticeship Center, which provides training for secondary and adult learners. Students may take courses in machining, welding, electrical, mechanical, shipfitting, pipefitting, maintenance, design engineering, or in any customizable program that is designed to fit a local employer’s needs. 

Sec. Cardona and Rep. Courtney also noted that American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds are supporting programs like those at Grasso and at Thames River, helping Connecticut to serve as a model for the nation. Connecticut plans to spend $70 million in ARP funds on workforce development programs across the state.