I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 3893 To direct the Secretary of Education to establish a program that awards grants to State coalitions that build or expand career pathways programs in schools within the State, and to direct the Secretary of Education to establish a program that awards grants to eligible agencies to carry out career pathways programs. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JULY 23, 2019 Mr. HARDER of California introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor A BILL To direct the Secretary of Education to establish a program that awards grants to State coalitions that build or ex- pand career pathways programs in schools within the State, and to direct the Secretary of Education to estab- lish a program that awards grants to eligible agencies to carry out career pathways programs. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This act may be cited as the ‘‘School to Career Path- 4 ways Act of 2019’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Aug 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3893.IH H3893 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HR 3893 IH SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 1 Congress finds the following: 2 (1) In every congressional district, career and 3 technical education programs and career-connected 4 pathways programs play a vital role in ensuring 5 workers remain competitive in high-wage, high-skill, 6 and in-demand career fields, including information 7 technology, health care, and the skilled trades, all of 8 which have hundreds of thousands of job openings 9 across the United States. 10 (2) Every student should have access to career 11 and technical education opportunities to learn how 12 their academic background will prepare them for 13 postsecondary education and a career. 14 (3) Curriculum and course offerings should not 15 be based on the assumption that every student has 16 the same academic needs, interests, and goals. In- 17 stead, schools should prepare students for their indi- 18 vidualized career goals by providing opportunities for 19 students to discover and delve into their interests. 20 These opportunities may include career and tech- 21 nical education, personalized learning, apprentice- 22 ships, early college and dual enrollment, and lan- 23 guage immersion programs. 24 (4) Specifically, career and technical education 25 and dual enrollment programs integrate classroom 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Aug 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3893.IH H3893 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HR 3893 IH learning with technical, job-specific skills to prepare 1 students for high-skill careers in industries such as 2 information technology, manufacturing, health 3 science, nursing, medical professions, construction, 4 engineering, and more. Under the Carl D. Perkins 5 Vocational and Technical Education Act (20 U.S.C. 6 2301), States receive funding to integrate career 7 pathway programs with academic learning for stu- 8 dents who choose to enroll in career and technical 9 education programs. 10 (5) Career and technical education programs 11 currently serve 12,500,000 high school and college 12 students and boast a graduation rate of about 90 13 percent, which is 15 percent higher than the na- 14 tional average. 15 (6) Career-connected learning programs, which 16 integrate college preparatory academics, technical 17 training, work-based learning, and support, have had 18 positive outcomes for students. 19 (7) Six out of ten students plan to pursue a ca- 20 reer related to the career-connected learning pro- 21 grams they are exploring in high school. 22 (8) According to the Census Bureau 33.4 per- 23 cent of individuals in the United States hold college 24 degrees as of 2017, which falls drastically short of 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Aug 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3893.IH H3893 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •HR 3893 IH meeting the national need for skilled labor and dem- 1 onstrates that traditional college career paths only 2 work for about 30 percent of individuals in the 3 United States. 4 (9) While career and technical education models 5 have been piloted across the United States, grant 6 programs need to be expanded to encourage addi- 7 tional school districts to offer students opportunities 8 for career-connected learning, including apprentice- 9 ships, and project-based learning pathways. 10 (10) Career and technical education programs 11 should incentivize school districts to offer summer 12 internships or course credit through opportunities 13 created by business and community partnerships. 14 SEC. 3. STATE SKILLS EDUCATION COALITIONS. 15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Beginning not later than 90 days 16 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 17 of Education shall award grants to States to establish a 18 statewide career pathways coalition (in this section re- 19 ferred to as a ‘‘coalition’’). 20 (b) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—Any State agency respon- 21 sible for carrying out educational programs in a State 22 shall be eligible for a grant awarded under subsection (a). 23 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—Funds made available under 24 such a grant shall be used for— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Aug 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3893.IH H3893 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •HR 3893 IH (1) convening employers to discuss local work- 1 force needs and trends; 2 (2) reaching out to local and regional public or 3 private partners and conducting research into local 4 workforce needs and trends; 5 (3) promoting skill standards and career paths 6 that match local employers’ needs; 7 (4) helping to improve and govern the work- 8 force development system; 9 (5) bringing together businesses, faith-based 10 and community organizations, educational institu- 11 tions, labor unions, social service agencies, and other 12 providers to implement programs and policies to im- 13 prove labor market outcomes; 14 (6) increasing economic mobility for workers; 15 and 16 (7) increasing awareness of programs and re- 17 lated economic opportunities. 18 (d) CONDITIONS.—As a condition for receipt of funds 19 under such a grant, a State agency shall require a coali- 20 tion to do the following: 21 (1) Develop State plans for how to expand on 22 existing evidence-based programs that are effectively 23 providing nontraditional paths to students and rec- 24 ommendations on new programs that would provide 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Aug 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3893.IH H3893 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •HR 3893 IH both academic and real-world work experience (such 1 as student apprenticeships, dual programs, career- 2 connected or integrated programs that provide con- 3 current credit). 4 (2) Establish a statewide career-connected 5 learning system. 6 (3) Promote diversity among apprentices by 7 promoting outreach to underrepresented populations 8 such as women and minorities, youth, individuals 9 with disabilities (as defined in section 3 of the Amer- 10 icans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 11 12102)), and veterans. 12 (4) Provide the Governor of the State and Sec- 13 retary a list of findings and recommendations of the 14 coalition regarding the elements of a successful 15 statewide career-connected learning system. 