CTE Policy Watch: A blog for CTE advocates

Running Thread: COVID-19 Resources, Laws, Updates for CTE Programs

The ongoing pandemic has had massive implications for people all across the world. First and foremost, ACTE and its staff hope that you are staying safe, and we are keeping everyone affected by this terrible virus in our thoughts. We realize that COVID-19 has had a tremendous impact on, among other things, education. This running thread aims to provide resources and updates that may be useful for CTE professionals.

 

RESOURCES

• ACTE Resources on Distance Learning
• CDC Coronavirus Webpage
• CDC Guidance on School Closures
• State-specific COVID-19 Education System Actions (Excellence in Education)
• U.S. Department of Education Coronavirus Webpage
• U.S. Department of Education Fact Sheet on Online Learning for Students with Disabilities
• U.S. Department of Education Fact Sheet on Grant Funds During the Coronavirus Crisis
• U.S. Department of Education Allocations for the CARES Act
• News Story Featuring ACTE Board Members on Distance Learning in CTE

 

RELEVANT ENACTED LAWS

• Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2020 (Phase I): The law provides $8.3B in emergency funding for various federal agencies in light of COVID-19. Funding is provided for, among other things, vaccines and medical supplies, grants to public health agencies and organizations, small business loans, emergency preparedness, and humanitarian assistance. The bill was signed into law on March 6. The text of the law can be found here, and a detailed summary here.
• Families First Coronavirus Response Act (Phase II): The law includes new paid sick leave provisions for certain workers, and it expands the Family and Medical Leave Act to additional employers. The law also provides additional funding for unemployment insurance and coverage for COVID-19 testing. The bill was signed into law on March 18 and will take effect on April 2. The text of the law can be found here, and a detailed summary here.
• Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (Phase III): The CARES Act is a wide-ranging, more than $2 trillion package that includes a variety of provisions, from direct assistance to Americans to hospital funding, unemployment insurance, and small business and corporate relief. On the education front, the law allows Federal Work Study payments to continue, doesn't penalize students who dropped out of school from Pell Grant eligibility, allows additional flexibility on the student loan front, provides the Secretary of Education with certain waiver authority, defers student loan payments/principal/interest for 6 months on all federally owned loans without penalty, provides local workforce boards with additional flexibility under WIOA, and exempts teachers from certain requirements related to TEACH grant obligations or Teacher Loan Forgiveness if they can't finish the teaching year. It also appropriates $30.9 billion to the Department of Education, including for a stabilization fund for states and local school districts, $13.5 billion in formula funding to states through the ESSA formula and $14.25 billion in higher education funding to meet a variety of coronavirus-related needs, and more. You can read the text of the bill here, a summary of various provisions here, and summary of appropriations here. ACTE has also written a specific blog post on the law, available here. The Department of Education has released the allocations for Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act, which you can find here. 

 

ACTE Letters to Federal Policymakers

• Cross-Organizational Letter Requesting Workforce Development Investments in Fourth Stimulus Package (4/1/20)
• ACTE & Advance CTE Letter on CTE-related Coronavirus Investment Priorities (4/1/20)
• Requesting Emergency Stimulus Funding to Support Nonprofit Associations (3/24/20)

 

RUNNING UPDATES THREAD

April 9, 2020

• ED Releases CARES Act Distribution: The Department of Education has released the allocations it will make to institutions under the CARES Act, which you can find here. Secretary DeVos announced that this funding to postsecondary institutions will be distributed immediately. The formula used weighs the number of full-time students who are Pell-eligible, among other things. You can read the full press release on the announcement here. 

April 8, 2020

• ED Fact Sheet on Grant Funds During Pandemic: The Department of Education released a fact sheet on several questions related to the use of grant funds during the coronavirus pandemic. The questions involved compensation for employees paid through grants but who could not work during the crisis, conferences/trainings that were canceled due to the coronavirus and travel insurance purchases. Read the fact sheet here.

