Earlier today President Trump signed an executive order to establish the "National Council for the American Worker." The council will include senior administration officials and develop plans for how the public and private sectors should approach demand-driven education, spearhead a national campaign to address the skills gap, encourage companies to invest in their workforces and make specific policy recommendations. Additionally, the executive order established a policy advisory board to make recommendations to the council
According to remarks made by Ivanka Trump at the signing ceremony, she will lead the White House's efforts to spur economic growth through "vocational education and workforce development." In explaining the purpose of the event, the first daughter noted that "America's vocational education… should be as innovative, dynamic and successful as our people."
Similar efforts to raise awareness around workforce development and the skills gap have been launched by past administrations. For instance, former Vice President Joe Biden chaired a White House Task Force on Middle Class Working Families during the Obama Administration, which had similar aims. Nonetheless, using the presidential bully pulpit to shine a light on the important role CTE plays in helping prepare today's students for tomorrow's careers helps to increase awareness around CTE and its benefits.
In addition to the executive order, 23 companies and associations were on hand to sign the "Pledge to America's Workforce." The pledge was a commitment for those companies and associations to invest in new jobs, training opportunities, or additional opportunities for advancement within the company. The companies and organizations are listed at the bottom of this blog post. The president expressed his hope that other companies would join the existing signatories in making the pledge.
ACTE will continue to work with the Trump Administration, Congress, industry and other organizations to strengthen the nation's education and workforce development system. We will be closely monitoring any proposals to emerge from the new council, and will provide updates on the CTE Policy Watch blog accordingly.
Aerospace Industries Association
American Hotel and Lodging Association
American Trucking Association
Associated Builders and Contractors
Associated General Contractors of America
FedEx
Foxconn
General Motors
Home Depot
IBM
Internet Association
Lockheed Martin
Microsoft
National Association of Home Builders
National Restaurant Association
National Retail Federation
North America's Building Trades Union
Northrup Grumman
Raytheon
Wall and Ceiling Alliance
Society for Human Resource Management
UPS
Walmart
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