Supporting Apprenticeship Colleges Act of 2023

II 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 1516 To authorize funding to expand and support enrollment at institutions of higher education that sponsor construction and manufacturing-oriented registered apprenticeship programs, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MAY 10, 2023 Ms. SMITH introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions A BILL To authorize funding to expand and support enrollment at institutions of higher education that sponsor construction and manufacturing-oriented registered apprenticeship programs, and for other purposes. 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 ‘‘Supporting Appren- 4 ticeship Colleges Act of 2023’’. 5 SEC. 2. COMMUNITY OUTREACH GRANT PROGRAM. 6 (a) IN GENERAL.—From the amounts appropriated 7 under subsection (f), the Secretary, in consultation with 8 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:02 May 19, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1516.IS S1516 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •S 1516 IS the Secretary of Labor, shall provide grants to eligible en- 1 tities for the purposes of expanding or supporting poten- 2 tial student and employer outreach carried out by such 3 entities with respect to the construction and manufac- 4 turing-oriented registered apprenticeship programs offered 5 by such entities. 6 (b) AMOUNTS.—The total grant amount made to an 7 eligible entity under this section may not exceed $500,000. 8 (c) USE OF GRANTS.—An eligible entity that receives 9 a grant under this section shall use such grant for the 10 outreach described in subsection (a), which shall include 11 the following: 12 (1) Outreach to high schools, for the purpose of 13 educating students, parents, guardians, and faculty 14 on the benefits of enrolling students in the construc- 15 tion and manufacturing-oriented registered appren- 16 ticeship program offered by the eligible entity. 17 (2) Outreach to local businesses and other po- 18 tential employers for the purpose of educating such 19 employers on the benefits of supporting and hiring 20 graduates of such program, which shall— 21 (A) primarily target relationship building 22 with potential employers in rural, exurban, and 23 suburban areas; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:02 May 19, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1516.IS S1516 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •S 1516 IS (B) seek to maximize the number of stu- 1 dents who work in such areas after completing 2 such program. 3 (3) Outreach to local workforce development 4 boards and apprenticeship intermediaries for the 5 purpose of reaching nontraditional student popu- 6 lations and prioritizing local needs. 7 (d) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—An eligible enti- 8 ty seeking a grant under this section shall submit an appli- 9 cation to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and 10 containing such information as the Secretary may require. 11 (e) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this sec- 12 tion, the Secretary shall give priority to eligible entities 13 that demonstrate outreach efforts targeted at increasing 14 program enrollment for rural students, first generation 15 college students, minority students, and nontraditional 16 students, or other students from underrepresented popu- 17 lation. 18 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 19 are authorized to be appropriated $5,000,000 to carry out 20 this section for each of the fiscal years 2024 through 21 2028. 22 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:02 May 19, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1516.IS S1516 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •S 1516 IS SEC. 3. STUDENT SUPPORT GRANT PROGRAM FOR EX- 1 PANDED ACADEMIC ADVISING. 2 (a) IN GENERAL.—From the amounts appropriated 3 under subsection (g), the Secretary, in consultation with 4 the Secretary of Labor, shall provide grants to eligible en- 5 tities for the activities described in subsection (d). 6 (b) AMOUNTS.—The total grant amount made to an 7 eligible entity under this section may not exceed $500,000. 8 (c) MULTIPLE GRANTS PERMITTED.—An eligible en- 9 tity may receive a grant under sections 2 and 3. 10 (d) USE OF GRANTS.— 11 (1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity that re- 12 ceives a grant under this section shall use such 13 grant for advising and support services to enrollees 14 of construction and manufacturing-oriented reg- 15 istered apprenticeship programs offered by such en- 16 tity to increase retention, persistence, and comple- 17 tion for students. 18 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—Such advising and sup- 19 port services shall include the following: 20 (A) Expanding academic advising pro- 21 grams that provide services to students, includ- 22 ing— 23 (i) career advising and professional 24 development; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:02 May 19, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1516.IS S1516 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •S 1516 IS (ii) support for English as a second 1 language students; 2 (iii) information and resource systems; 3 (iv) mentoring systems; or 4 (v) other similar advising activities 5 that support enrollment, retention, persist- 6 ence, and completion. 7 (B) Expanding student support programs 8 that provide services to students, including— 9 (i) health and family-related services, 10 including substance abuse disorder and 11 mental health counseling; 12 (ii) support for first generation college 13 students; 14 (iii) childcare support; or 15 (iv) other similar support activities. 16 (e) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—An eligible enti- 17 ty seeking a grant under this section shall submit an appli- 18 cation to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and 19 containing such information as the Secretary may require. 