April 2, 2020

• All 50 States Granted Federal Statewide Testing Waiver: The U.S. Department of Education has granted waivers to federal requirements in ESSA around statewide testing to every state, in addition to the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the Bureau of Indian Education. This is the first such broad-sweeping waiver granted since the requirements were first imposed. Read more in Education Week here.

March 31, 2020

• OCTAE Releases Some Guidance: On Tuesday, the Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education within the U.S. Department of Education released guidance related to CTE and the coronavirus. The guidance included an extension for states to submit their Perkins V plans, clarification that states may award a Perkins V subgrant to local recipients prior to fully approved local applications, and confirmation that states may provide local Perkins V recipients additional time to complete their local applications. You can read the guidance here, or ACTE's summary here.

March 27, 2020

• President Trump Signs CARES Act Into Law (Phase III): On Friday, President Trump signed the CARES Act into law. This is the third coronavirus-related package to be enacted. The signing came after a voice vote in the House of Representatives earlier in the day. See the "Relevant Enacted Laws" section above for a summary of the legislation.
• Sec. DeVos Speaks at Coronavirus Task Force Briefing: Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos spoke at the White House Coronavirus Task Force briefing on Friday to share the Department of Education's efforts to address the global pandemic. The Secretary acknowledged school closures across the country and the challenges of distance learning. She pitched the Department's coronavirus website, and touched on a variety of relevant proposals, including a new proposal to provide microgrants to teachers to help them adapt to online education. You can read the Secretary's full remarks here.

March 25, 2020

• Senate Passes CARES Act (Phase III): Late Wednesday evening the Senate passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) on a bipartisan 96-0 vote. See the "Relevant Enacted Laws" section above for a summary of the legislation.
• Collection on Defaulted Federal Student Loans Stopped: The Department of Education has ordered private collection companies to stop any collection actions on defaulted federal student loans until further notice. The order is retroactive to March 13. This is projected to impact roughly 9 million student loan borrowers in default.

March 23, 2020

• House Democrats' Coronavirus Package Directs $60B to Education (Phase III): House Democrats introduced their coronavirus response stimulus package, which would create a $50 billion fund for education, with at least $15B aimed directly at K-12 and another $15B earmarked for institutions of higher education, and another ~$10B for emergency relief. Grants would be based on both population and Title I ESSA numbers. Additionally, the bill provides relief to student loan borrowers, allows Federal Work Study payments to continue, extends federal student aid, and supports child care providers, among other things. You can find the text of the bill here, and a summary of the education-related provisions here.

March 22, 2020

• Senate Fails to Pass Republican Coronavirus Bill (Phase III)​: On Sunday, the Senate failed (47-47) to pass a procedural hurdle required to advance legislation offered by Republican leadership. Most notably for CTE, the bill did include grants to states for elementary and secondary education. The majority of these funds would be required to be provided to local education agencies as subgrants, and the bill specifically stated that any activity authorized under Perkins (among other laws) would be an acceptable use of funds. You can read the text of the bill here, and a summary of the bill and politics surrounding the vote here.

March 21, 2020

• ED Releases Fact Sheet on Special Ed Online Learning: Amid some confusion and uncertainty surrounding how school districts are to provide for students with disabilities as closures continue across the country, the U.S. Department of Education released a fact sheet to clarify that federal law does not prevent online learning opportunities from being offered to students with disabilities. You can find the fact sheet here, and more background on the issue here.

March 20, 2020

• Announcement on Standardized Testing, Student Loans: President Trump announced that the U.S. Department of Education would not enforce standardized testing rules on K-12 schools in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, the President announced that federal student loan borrowers would have the option to pause payments for at least 60 days without incurring a penalty.

March 19, 2020:

• Senate Republicans Releases Coronavirus Response Proposal (Phase III): A wide-ranging proposal from Senate Republicans called the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) would include a number of education-related provisions. Among other things, the bill would allow the Secretary of Education to waive a number of requirements related to Perkins, HEA and ESSA; would ensure student grants and aid continues regardless of any school interruption; and would suspend student loan payments for three months without the accrual of interest, with the possibility of the Secretary extending this for another three months. The bill would also provide direct payments to Americans in certain income brackets, loans to businesses and corporations, and delayed tax filings, among other things. You can find the text of the bill here, and a summary of the education-related provisions here.

