CTE Policy Watch: A blog for CTE advocates

Legislation to Expand STEM Exposure for Young Children Passes Committee

During the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee mark up last week, legislation aimed at expanding STEM opportunities was reported favorably out of committee and is poised to be considered on the Senate floor.

The Building Blocks of STEM Act, S. 737, introduced by Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV), would create and expand upon STEM education initiatives at the National Science Foundation (NSF) for young children, according to the lawmaker. More specifically, it would direct NSF to award research grants to increase understanding of the factors that contribute to the participation of females in STEM activities at younger ages and to develop interventions in pre-K and elementary school classrooms to increase the participation of females in computer science.

Identical legislation has also been introduced in the House by Congresswoman Haley Stevens (D-MI) and Congressman Jim Baird (R-IN) – who are the Chair and Ranking Member of the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee’s Subcommittee on Research and Technology. ACTE will continue working with Members of Congress in both parties to address workforce shortages in a variety of industries that transcend the American economy.

Bipartisan, Bicameral Legislation Introduced to Address Cybersecurity Workforce

A group of bipartisan members in the House and Senate have introduced identical legislation to address workforce shortages within the cybersecurity field. The Cyber Ready Workforce Act was introduced by Senators Jacky Rosen (D-NV) and Kevin Cramer (R-ND) in the Senate, and Congresswomen Susie Lee (D-NV) and Elise Stefanik (R-NY) in the House. Among other things, the bill directs the Secretary of Labor to award grants to workforce intermediaries to support the creation, implementation and expansion of registered apprenticeship programs in cybersecurity, according to the lawmakers.

The prospects of the Cyber Ready Workforce Act are uncertain, as its bipartisan nature is promising but few Members of Congress have thus far signed on. ACTE will continue working with Members of Congress in both parties to address workforce shortages in a variety of industries that transcend the American economy.

FY20 Labor-HHS-Education Bill Passes House Committee Markup

On Wednesday, the House Appropriations Committee passed the Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill for Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 by a vote of 30 to 23. In an amendment offered by Labor-HHS-Education subcommittee Chairwoman Rosa DeLauro, funding for the Perkins Basic State Grant program was given an additional $10 million, on top of the $37.4 million increase that passed the subcommittee last week. This brings the total proposed appropriation level for the Perkins Basic State Grant program in FY20 to just over 1.3 billion, which is $47.4 million above the FY19 enacted level and FY20 President’s budget request.

Now the bill will go to the House floor for consideration by the entire House of Representatives, and a similar process will take place in the Senate before final agreement. Complicating the final passage and agreement between the chambers on funding levels for FY 2020 are the statutory budget caps currently in place on discretionary spending—both for defense and nondefense programs. Congressional leaders are currently in the process of negotiating an increase in these caps, which will be necessary to avoid steep cuts across the federal budget and provide any of the increases suggested by the House. The exact cap agreement will have tremendous influence on the final funding numbers for education programs like Perkins.

You can find our joint press statement with Advance CTE here.

Grant Announcement – Department of Agricultural Workforce Training Grant Programs

The Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) announced the availability of $29 million in grant funding for their Education and Workforce Program (EWP), which includes the Professional Development for Agricultural Literacy and Agricultural Workforce Training Grants.

These programs, listed in more detail below, offer eligible institutions grants for professional development opportunities, in order to provide K-14 educators an increased awareness of food and agricultural science disciplines and career opportunities, and to help them develop an enriched curriculum for training the next generation of the agricultural workforce.

Professional Development for Agricultural Literacy Grant program: Participants are expected to develop skills necessary for integrating food and agricultural science concepts in their classes; explore the opportunities available in food and agricultural science career paths; and/or forge mentorships with professional and business leaders, and faculty. Grants can be for up to $300,000 for four-year projects. Deadline for submitting an application is June 13, 2019.

Agricultural Workforce Training Grant program: The goal is to expand job-based, experiential learning opportunities that lead to the development of the food and agricultural science workforce through curriculum development at community, junior, and technical colleges/institutes. Grants can be awarded for up to $500,000. Deadline for the Letter of Intent is June 11, 2019, and the application deadline is Aug. 22, 2019.

Institutions who are eligible to apply and receive grant funding under these programs include, but are not limited to land-grant institutions, for-profit organizations other than small businesses, individuals, nonprofits with 501(c)(3) IRS status, nonprofits without 501(c)(3) IRS status, private institutions of higher ed, small businesses, state agricultural experiment stations, and state controlled institutions of higher ed.

For more information on the grants and submission details, please visit the grant announcement page on NIFA’s website.

2019 U.S. Presidential Scholars Announced

On Tuesday, Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos announced the 55th class of U.S. Presidential scholars. In total, 161 students were recognized. The U.S. Presidential Scholars announcement first included CTE students in 2016, after President Barack Obama issued a 2015 executive order. The executive order followed a 2014 letter from the Senate CTE Caucus that requested the program be expanded to include CTE scholars. ACTE worked with the co-chairs of the Senate CTE Caucus to draft the letter.

