What This Bill Does
This bill directs the Secretary of Labor to award grants to partnerships that develop, manage, and evaluate apprenticeship programs focused on early childhood education. The grants will support training programs that equip workers with the skills needed to work in early childhood education settings. The bill also requires the Secretary of Agriculture to change regulations affecting licensed child care providers.
Who It Affects
Eligible partnerships (which include employers like schools and child care centers working with colleges), apprentices in early childhood education programs, institutions of higher education, labor organizations, workforce agencies, community-based organizations, state and local education agencies, Indian Tribes, and licensed child care providers.
Key Provisions
* The Secretary of Labor shall award grants to eligible partnerships to pay for up to 75 percent of the costs of developing, managing, and evaluating early childhood education apprenticeships (Sec. 2(b) and 2(h)).
* Grant funds must be used to teach apprentices the specialized knowledge and skills needed for early childhood education work, increase program completion rates, support career advancement, and evaluate long-term outcomes of apprentices (Sec. 2(d)(1)).
* Grant recipients must submit annual reports to the Secretary evaluating which program strategies increased the number of apprentices and improved retention rates, plus data on how many people completed educational credentials (Sec. 2(g)).
* The Secretary shall award no more than 20 grants in each fiscal year, and each grant lasts 3 years (Sec. 2(f)).
* The Secretary of Labor shall prioritize partnerships that include Indian Tribes, serve minority populations, operate in states with credit transfer agreements, or dedicate at least 25 percent of funds to underserved or rural communities (Sec. 2(e)).
What Changes
If this becomes law, the federal government will begin awarding grants to early childhood education apprenticeship programs. The Secretary of Agriculture will also revise its regulations to exclude licensed child care providers from certain loan restrictions.
Important Definitions
* "Apprentice" means a person participating in a registered apprenticeship program focused on early childhood education.
* "Registered apprenticeship program" means a program registered under the National Apprenticeship Act (from August 16, 1937).
* "Credential or degree" means a high school diploma, high school equivalent, secondary or postsecondary certificate, or postsecondary degree (like an associate's or bachelor's degree).
* "Eligible partnership" means employers (including schools and child care centers) partnered with a college or university, and may include labor organizations, workforce agencies, economic development agencies, community groups, school districts, and support service providers.
II
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
S. 236
To direct the Secretary of Labor to award grants to develop, administer,
and evaluate early childhood education apprenticeships, and for other
purposes.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
FEBRUARY 2, 2023
Mr. YOUNG (for himself, Mr. CASEY, and Mrs. CAPITO) introduced the fol-
lowing bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
A BILL
To direct the Secretary of Labor to award grants to develop,
administer, and evaluate early childhood education ap-
prenticeships, 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 ‘‘Early Educators Ap-
4
prenticeship Act’’.
5
SEC. 2. GRANTS FOR APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAMS.
6
(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:
7
(1)
APPRENTICE.—The
term
‘‘apprentice’’
8
means an individual participating in a registered ap-
9
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•S 236 IS
prenticeship program focused on early childhood
1
education.
2
(2) APPRENTICESHIP.—Except when used in
3
referring to or defining the term ‘‘registered appren-
4
ticeship program’’, the term ‘‘apprenticeship’’ means
5
a registered apprenticeship program that trains ap-
6
prentices.
7
(3) CREDENTIAL OR DEGREE.—The term ‘‘cre-
8
dential or degree’’ means a recognized secondary or
9
postsecondary credential, a high school diploma or
10
its recognized equivalent, or a postsecondary degree
11
(including an associate, baccalaureate, or other de-
12
gree).
13
(4) ELIGIBLE PARTNERSHIP.—The term ‘‘eligi-
14
ble partnership’’ means a partnership that—
15
(A) includes an individual employer or a
16
consortium of employers (including schools and
17
child care centers and family child care pro-
18
viders), and an institution of higher education;
19
and
20
(B) may include one or more—
21
(i) labor organizations;
22
(ii) workforce intermediaries;
23
(iii) economic development agencies;
24
(iv) community-based organizations;
25
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•S 236 IS
(v) State educational agencies or local
1
educational agencies, as such terms are de-
2
fined in section 8101 of the Elementary
3
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20
4
U.S.C. 7801); and
5
(vi) providers of support or specialized
6
services for apprentices.
7
(5) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The
8
term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the
9
meaning given the term in section 101, and subpara-
10
graphs (A) and (B) of section 102(a)(1), of the
11
Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001,
12
1002(a)(1)).
13
(6) REGISTERED APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM.—
14
The term ‘‘registered apprenticeship program’’
15
means an apprenticeship program registered under
16
the Act of August 16, 1937 (commonly known as
17
the ‘‘National Apprenticeship Act’’; 50 Stat. 664,
18
chapter 663; 29 U.S.C. 50 et seq.), including any re-
19
quirement, standard, or rule promulgated under
20
such Act as in effect on December 30, 2019.
21
(7) SECRETARY.—Except as otherwise specifi-
22
cally provided, the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Sec-
23
retary of Labor.
24
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(8) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of
1
the several States, the District of Columbia, and the
2
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
3
(b) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary, in consulta-
4
tion with the Secretary of Health and Human Services
5
and the Secretary of Education, shall award grants to eli-
6
gible partnerships to pay the Federal share of the costs
7
of developing, administering, and evaluating apprentice-
8
ships.
9
(c) APPLICATION.—An eligible partnership seeking a
10
grant under this Act shall submit an application to the
11
Secretary for approval at such time, in such manner, and
12
containing such information as the Secretary may require.
13
(d) USES OF FUNDS.—
14
(1) REQUIRED
USES.—A grant under sub-
15
section (b) shall be used for activities that develop,
16
administer, and evaluate an apprenticeship, includ-
17
ing—
18
(A) equipping apprentices with specialized
19
knowledge, skills, and competencies required to
20
work in early childhood education;
21
(B) increasing the number of individuals
22
who complete an apprenticeship program and
23
obtain a credential or degree or a certificate of
24
completion of an apprenticeship program, in-
25
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•S 236 IS
cluding increasing such number in areas that
1
are underserved or rural;
2
(C) promoting recruitment and retention of
3
apprentices;
4
(D) providing a pathway to career ad-
5
vancement for apprentices by assisting such ap-
6
prentices in completing an apprenticeship;
7
(E) providing for evaluation and longitu-
8
dinal data regarding apprentices participating
9
in the program to determine long-term out-
10
comes, including information needed for pur-
11
poses of subsections (g) and (i);
12
(F) supporting partnerships with institu-
13
tions of higher education in the State in which
14
the eligible partnership serves, or will serve, ap-
15
prentices, businesses, and other entities partici-
16
pating in an apprenticeship to provide for—
17
(i) the award of postsecondary aca-
18
demic credit for related instruction or on-
19
the-job training provided through the ap-
20
prenticeship; and
21
(ii) the application of such credit to-
22
ward a credential or degree from an insti-
23
tution in the partnership; and
24
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•S 236 IS
(G) developing strategies to hire and retain
1
qualified supervisors for apprentices that sup-
2
port such apprentices through—
3
(i) professional development;
4
(ii) mentorship;
5
(iii) evaluation; and
6
(iv) training.
7
(2) PERMITTED USES.—In addition to the re-
8
quirements under paragraph (1), a grant under sub-
9
section (b) may be used—
10
(A) in cooperation with the State agency
11
responsible for apprenticeships in the State in
12
which the eligible partnership serves or will
13
serve apprentices, to create or maintain a state-
14
wide resource database for businesses, institu-
15
tions of higher education, or other entities par-
16
ticipating in an apprenticeship to share best
17
practices, curricula, and other resources that di-
18
rectly contribute to administering an effective
19
apprenticeship;
20
(B) to establish primary indicators of per-
21
formance with respect to apprentices and indi-
22
viduals who have completed an apprenticeship
23
to be shared on any workforce registry of such
24
State and the registered apprenticeship pro-
25
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•S 236 IS
gram data system maintained by the Secretary
1
of Labor, including—
2
(i) the percentage of individuals who
3
have completed an apprenticeship and re-
4
main employed full-time in early childhood
5
education—
6
(I) 6 months after completing
7
such apprenticeship; and
8
(II) 1 year after completing such
9
apprenticeship;
10
(ii) the median earnings of individuals
11
who have completed an apprenticeship and
12
are employed full-time in early childhood
13
education within 6 months after com-
14
pleting such apprenticeship;
15
(iii) the percentage of apprentices who
16
obtain a credential or degree while partici-
17
pating in an apprenticeship; and
18
(iv) the percentage of individuals who
19
have completed an apprenticeship and who
20
begin or obtain a credential or degree with-
21
in 1 year after completing the apprentice-
22
ship; and
23
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(C) to pay the costs of tuition and fees for
1
apprentices enrolled in programs of education
2
leading to a credential or degree.