March 18, 2020:

• President Signs Coronavirus Relief Package (Phase II): The President signed into law a bipartisan proposal, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, originally negotiated by Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. The law extends paid sick leave and paid family and medical leave to certain workers, provides funding for SNAP, free testing, and welfare benefits. You can read the text of the law here, or a summary here.
• DOL Announces National Health Emergency Dislocated Worker Grants: The U.S. Department of Labor announced a $100 million grant fund for dislocated workers to address the impacts of COVID-19. States, outlying areas and Indian Tribal Governments are eligible to apply for the grants, which will be used for both disaster-relief employment and employment and training activities. You can learn more about the grant and the application process here.

March 17, 2020:

• Trump Administration Proposes $100M School Stimulus: A proposed $100M in supplemental funding for the Department of Education would be available to both k-12 and postsecondary institutions, and funneled through Project SERV, which aims to assist schools following traumatic events. Funds could be used for cleaning and distance/online learning, among other things. Additionally, the Administration is proposing additional spending for loan servicing, telework for Department of Education staff, and cleaning for Indian Education program facilities. Read the full proposal here.
• Department of Education Suspends Some College Accreditation Requirements: To limit interruptions in postsecondary education as a result of the inability to conduct in-person inspections, the Department of Education has given accreditors the go-ahead to conduct virtual site visits. Additionally, accreditors now have the power to extend accreditation for institutions facing renewal or loss of status if the accreditor is unable to perform a site visit or hold a hearing.
• House, Senate Education Democrats Release Coronavirus Bill (Phase III): Leaders of the House and Senate Education Committees released the Supporting Students in Response to Coronavirus Act. The legislation provides $3B in new funding for a variety of purposes, including cleaning facilities, providing meals, preparing for extended school closures, emergency aid for postsecondary students. Read the fact sheet here and full proposal here.

March 14, 2020

• House Passes Coronavirus Bill (Phase II): A bipartisan proposal to provide, among other things, financial assistance, paid sick and family leave, and guaranteed free testing overwhelmingly passed the House. Read ACTE’s summary of the legislation here.

March 6, 2020

• President Signs Emergency Coronavirus Funding Bill (Phase I): President Trump signed legislation providing $8.3B in Coronavirus-related funding. The bulk of the funding is allocated to the Department of Health and Human services for prevention, medical supplies and vaccine research, among other things. The text of the law can be found here, and a detailed summary here.

ED Releases $6 Billion in Emergency Cash Grants for College Students Impacted by Coronavirus Outbreak

On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) released the allocations it will make to postsecondary institutions in order to distribute the approximately $14 billion in postsecondary funding provided under the CARES Act. You can visit this page to see how much each postsecondary institution will receive.

Secretary DeVos also announced that the portion of the funding allocated for direct student support will be distributed to postsecondary institutions immediately. The intent is to provide cash grants to students for expenses related to disruptions to their educations due to the COVID-19 outbreak. These expenses include things like course materials and technology as well as food, housing, health care, and childcare.

The formula used to create the allocations weighs the number of full-time students who are Pell-eligible, along with overall enrollment numbers. In order to access these initial funds, ED must receive a signed certification from the institution of higher education (IHE) affirming they will distribute the funds in accordance with applicable law. The IHE will then make the determination as to which students will receive the aid.

The remaining funds will be distributed in the next few weeks, and more guidance is coming on how institutions will be able to access and use the additional dollars. 

You can read the full press release on the announcement here.

CTE Distance Learning: Hands-on Learning at Home

We know that CTE educators are creative professionals, so it’s no wonder that many of you are getting creative to maintain student learning during school closures. In particular, CTE professionals are exploring how to continue hands-on learning when instructors can no longer demonstrate skills up close and students can no longer access campus facilities, equipment and technology that are difficult and sometimes impossible to replicate at home.