16 (5) Not later than 18 months after the date of 17 the enactment of this Act, create a detailed and spe- 18 cific 4-year action plan for how the State school sys- 19 tem can implement a statewide career-connected 20 learning system, with a timeline for the implementa- 21 tion, and projected funding requirements of such 22 system. 23 (6) Not later than 2 years after the provision 24 of such plan, the coalition shall report on the imple- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Aug 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3893.IH H3893 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •HR 3893 IH mentation and success of its plan, including best 1 practices, and recommendations for improvement. 2 (e) MEMBERSHIP.— 3 (1) NUMBER AND APPOINTMENT.—Each coali- 4 tion established through funds received under such 5 a grant shall be comprised of— 6 (A) at least one individual recommended 7 by the State’s Public University Board or its 8 equivalent representatives (as determined by the 9 Governor); and 10 (B) a minimum of 9 individuals who have 11 public and private career or technical education 12 experience, including course instruction, se- 13 lected by the chief State school officer with ap- 14 proval from the State Board of Education or its 15 equivalent and State Public University Board 16 or its equivalent. 17 (2) COMPOSITION.—The coalition shall be rep- 18 resentative of the State’s geographical diversity. All 19 geographical regions (as determined by the chief 20 State school officer) must be represented by a min- 21 imum of one education stakeholder and one public or 22 private industry stakeholder. A regional representa- 23 tive may be determined by residence or location of 24 primary employment. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Aug 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3893.IH H3893 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •HR 3893 IH (f) TERMINATION.—Federal funds received under 1 such a grant shall terminate on the day after 6 years from 2 the enactment of this Act. 3 SEC. 4. SECONDARY SCHOOL TO CAREER PATHWAYS INNO- 4 VATION GRANT PROGRAM. 5 (a) CAREER PATHWAYS INNOVATION GRANT PRO- 6 GRAM ESTABLISHED.— 7 (1) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made avail- 8 able to carry out this section, the Secretary, after 9 consultation with the Secretary of Labor, shall es- 10 tablish a career pathways innovation grant program, 11 through which the Secretary shall award grants, on 12 a competitive basis, to eligible agencies for the pur- 13 pose of addressing the specialized skill needs of busi- 14 ness and industry by carrying out programs of study 15 and career pathways programs through school part- 16 nerships that support career pathways in high school 17 and career exploration in the middle grades. 18 (2) DURATION.—A grant awarded under this 19 section— 20 (A) shall be for a period of 3 years; and 21 (B) may be renewed for one additional 2- 22 year period, if the eligible agency demonstrates 23 sufficient progress in achieving the goals of the 24 initial grant. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Aug 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3893.IH H3893 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 •HR 3893 IH (b) APPLICATION.— 1 (1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible agency desiring a 2 grant under this section shall submit to the Sec- 3 retary an application at such time, in such manner, 4 and containing such information as the Secretary 5 may require, and in accordance with requirements 6 under the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical 7 Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2301 et seq.). 8 (2) CONTENTS; PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT.— 9 The application submitted under paragraph (1) shall 10 include— 11 (A) an initial partnership agreement, en- 12 tered into by the eligible agency and all mem- 13 bers of the school partnership, that— 14 (i) specifies the duties and responsibil- 15 ities of each partner; 16 (ii) describes the commitment of re- 17 sources or materials to be provided by each 18 partner toward the school partnership, en- 19 suring that the business or industry part- 20 ners in the school partnership provide an 21 amount of resources, in cash or in-kind, to- 22 ward the activities supported under the 23 grant that equals or exceeds the amount 24 contributed by the eligible agency and the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Aug 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3893.IH H3893 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 •HR 3893 IH amount to be provided by the grant under 1 this section; and 2 (iii) describes how the overall goals of 3 the school partnership align with any 4 statewide or regional workforce develop- 5 ment strategies in existence at the time of 6 the application, including those established 7 under the Workforce Innovation and Op- 8 portunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3101 et seq.) or 9 the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical 10 Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2301 et 11 seq.); 12 (B) a description of how the eligible agency 13 and members of the school partnership will col- 14 laborate to ensure the quality of the career 15 pathways program offered under the grant, in- 16 cluding any program that leads to an industry- 17 recognized credential or recognized postsec- 18 ondary credential earned as part of a career 19 pathway; 20 (C) identification of the goals and meas- 21 ures used to define progress toward student 22 outcomes; and 23 (D) a strategic plan describing the role 24 and activities of the eligible agency and all 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Aug 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3893.IH H3893 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 •HR 3893 IH members of the school partnership in sup- 1 porting how the program will be sustained fol- 2 lowing the end of the grant. 3 (c) AWARD BASIS.—In awarding grants under this 4 section, the Secretary shall— 5 (1) ensure that, to the extent practicable based 6 on the applications received under subsection (b)— 7 (A) not less than 15 percent of the grant 8 funds available to carry out this section are 9 awarded to rural eligible agencies; and 10 (B) not less than 5 percent of the grant 11 funds available to carry out this section are 12 awarded to eligible agencies that serve a sub- 13 stantial percentage of Indian or Native Hawai- 14 ian children; and 15 (2) except to the extent necessary to comply 16 with paragraph (1), give priority to— 17 (A) any eligible agency whose school part- 18 nership includes an institution of higher edu- 19 cation offering postsecondary credits, or an en- 20 tity offering a registered apprenticeship pro- 21 gram that is articulated through secondary 22 school programming counting towards the reg- 23 istered apprenticeship requirements, through 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Aug 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3893.IH H3893 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 •HR 3893 IH the career pathways program under the grant; 1 and 2 (B) any eligible agency whose career path- 3 ways program— 4 (i) in a high school, offers concurrent 5 enrollment opportunities for postsecondary 6 credit; or 7 (ii) leads to an industry-recognized 8 credential. 9 (d) USE OF FUNDS.— 10 (1) REQUIRED USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible 11 agency receiving grant funds under this section shall 12 use grant funds to build or [Text truncated for display. 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