In her announcement, Secretary DeVos commended students' "hard work and commitment to excellence." The 2019 ceremony will be held on June 23. You can view the full announcement and list of scholars here. You can also view the distinguished teachers, and scholar candidates and semifinalists here. Below is the list of U.S. Presidential Scholars in CTE:

• Adrian Henry Kwiatkowski—Red Mountain HS—Mesa, AZ
• Ruth Nyagaka—Williams Field HS—Gilbert, AZ
• Won Bin Lee—Dougherty Valley HS—San Ramon, CA
• Justin Chan—Middletown HS—Middletown, DE
• Noah Rossi—Newark Charter Jr./Sr. HS—Newark, DE
• Lilyanne Kathryn Pepe—Palmetto HS—Parrish, FL
• Keerti Jessica Soundappan—Houston County HS—Kathleen, GA
• Ian Henry Carnate Acosta—Waipahu HS—Waipahu, HI
• Anuva Shandilya—Neuqua Valley HS—Naperville, IL
• Jaxon Mullinnix—Lone Tree HS—Lone Tree, IA
• Megan Niewoehner—Sumner-Fredericksburg HS—Hawkeye, IA
• Megan Elizabeth Brown—Shawsheen Valley Voc. Tech. HS—Billerica, MA
• Ruben Manasseh Banks—Jim Hill Senior HS—Jackson, MS
• Crystal Giselle Vargas—Carson HS—Carson City, NV
• Sonia Purohit—Academy for Health-Medical Science—Branchburg, NJ
• Madelaine Lebetkin—Brooklyn Tech. HS—New York, NY
• Jackson B Woodward Radcliffe—Ashely Ridge HS—Summerville, SC
• Christina Masnyy—Fife Sr. HS—Auburn, WA
• Katrina Eileen Pokorny—Waupun Sr. HS—Waupun, WI
• Matthew E. Ryherd—Reedsburg Area HS—Reedsburg, WI

President Issues Executive Order on Cybersecurity Workforce

On May 2, President Trump issued an executive order on America's cybersecurity workforce. The order is wide-ranging, but includes several workforce-related components. Parts of the order closely mirror legislation from the co-chairs of the House CTE Caucus, Reps. Jim Langevin (D-RI) and Glenn Thompson (R-PA). Their bill, H.R. 1592, the Cybersecurity Skills Integration Act, establishes a pilot program through which grants are provided to incorporate cybersecurity education into postsecondary CTE programs to meet workforce needs in critical infrastructure fields. The executive order, among other things, does the following:

• Notes that America's cybersecurity workforce is a "strategic asset" that "promote[s] American prosperity and preserve[s] peace."
• States the government "must support the development of cybersecurity skills."
• Acknowledges the "shortage of cybersecurity talent and capability," and says that "training opportunities, such as work-based learning, apprenticeships, and blended learning approaches" are needed.
• Orders the Director of the Office of Personnel Management, Secretary of Commerce and Secretary of Homeland Security to "identify a list of cybersecurity aptitude assessments" for federal agencies to use.
• Requires the Secretary of Commerce, Secretary of Homeland Security and Secretary of Education to execute recommendations from the Report to the President on Supporting the Growth and Sustainment of the Nation's Cybersecurity Workforce from a 2017 Executive Order. As part of this, consultation with various stakeholders is required, and consideration will be given to, among other things, "align[ing] education and training with employers' cybersecurity workforce needs."
• Directs the Secretary of Defense, Secretary of Transportation, Secretary of Energy, Secretary of Homeland Security, Secretary of Labor and Director of the Office of Personnel Management to report on, among other things, recommended "curricula for closing the identified skills gap for Federal personnel and steps the [U.S.] government can take to close such gaps for non-Federal personnel by, for example, supporting the development of similar curricula by education or training providers."
• Mandates the Secretary of Education develop and implement an annual "Presidential Cybersecurity Education Award" to "one elementary and one secondary school educator per year who best instill skills, knowledge, and passion with respect to cybersecurity."
• Asks the Secretary of Commerce, Secretary of Labor, Secretary of Education and Secretary of Homeland Security to encourage the voluntary integration of the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education Cybersecurity Workforce Framework (NICE Framework) "into existing education, training, and workforce development efforts undertaken by State, territorial, local, tribal, academic, non-profit and private-sector entities."

You can read the executive order in its entirety here.

House Labor-HHS-Education FY 2020 Appropriations Bill Proposes Modest Increase to Perkins Funding

On Monday, the House Appropriations Committee released the text for Fiscal Year (FY) 2020’s Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill ahead of the subcommittee mark-up scheduled today. The bill reportedly proposes an additional $37.4 million in FY 2020 for the Perkins Basic State Grant program, which would be approximately a 3% increase over FY 2019 enacted levels, potentially bringing the total appropriation level for the Perkins Basic State Grant program to around $1.3 billion. In comparison, the President’s budget request would have level-funded Perkins at $1.263 billion for FY 2020. However, while the House proposed CTE increase is higher than the level proposed by the President, it is lower than many other education programs in the bill. Overall, discretionary funding for the Department of Education would increase by 6%, or $11.7 billion, in this bill. You can read more details about other program funding levels included in the bill here or view our joint press release with Advance CTE here.