The following ideas have been shared by your fellow CTE educators through ACTE social media and our COVID-19 needs survey:

• Ask students to videotape, or take step-by-step photos, of themselves performing a task they can do at home, such as preparing a recipe, working in a garden, practicing knife skills on Play Doh or performing an injury evaluation
• Have students complete online training modules for industry certifications
• Ask students to complete a relevant online course from a legitimate training provider and send you a screenshot showing their proof of completion
• Use online simulators and exploratory sandboxes (these tools can be particularly relevant for health care, IT, business and marketing programs)
• Have students write self-reflections about how well they have performed tasks they can do at home or online
• Give quizzes through your district or institution’s learning management system (LMS)

Some of the more creative ideas shared combine multiple aspects of learning into one project. For instance, an instructor shared on the ACTE Facebook page that he is having students make a garden out of recyclable household materials. This project incorporates students writing out step-by-step instructions, developing a budget and recording their progress.

There are several concerns that CTE professionals are balancing as they try to encourage hands-on skill attainment at a distance:

• Do students have the resources at home to complete the project? Instructors are worried about students going to the grocery or hardware store to buy supplies. Some educators are looking at how they can prepare a kit of materials that could be delivered by school bus drivers, using disinfection protocols. Other districts are talking about whether they can safely have students come one at a time to campus to complete required lab hours.
• Can students perform an at-home project safely? Even if students are likely to have materials at home, such as cooking implements or basic hardware, instructors are concerned about student safety. 
• Is online video sharing secure and private? If you’re encouraging students to post video of their activities, it is best to do so through your LMS or through a private, shared drive or online classroom that has been vetted by your district or institution.

We will continue to share CTE distance learning ideas on this blog. Do you have a CTE distance learning idea to share with your colleagues? Post it on ACTE social media through April 15 and be entered into a drawing for a $50 Amazon gift card.

In addition, check out ACTE’s growing list of CTE distance learning resources and ACTE Division webinars on teaching CTE in a time of uncertainty. These live Zoom events will be recorded for later viewing.

Research Round-up: College and Career Readiness, Workforce Needs, Equity Principals for Developing CLNAs

While most of the attention in education policy and research of late has been related to the COVID-19 response, there have been a few new CTE-related publications recently and we are catching up on some of the research that has been published. These publications cover topics ranging from reducing recidivism rates by giving opportunities through education and training to young people, to a tool to help states learn from each other’s best practices to improve college and career readiness, and more!

Helping Former Incarcerated Young Adults Transition: Strategies for helping young adults who have formerly been incarcerated transition to being successful requires support and educational and career skills, according to From Surviving to Thriving: Supporting Transformation, Reentry and Connections to Employment for Young Adults from The Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) and FHI 360. Of the best practices that the report recommends, education, training and work experience are some of the tools for success that are needed to help young people enter into the workforce. The report’s authors also recommend creating lasting partnerships with employers so these young people are able to be hired once their training is completed. 

Collaboration Between States for College and Career Readiness: A new online tool from the Southern Regional Education Board has analyzed states’ approaches to ensure students are successful in college and careers. This tool compares different state policies on topics ranging from education and workforce alignment to accelerated learning opportunities and academic and career planning activities. These comparisons can be used to help states come up with their own college and career readiness policies based on the best practices of other states.

Addressing the Workforce Needs: In Making College Work for Students and the Economy: A State Policy Roadmap, Jobs for the Future (JFF) found three common challenges states are facing: states are data rich but information poor; states are focused on expanding access to postsecondary education when access is not the only thing that increases credential attainment and talent development; and states are not aligning systems for greatest impact. Based on these findings, JFF created recommendations on how to better address these shortcomings.

Higher Wage Opportunities for Workers with No Degree but Some Skills: The National Bureau of Economic Research found in their new working paper, Searching for STARs: Work Experience as a Job Market Signal for Workers without Bachelor's Degrees, that workers without a four-year degree have jobs that pay higher than the average median state wage. The researchers also found that about 5.2 million workers with some postsecondary education but less than four-year degrees are already in high-wage roles ($77,000 per year or higher), and this could indicate that workers without a four-year degree have opportunities to transition to a higher wage scale.

Equity Principles for Developing CLNAs: The National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity (NAPE) published Equity and the Perkins V CLNA which outlines three equity principles and guiding questions for LEAs to follow when creating their CNLAs. The first principle is developing an asset perspective to encourage leaders to view cultural differences as an asset to the workplace. The second principle is grounded action, which looks at where the hardships are for individuals instead of only relying on external research and contexts. The last principle is that systems are not neutral, so LEAs must disaggregate data to the program level to get an accurate picture of a complex system. 

New Infographic on Connecticut Technical High Schools: Male students in the Connecticut Technical High School System have higher high school graduation rates, improved wage earning potential, higher attendance rates in 9th grade and higher 10th grade test scores, a study from the Career and Technical Research Network reports. This infographic supplements the report that was released earlier this year. Read the full report here.

Discovering Potential Solutions for the Skills Gap in Hiring Decisions: The U.S. Chamber of Commerce commissioned a survey of 500 HR professionals with hiring authority in their organizations and found three key issues with candidates: lacking appropriate/necessary skills; lacking previous work experience; and low numbers of applicants. The top three solutions the professionals recommended to fix these gaps were greater skills initiatives, more CTE programs to build talent pipelines, and improvement in the alignment between skills and competencies taught in education/CTE programs and in-demand skills and competencies needed in the workplace. 

CTE Education in Michigan: Research on CTE education in Michigan suggested that there have been varying degrees of success in providing access and participation to all students. In their new report, the University of Michigan Youth Policy Lab says that female, Black, Hispanic and economically disadvantaged students are less likely to participate in CTE programs. However, students who attend the same high school were less likely to have these differences, suggesting that expanding access across schools will increase participation in CTE. The findings also showed about half of all Michigan high school students enroll in at least one CTE course, and through 2026, 500,000 skilled trade jobs will become available that align with many high-demand fields. 

New Book on the Evolution of CTE: Authors Howard Gordon and Deanna Shultz released the fifth edition of The History and Growth of Career and Technical Education In America. The book focuses on the history, philosophy, structure and evolution of CTE, as well as emerging trends relevant to the field.

Career Connected Learning for Education: NC3T released a new paper written by Hans Meeder and Brett Pawlowski that focuses on Career Connected Learning as a potential pathway for the education system in the future. In the paper, the authors describe how students, schools and communities can take steps to adopt a Career Connected Learning mindset.

ED Releases Additional FAQ’s Related to Education Grants During COVID-19

On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) released a memo outlining answers to a series of critical questions related to the use of federal education grant funds (including, but not limited to, Perkins funds) during the COVID-19 pandemic. These questions deal with issues related to compensation, travel and conference costs that are otherwise allowable costs under applicable program statutes and regulations.

The first question dealt with whether or not a grantee or subgrantee (grant recipient) could continue to pay employees using grant funds during the period the employee is unable to work because of the closure of the organization due to COVID-19. ED acknowledged that organizations may still do so if the organization pays, consistent with its policies and procedures, similarly situated employees whose compensation is paid with non-Federal funds during an extended closure. However, an employee who is being paid with grant funds while the grant activities are closed due to the pandemic may not also receive pay from the organization or another organization for work on other activities that are not closed down. If a grant recipient doesn’t currently have a policy that addresses extraordinary circumstances currently in place, they may amend or create one to ensure staff can continue to be paid.

The second question dealt with the ability to use grant funds to reimburse nonrefundable travel for conferences, trainings, or other activities related to a grant that were cancelled due to COVID-19. ED acknowledged that a grant recipient may seek a reimbursement only after certain options are exhausted. First, the grant recipient must seek to recover the nonrefundable costs from the relevant entity that charged the fee (airline, hotel, conference organizer). ED mentions that some businesses are offering flexibility with regard to refunds, credits, etc. for losses caused by the COVID-19 outbreak. Additionally, if the agreement or contract for conferences, training, or other contained an emergency or “act of God” provision, the grant recipient must seek to exercise that clause prior to becoming eligible to use grant funds for reimbursement. If a grant recipient is unable to recover the costs after exhausting the aforementioned options, they are able to charge the cancellation costs to the appropriate grant, assuming the costs were both reasonable and were incurred in order to carry out an allowable activity under the grant.