20 (f) REPORT.— 21 (1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity that re- 22 ceives a grant under this section shall submit to the 23 Secretary a report on— 24 (A) the activities supported by the grant; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:02 May 19, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1516.IS S1516 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •S 1516 IS (B) the number of students participating 1 in the activities supported by the grant; 2 (C) the percentage of students partici- 3 pating in the activities supported by the grant 4 who are high school students; 5 (D) the progress made in achieving the 6 goals of the program supported by the grant, in 7 general, and measuring in particular— 8 (i) the effectiveness of the grant in ex- 9 panding overall enrollment and program 10 and apprenticeship completion rates and 11 certification; 12 (ii) the effectiveness of the grant in 13 expanding enrollment and program comple- 14 tion rates for underrepresented popu- 15 lations; and 16 (iii) any progress made towards the 17 type of indicators of performance as de- 18 scribed in section 116(b)(2)(A) of the 19 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity (29 20 U.S.C. 3141(b)(2)(A)); and 21 (E) such other information as the Sec- 22 retary determines to be appropriate. 23 (2) TIMELINE FOR SUBMISSION OF REPORT.— 24 The report under paragraph (1) shall be submitted 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:02 May 19, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1516.IS S1516 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •S 1516 IS to the Secretary not later than 180 days after the 1 date on which the eligible entity concludes the activi- 2 ties supported by the grant under this section. 3 (g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 4 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 5 $5,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2024 through 6 2028. 7 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 8 In this Act: 9 (1) CONSTRUCTION AND MANUFACTURING-ORI- 10 ENTED APPRENTICESHIP COLLEGE.—The term 11 ‘‘construction and manufacturing-oriented appren- 12 ticeship college’’ means an institution of higher edu- 13 cation that is a sponsor of a construction and manu- 14 facturing-oriented registered apprenticeship pro- 15 gram. 16 (2) CONSTRUCTION AND MANUFACTURING-ORI- 17 ENTED REGISTERED APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM.— 18 The term ‘‘construction and manufacturing-oriented 19 registered apprenticeship program’’ means a reg- 20 istered apprenticeship program that— 21 (A) provides coursework and training in 22 preparation for employment in the construction 23 or manufactory industry (such as employment 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:02 May 19, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1516.IS S1516 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •S 1516 IS as a painter, drywall finisher, glazier, or glass- 1 worker); 2 (B)(i) leads to a recognized postsecondary 3 credential other than a certificate of completion 4 of an apprenticeship; or 5 (ii) awards credits that can be applied to- 6 ward a recognized postsecondary credential at 7 least at the institution that sponsors the pro- 8 gram; and 9 (C) is accredited by a nationally recognized 10 accrediting agency or association recognized by 11 the Secretary pursuant to part H of title IV of 12 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 13 1099a et seq.). 14 (3) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti- 15 ty’’ means a construction and manufacturing-ori- 16 ented apprenticeship college. 17 (4) FIRST GENERATION COLLEGE STUDENT.— 18 The term ‘‘first generation college student’’ has the 19 meaning given the term in section 402A(h) of the 20 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070a– 21 11(h)). 22 (5) HIGH SCHOOL.—The term ‘‘high school’’ 23 has the meaning given the term in section 8101 of 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:02 May 19, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1516.IS S1516 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •S 1516 IS the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 2 (6) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 3 term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the 4 meaning given the term in section 101(a) of the 5 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)). 6 (7) OUTREACH.—The term ‘‘outreach’’ means 7 communications and relationship-building opportuni- 8 ties undertaken by an eligible entity. 9 (8) RECOGNIZED POSTSECONDARY CREDEN- 10 TIAL.—The term ‘‘recognized postsecondary creden- 11 tial’’ has the meaning given the term in section 3 of 12 the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 13 U.S.C. 3102). 14 (9) REGISTERED APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM.— 15 The term ‘‘registered apprenticeship program’’ 16 means an apprenticeship program registered under 17 the Act of August 16, 1937 (commonly known as 18 the ‘‘National Apprenticeship Act’’; 50 Stat. 664, 19 chapter 663; 29 U.S.C. 50 et seq.). 20 (10) SECOND LANGUAGE.—The term ‘‘second 21 language’’ means any language other than English, 22 including Braille and American Sign Language. 23 (11) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 24 means the Secretary of Education. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:02 May 19, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1516.IS S1516 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 •S 1516 IS (12) UNDERREPRESENTED POPULATION.—The 1 term ‘‘underrepresented population’’ means an indi- 2 vidual who is from a group whose gender, ethnic 3 background, or national origin is not traditionally 4 represented in registered apprenticeship programs. 5 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:02 May 19, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S1516.IS S1516 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS