CTE Policy Watch: A blog for CTE advocates

Pandemic Disruptions in Secondary, Postsecondary and Workforce Systems

Disruptions in Postsecondary Plans: While past economic recessions have led to postsecondary enrollment increases among young adults, a recent article by the Brookings Institution finds that the recent COVID-19 recession had the opposite effect. By comparing COVID-19 recession trends to 2001 and 2008 recession trends, the following findings reveal how the pandemic disrupted postsecondary plans among young adults ages 16 to 21:

• Postsecondary enrollment among young adults during the COVID-19 recession declined by one percentage point, compared to an increase of almost two percentage points during the 2008 recession.
• The share of young adults during the COVID-19 recession who graduated from high school and weren’t enrolled in postsecondary education increased by more than 1.5 percent.
• The COVID-19 recession created a slight increase in labor market participation among young adults, compared to past recessions. However, more young adults are disengaged than in the past, neither participating in the workforce nor enrolled in postsecondary education.
• Young adults, especially those with a high school diploma or some postsecondary education, earned more during the COVID-19 recession than did young adults during the prior two recessions.

The findings show that between the uncertainty of in-person education and higher wages offered in some sectors to draw in workers, the COVID-19 pandemic forced young adults to weigh the opportunity costs of schooling and the workforce in ways that past recessions did not.

Reconnecting Young Adults: Steep enrollment declines in postsecondary education among high school graduates present a significant challenge. To understand how postsecondary institutions can re-engage young adults, Strada Education Network surveyed over 1,000 high school graduates from the classes of 2020 and 2021 who delayed their postsecondary education plans. The following summarize the survey’s findings:

• Students delayed postsecondary plans due to stress and uncertainty about COVID-19, cost, shifts to online delivery, caring for family members and health risks. Despite these stressors, 66% of respondents said they are very or extremely likely to continue their education.
• The availability of career advising supports impacted students’ ability to navigate the postsecondary process, and many respondents indicated a desire for more personalized guidance that is more respectful of individual needs and choices.
• Many students reported finances as a barrier, citing the difficulties of working while in school, uncertainty about the payoff of postsecondary education and challenges in applying for aid.
• Respondents saw career exploration, work-based learning and additional credentials as important aspects of the postsecondary education experience, highlighting the need for career navigation resources, strong employer partnerships and skill-building opportunities.

A Unified Education and Workforce System: Today, young adults increasingly need a postsecondary credential and prior work experience to obtain high-wage and high-growth careers. However, these requisites are becoming unattainable, according to researchers from the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce, due to rising postsecondary education costs, fragmented education and labor policy, and a changing skills landscape. In response, a report released by the center calls for an “all-one-system” that coalesces the efforts of pre-K-12, postsecondary and workforce systems to improve young adults’ labor market outcomes. The report identified the following key policies and practices that could shape an all-one-system:

• Encourage career exploration in elementary and middle schools through career days and field trips. For high schools and postsecondary institutions, implement work-based learning, apprenticeship programs and credit-bearing career readiness courses.
• Combine the efforts of secondary schools, postsecondary institutions and labor markets by expanding dual enrollment programs, transfer pathways and short-term job training.
• Increase transparency and coordination of postsecondary education and workforce training by publishing student outcomes data, combining education and labor policy, and inviting employers to develop work-based education.
• Ensure access to mentors and professional career counselors and equip these professionals with culturally responsive approaches to improve outcomes for underrepresented learners.
• Invest in education and labor market success beginning at the pre-K level until labor market entry by providing wraparound supports to families and free postsecondary education.

Quality Counts: EducationWeek recently released their final edition of Quality Counts 2021, which provides a K-12 school quality report card for the nation and each state. Researchers used performance data from 2018 to 2020 and scored states based on academic, finance and socioeconomic factors that impact school quality. The nation received a C grade for school quality (76.2 out of 100 possible points), which is a small increase from last year’s report card. Of all states, New Jersey received the highest score of 88.1 points and New Mexico received the lowest score at 66.7 points.

This edition of Quality Counts 2021 also included an analysis of U.S. Census Bureau Household Pulse data from spring 2021 to determine how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted teacher-student interactions and education technology. Among respondents in households with K-12 students, 81% said they had internet access, an improvement from 74% during spring 2020. However, even after a year of the pandemic, 35% of respondents with children in K-12 report their students had fewer than four days a week where they interacted with their teachers.

Build Back Better Act Compromise Framework Released

On October 28, the White House announced its compromise framework for the Build Back Better Act budget reconciliation bill and the House of Representatives released updated legislative text reflecting the most recent negotiations. While this is a step toward final passage of the bill, it is important to note that negotiations are still ongoing, and details of the framework and legislative text are subject to change. Overall, this version of the Build Back Better Act would total $1.75 trillion across policy proposals spanning from universal preschool to healthcare to clean energy and more.

While not as much as in the original $3.5 trillion proposal, the bill does provide considerable funding to CTE and workforce development. This includes $600 million for the Perkins Basic State Grant program and $100 million for the Perkins Innovation and Modernization fund over about five years. While we have made it clear that these investments do not go far enough to meet all the needs of the CTE community, they are much needed to support students across the country pursue high-wage, in-demand careers through high-quality CTE programs.

In addition to Perkins funding, the following workforce and higher education investments are being proposed in the most recent version of Build Back Better:

• $550 increase to the maximum Pell Grant; Expansion of Pell to DREAMers
• $2 billion for Dislocated Worker Employment & Training
• $1 billion for Adult Worker Employment & Training
• $1.5 billion for Youth Workforce Investment Activities
• $1 billion for Registered Apprenticeships, Youth Apprenticeships, and Pre-Apprenticeships
• $5 billion for Industry or Sector Partnership Grants
• $500 million for Postsecondary Completion and Retention Grants
• $425 million for the Health Profession Opportunity Grant program
• $300 million for the Emergency Connectivity Fund
• $113 million for Grow Your Own (GYO) Educator Preparation programs
• $700 million for Adult Education programs

Moving forward, final negotiations on the bill text are continuing and the details of this bill could change before Congress votes on the package. The timing of next steps, including a final vote, is still unclear at this time. We will continue fighting to ensure that the CTE community’s needs are heard by Congress and the Biden Administration during the final stages of negotiation.

House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Defense Workforce

On October 26, the Defense Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee held a hearing to discuss workforce development and the Department of Defense. 

Several members of the subcommittee highlighted the need for high-quality CTE programs to help prepare the future of the defense workforce. Reps. Tim Ryan (D-OH) and Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) both asked the witnesses how CTE can combat the shortage of skilled workers in the defense industry. 

Xavier Beale, vice president of trades for Newport News Shipbuilding, Huntington Ingalls Industries, noted the importance of early exposure to career opportunities and exploration. He added that schools across Virginia have implemented career connections programs to engage middle school students with welding and robotics equipment, putting them on the path to think about pursuing CTE in high school and diversifying the skilled trades workforce. 

“If students are going to choose to enter CTE training programs in high school, they need to be exposed to and sold on these career pathways as early as middle school,” said Beale. 

Hawk Carlisle, president and CEO of the National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA) emphasized that CTE is too often overlooked as a way to create career pathways into the defense industry. Carlisle called for expanding apprenticeship opportunities to help increase interest in defense manufacturing programs. 

William Bonvillian, MIT Lecturer, summed up the difficulties faced in workforce education and development:

• Workforce education has faced disinvestment by government and employers. Despite the growing workforce needs, workforce spending by both has been in decline. 
• Few federal programs reach higher technical skills and incumbent workers. We need to upskill and reskill the current workforce.
• Community colleges are underfunded.
• Colleges and universities are disconnected from workforce education. 