ED also stated that those seeking reimbursements should not assume additional funds will be available if the cancellation or other fees result in a shortage of funds to eventually carry out the event or travel. Further, recipients must “maintain appropriate records and cost documentation.”

The final question dealt with future travel for events, and if funds under a grant could be used to purchase travel insurance. ED makes it clear in the beginning that grant-supported travel should generally not be occurring right now due to health concerns related to COVID-19. But, they go on to say that if travel is being permitted by Federal, State, and local directives and “is the only means to carry out an essential grant function that must be undertaken on a time-sensitive basis during the pandemic,” than then purchasing travel insurance is allowable provided the cost is reasonable and is allocable to the grant consistent with Federal cost principles.

This is already the second set of FAQ’s covered on the CTE Policy Watch Blog, with the first dealing with series of critical questions facing CTE leaders during the current COVID-19 pandemic. The Department acknowledged that there are more questions that will need to be answered as we progress. They will continue to add additional questions and answers as they become available, so please continue to check back on the CTE Policy Watch Blog for any new updates!

Sec. DeVos Touts ED’s Proposed Distance Learning Rules

Last week, Secretary DeVos announced proposed rules on distance learning in higher education. The proposed rules were the result of a negotiated rulemaking last year. In a statement, Sec. DeVos touted the Department of Education’s work on the proposed rules, saying the COVID-19 pandemic highlights why they are important. The Secretary claimed the rules “develop a new set of standards that are responsive to current realities, that embrace new technology, that open doors for much-needed innovation in higher education, and that expand access for students to the flexible, relevant education opportunities they need.”

The proposed rules cover a number of areas, including deemphasizing seat time, clarifying what may constitute interaction between students and instructors, simplifying how to determine equivalent credit hours for certain programs, ensuring incarcerated students remain Pell eligible, incentivizing employer participation in program development and requiring prompter action by ED on institutional applications to participate in HEA Title IV.

You can read ED’s press release on the subject here, or the full notice of proposed rulemaking here. The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking was published in the Federal Register on April 2, and comments are due by May 4.

ED Releases FAQ’s Related to Perkins and COVID-19

On Tuesday evening, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education (OCTAE) released a memo outlining answers to a series of critical questions facing CTE leaders during the current COVID-19 pandemic.

The first question dealt with whether OCTAE will extend the deadline for States to submit their Perkins V State Plans, which are currently due April 15, 2020. OCTAE acknowledges the various unique difficulties that states may have in submitting their plans on time and are extending the deadline. If a state is able to get their plan submitted by June 15, 2020, OCTAE expects to review and approve the plan by June 30, 2020. If approved, the state will receive the first installment of Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 Perkins funds on schedule on July 1, 2020.

If a state is unable to submit their plan by June 15, 2020, OCTAE is able to extend the duration of the state’s one-year transition plan by three months, through September 30, 2020. For these states, OCTAE will issue the first installment of FY 2020 Perkins funds on schedule on July 1, 2020, under the condition that the State will submit its full Perkins V State Plan by September 15, 2020. This will allow states to continuously administer their Perkins V grants without interruption. While most states will likely be able to submit their plans on time, this is important flexibility for those that need a bit more time.

The second question dealt with whether States are able to award sub-grants to local recipients prior to fully approving their local application for funds. The answer to this question is “yes”! States are able to authorize a local recipient applying for a sub-grant to obligate funds when the local recipient submits its application to the State in “substantially approvable form.” States have the authority to define this term, so have flexibility in which requirements of the local application have to be met in order to release funds to locals.

The final question addressed whether States are able to provide local recipients additional time to complete their local applications. Again, the answer is “yes”! If local recipients are unable to submit a “substantially approvable” application by the State’s due date for local applications, OCTAE is using its transition authority under section 4 of Perkins V to enable States to extend the duration of the local recipient’s one-year local application from the transition year by three months, through the end of September. States may still issue the FY 2020 grant award to these recipients on time on July 1 to ensure seamless delivery of services.

The Department acknowledged that there are more questions that will need to be answered as we progress. They will continue to add additional questions and answers as they become available, so please continue to check back on the CTE Policy Watch Blog for any new updates!

DC Digest: March 22-29

Most of the activity in Washington is focused on the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. You can find all the latest information about actions by Congress or the Administration on ACTE’s blog in COVID-19 Resources, Laws, Updates for CTE Programs. Understandably, with this the primary focus, there are only a few other updates for federal education policy.

• Deadline Extended for OCTAE’s Pathways to Credentials Incentive: The Department of Education’s Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education (OCTAE) has extended the deadline for Pathways to Credential applications to 5pm Central on Thursday, April 16, 2020, due to COVID-19. This initiative allows for colleges to apply for free customized technical assistance on stackable credential programs.
  
  
• Department of Education Releases FY 20 State Perkins Allocations: Earlier this month, OCTAE also released the state allocations under Perkins for next school year--the funds available beginning July 1, 2020.
  
  
• Update on Congress’ Schedule: COVID-19 has created a change in the congressional schedule. The House is now in recess indefinitely, while the Senate is expected to be out of session until April 20. Due to this prolonged recess, DC Digest may be on hiatus for a few weeks as most policy activity remains COVID focused.

Phase III Coronavirus Relief Package Includes $30.9B for Education

After intense negotiations, President Trump signed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) into law on Friday. The bill was passed out of the Senate 96-0, and the House passed it on a voice vote.

The law contains more than $2 trillion worth of direct aid or relief, including providing direct payments to millions of Americans, bolstering unemployment insurance, funding hospitals and research, and granting relief to small businesses and corporations. However, the law also contains $30.9 billion worth of funding for the Department of Education. The following education-related provisions are most relevant for CTE professionals and programs. In several places specific sections of the law are referenced in the event you are interested in more detail. You can view the bill text here.

State/Local Education Stabilization Fund: The vast majority of the funding for the Department of Education is targeted to help stabilize education at the elementary, secondary and postsecondary levels. Specifically, $13.5 billion is earmarked for elementary and secondary programs, and will be allocated to states based on the ESSA formula. An additional $14.25 billion is earmarked for postsecondary education. Within 30 days of the law’s passage (last Friday), the Secretary must issue a notice inviting applications for these funds. Applications must then be either denied or approved within 30 days. Funds will be made available through 9/30/2021, and are intended “to prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus.” Funds can be used to provide emergency support to local education agencies, institutions of higher education, and any other education-related entity within the state that the state’s governor deems essential. At least 90 percent of funds allocated to states for elementary/secondary education must then be sub-granted to local education agencies. Notably, local education agencies may use funds for any activity authorized by Perkins, as well as other federal education programs. At the postsecondary level, allocations are largely determined by enrollment of Federal Pell Grant recipients. IHEs must use at least half of their funds to “provide emergency financial aid grants to students for expenses related to the disruption of campus operations due to the coronavirus.” Any entity receiving funding under the stabilization fund must make the greatest possible effort to continue to pay employees and contractors. You can find the legislative text on the education stabilization fund beginning on the bottom of page 752 of the bill.