3
(e) PRIORITY.—The Secretary shall prioritize eligible
4
partnerships that—
5
(1) include in the eligible partnership, or have
6
developed partnerships with—
7
(A) Indian Tribes in the State in which the
8
eligible partnership serves or will serve appren-
9
tices; or
10
(B) institutions of higher education that
11
serve minority populations;
12
(2) operate or serve an apprenticeship program
13
in a State that has a statewide credit articulation
14
agreement in place that ensures credit transfer be-
15
tween participating institutions of higher education
16
in the State and other relevant credential programs;
17
or
18
(3) provide an assurance that not less than 25
19
percent of the grant funds will be used to support
20
apprenticeships in underserved or rural commu-
21
nities.
22
(f) GRANT TERM AND LIMITATION.—
23
(1) TERM.—The term of a grant made under
24
this Act shall be 3 years.
25
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(2) LIMITATION.—The Secretary shall award no
1
greater than 20 grants under this section each fiscal
2
year.
3
(g) GRANT RECIPIENT EVALUATION AND REPORT.—
4
Not later than 1 year after receiving a grant under this
5
Act, and annually thereafter for the duration of the grant,
6
an eligible partnership shall submit to the Secretary a re-
7
port containing—
8
(1) an evaluation of the eligible partnership’s
9
apprenticeships to determine which program strate-
10
gies made progress toward—
11
(A) increasing the aggregate number of ap-
12
prentices; and
13
(B) increasing the retention rates of ap-
14
prentices; and
15
(2) the number of individuals served by the
16
grant who are enrolled in, or completed, an edu-
17
cational
credential,
in
the
aggregate
and
18
disaggregated by type of credential or degree (in-
19
cluding secondary school diploma, the recognized
20
equivalent of a secondary school diploma, a certifi-
21
cate, a credential, an associate degree, a bacca-
22
laureate degree, and any other category of secondary
23
or postsecondary credential) and as applicable, by
24
specific educational program within the credential or
25
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•S 236 IS
degree (including, if applicable, a child development
1
associate credential).
2
(h) COST-SHARING.—
3
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Federal share of the
4
cost of any activity carried out using a grant made
5
under this Act shall be not more than 75 percent.
6
(2) IN-KIND
CONTRIBUTIONS.—The non-Fed-
7
eral share of the total cost of any activity carried
8
out using a grant made under this Act may be in
9
the form of donations or in-kind contributions of
10
goods or services fairly valued.
11
(i) REPORT.—Not later than 5 years after the date
12
of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to
13
Congress a report on the effectiveness of each eligible
14
partnership that received a grant under this Act to de-
15
velop, administer, and evaluate apprenticeships, including
16
evaluating—
17
(1) any increase in the number of apprentices
18
in early childhood education;
19
(2) any increase in the retention rates of indi-
20
viduals who work in early childhood education after
21
completing an apprenticeship;
22
(3) the career path of apprentices and individ-
23
uals who have completed an apprenticeship; and
24
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•S 236 IS
(4) any increase in the number of credentials
1
and degrees obtained by apprentices.
2
(j) FUNDING.—To carry out the grant program
3
under this Act, the Secretary shall use amounts allocated
4
under section 414(c) of the American Competitiveness and
5
Workforce Improvement Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 3224a).
6
SEC. 3. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE LOAN RESTRIC-
7
TIONS.
8
The Secretary of Agriculture shall revise section
9
3555.102(c) of title 7, Code of Federal Regulations, to ex-
10
clude a business that is a licensed child care provider.
11
Æ
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