This is just the first step in the congressional appropriations process, and final funding levels for many of the programs in the bill are likely to change as the process moves forward. The next step after subcommittee consideration will be a full committee mark-up, currently scheduled for May 8. Amendments are likely to be considered during that mark-up. Once the full committee marks up and passes the bill, it will then go to the House floor for consideration by the entire House of Representatives, and a similar process will take place in the Senate before final agreement.

Complicating the final passage and agreement between the chambers on funding levels for FY 2020 are the statutory budget caps currently in place on discretionary spending—both for defense and nondefense programs. Congressional leaders are currently in the process of negotiating an increase in these caps, which will be necessary to avoid steep cuts across the federal budget and provide any of the increases suggested by the House. The exact cap agreement will have tremendous influence on the final funding numbers for education programs like Perkins.

Ask Your Senators to Support Short-Term Pell Grants

Earlier this year, Sens. Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Rob Portman (R-OH) introduced S. 839, the Jumpstart Our Businesses by Supporting Students Act of 2019, or the JOBS Act, to expand Federal Pell Grant eligibility to short-term job training programs. Currently, Federal Pell Grants are not available to postsecondary CTE students in short-term certificate programs that provide the education and skills necessary for many in-demand careers. This is because Pell Grant eligibility is limited based on a program's clock hours and/or length. As a result, many students across the country do not have access to short-term CTE programs that culminate in meaningful credentials that are proven to increase earning potentials and employment opportunities.

That's why ACTE, along with other education organizations and employers, strongly supports the JOBS Act, which would change Pell eligibility requirements to allow funding for high-quality short-term programs.

Please click here to ask your Senators to co-sponsor the JOBS Act.

We need the support of CTE advocates like yourself because an alternative bill was recently introduced that would dramatically scale back potential Pell Grant eligibility for students pursuing short-term CTE credentials. This would hamper efforts to increase access to high-quality, short-term CTE programs for all students while meeting the demand for a skilled workforce in today's economy.

Currently, only Senators Kaine, Portman, Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Cory Gardner (R-CO), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Ben Cardin (D-MD) are signed on to the JOBS Act. Click here to ask your Senators to co-sponsor the JOBS Act.

Thank you for your continued advocacy in support of CTE.

Sec. DeVos Speaks at Manufacturing Recognition and Signing Day Celebration

Last week, Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos gave remarks to a crowd of students, their families and future employers at the first ever “Manufacturing Recognition and Signing Day Celebration” at Butler Tech in Ohio. Similar to a signing day event for student-athletes, these students were being celebrated for signing job contracts with manufacturing companies they held internships with during their senior year of high school. Following the signing ceremony, Sec. Devos toured the schools precision manufacturing lab and interacted with students.

In her prepared remarks, Sec. DeVos devoted most of her time to congratulating the students on their accomplishments and reiterating the importance apprenticeship programs, like Butler Tech’s, play in offering “real-world, hands-on experiences.” 

Butler Tech is a CTE school that has five campuses, plus programs that span 50 other school locations in Ohio. ACTE has a strong relationship with Butler Tech and ardently supports the work it does in preparing students for both career and postsecondary success. In October 2017, Jon Graft, the Superintendent and CEO of Butler Tech, spoke at a Senate CTE Caucus briefing on professional development for CTE educators that ACTE helped organize.

Senate Hearing Examines Higher Ed Accountability

Last week, the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee held a hearing on reauthorizing the Higher Education Act. Specifically, the hearing focused on accountability issues. Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN) underscored the importance of identifying what information schools should report and how that information should be disseminated to students. He also spoke about strengthening accrediting agencies while simultaneously ensuring that they are not replacing local decision-makers. Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA) centered her remarks on the need for strong accountability, particularly for for-profit institutions.

At times, the hearing spotlighted the value of meaningful credentials that both align with industry needs and that increase employment and earning potentials for students. In particular, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) noted that while a four-year degree is required in some fields, the most important thing is that learners obtain the skills that employers demand, which do not always equate to a four-year degree. Sen. Mike Braun (R-IN) also discussed his experience as a businessman, noting the workforce shortages he has seen in his own business could be addressed with one- and two-year credentials.

Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) also promoted the College Transparency Act during his remarks. The bill would create a data system available to prospective students that would track important postsecondary metrics like completion rates and post-collegiate outcomes, like earning and employment data.

ACTE continues to closely monitor and be involved issues surrounding accountability in higher education, particularly as Congress considers reauthorization of the Higher Education Act.