Health Care Workforce: The law directs the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services to develop a plan for health workforce programs. (§3403) 

Federal Work Study: Work-study payments may be issued to students who are unable to work due to closures, and such payments may be in a lump sum or in regularly continued paychecks. (§3505) Work-study funds are permitted to be used for supplemental grants. (§3503)

Pell Grants: Coronavirus-related school dropouts do not count toward the lifetime limit on Pell Grant eligibility. (§3507)

Student Loan Issues: Coronavirus-related school dropouts do not count toward lifetime eligibility for subsidized student loans. (§3506) Students who drop out of school due to the coronavirus are not required to refund any federal Pell grants or student loans. (§3508) Coronavirus-related dropouts do not factor in to federal academic requirements for student aid. (§3509) The Secretary is required to defer federal student loan payments, principal, and interest through September 30, 2020 without penalty. (§3513)

TEACH Grants Teacher Loan Forgiveness: If teachers cannot finish the year as a result of the coronavirus, they will not be penalized and the partial year will count as a full year toward TEACH grant obligations or Teacher Loan Forgiveness. (§3519)

Workforce Response Activity: Local workforce boards were granted additional flexibility to use unobligated statewide activity WIOA funds for administrative costs, including moving to online-based resources. Governors may also use reserved workforce funds in responding to the coronavirus. (§3515)

Campus-Based Aid: The law waives institutional matching requirements for campus-based aid programs. (§3503)

Waiver Authority: The Secretary of Education was granted waiver authority for ESEA, with the exception of civil rights laws, as required to deal with the coronavirus. (§3511) The Secretary is also permitted to waive or modify allowable uses of funds for institutional grant programs, and for matching requirements in competitive grants.

You can continue to follow the latest coronavirus-related CTE news on this blog post, which will be updated as appropriate.

NPS 2020 Virtual Visit Guide

Earlier this month, ACTE had to cancel our 2020 National Policy Seminar (NPS). While we know canceling NPS was the right decision for the health and safety of everyone involved, it does not mean that our advocacy has to stop! In fact, ensuring CTE programs are included and valued is as important now as ever. Some NPS attendees were able to reschedule their meetings as phone calls, and will be meeting with those Members of Congress virtually next week. Even if you had not planned to attend NPS, or had not made appointments with your Members of Congress, there is an opportunity to stay engaged in virtual advocacy! We have created a “Virtual Visit Guide” to help NPS attendees and other CTE stakeholders with advocacy during this important time. This document is intended to provide you with relevant information ahead of any conversations with policymakers in the near future, but if you have any other questions, please feel free to contact the ACTE Public Policy Department at publicpolicy@acteonline.org.

Broadening the Path: Design Principles for Middle Grades CTE

Over the past few years, ACTE has increased our focus on middle grades CTE in recognition of the growing importance of early career development. Today, Advance CTE and ACTE released Broadening the Path: Design Principles for Middle Grades CTE to support state and local leaders as they work to develop or strengthen middle grades CTE policies, programs and practices. Critically, this resource provides a theory of action for state and local leaders looking to design a new middle grades CTE program or policy or to reflect on and improve upon what is already in place.

There is widespread agreement that high school is simply too late to begin to expose learners to the variety of high-skill, high-wage and in-demand careers available to them and the foundational skills they will need to be able to access and succeed in those careers. Yet there remains a lack of consensus — or even basic understanding — about what CTE and career readiness more broadly should entail at the middle grades level.

With the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act (Perkins V) emphasizing career exploration and career development activities in the middle grades and allowing funds to be spent on students as young as fifth grade, the need to understand what high-quality middle grades CTE is – and isn’t – is more important than ever before.

Specifically, this paper lays out:

• Outcomes for student learning that identify what students should gain through participation in middle grades CTE.
• Ten design principles that must undergird any middle grades CTE program or policy. The principles should serve as a resource to ensure that middle grades CTE is comprehensive and fully meets each learner’s needs.
• The core programmatic elements of a middle grades CTE program or policy through which the design principles are applied, with relevant questions for consideration to identify strategies or steps for addressing gaps in the implementation of the 10 design principles.

Broadening the Path also includes a design principles self-assessment for state and local leaders to evaluate their current policies and programs.

This resource was created with the support of the Middle Grades CTE Shared Solutions Workgroup, comprised of national, state and local leaders, convened by Advance CTE with support from ACTE and generously funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

For those interested in leading state examples of middle grades CTE policies and programs, check out Advance CTE’s 2018 report, Expanding Middle School CTE to Promote Lifelong Learner Success. For those interested in local examples, you can find podcasts and webinars here, and more research here.