“We have a disconnect between work and learning,” said Bonvillian. “We have school on one side and work on the other, but few clear routes from school to job. They are disconnected.” 

Dr. Jose-Marie Griffiths, president of Dakota State University, pointed to stackable, industry-recognized credentials as another way to rapidly skill, reskill and upskill workers to fill open positions in the defense industry. 

ACTE recently updated its Sector Sheet on the aerospace and defense industries. ACTE’s Sector Sheet series is generously sponsored by Pearson. 

You can watch the full hearing here.

Updated: Arts, Media and Entertainment Sector Sheet

Recently, ACTE updated its Sector Sheet on CTE’s role in developing the arts, media and entertainment (AME) workforce with the latest labor market projections, how CTE prepares the workforce for this sector, and examples of exemplary programs in AME.

The U.S. AME industry is the largest AME market in the world and is growing rapidly in states across the nation. Nationwide, employment in AME is projected to grow faster than average and will add almost 290,000 new jobs by 2030. The fastest-growing occupations in this field include jobs for film and video editors and camera operators as well as jobs for actors. Accelerating interest in digital media and the expanding gaming industry will fuel demand for occupations like special effects artists and animators.

CTE programs are leaders in preparing youth and adults for careers in AME. One example of this on the secondary level is the Arcata Arts Institute at Arcata High School in Humboldt County, California, which features a Visual Arts program with a unique community-based curriculum. Students enroll in Master Classes taught by local artists, and Humboldt County regularly invites students to showcase their work at county arts events. Another example is the Digital Career Training program at Metro Technology Centers in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, which is taught by an award-winning short film producer and offers courses to high school and adult learners in cinematography, animation and website design. The state’s largest annual film festival, deadCenter Film Festival, invites students to work with local film directors to create short films and gain hands-on experience with virtual reality, computer-generated imagery and stop motion animation.

ACTE’s Sector Sheet series is generously supported by Pearson.

DC Digest: October 18-24

This week in Washington, both the House and Senate returned to focus on hearings and pending nominations. Both chambers will remain in session during the week of October 24 as congressional leaders hope to finalize negotiations on the budget reconciliation package. Congressional leaders are working to pare down parts of the budget reconciliation package in order to bring it closer to an overall spending amount that can gain enough votes in both the House and Senate to pass. Meanwhile, the Senate Appropriations Committee released its Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education appropriations bill, which funds education and workforce development programs, including Perkins. More details are provided below. With all of the funding-related activity happening in Congress right now, it is not too late to continue advocacy efforts and urge federal policymakers to prioritize critical investments in CTE – you can find more information about ACTE’s advocacy efforts here. As we await further action by Congress, here is the most important news from Washington this week: 

• Senate Releases FY 2022 Appropriations Bill Text: With significant attention on the budget reconciliation process, the FY 2022 appropriations bills have been on the backburner. However, with the current continuing resolution (CR) expiring on December 3, significant congressional action is needed to wrap up this work. To begin to move things forward, on October 18, the Senate Appropriations Committee released its Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education appropriations bill, which funds education and workforce development programs, including Perkins. In the Senate bill, the Perkins Basic State Grant received a $50 million increase over the FY 2021 level and $30 million over what President Biden recommended in his budget proposal in May. This total funding level, $1.38 billion, is identical to the House of Representatives’ bill that was released in July, providing a solid foundation for a potential increase for the Perkins Basic State Grant in the final appropriations bill. Learn more about the bill here. 

• Sen. Tim Kaine and Sen. Amy Klobuchar Send Letter to Congressional Leadership on Workforce Funding: Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA), a Senate CTE Caucus co-chair and member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) led 14 additional senators in a letter to President Biden, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) urging them to invest in workforce training in the Build Back Better Act. Read more, including a copy of the letter, here. 

• ACTE and Advance Send Letter on Workforce and Perkins Funding to Congressional Leaders: With negotiations on the budget reconciliation bill continuing, ACTE joined with our partners at Advance CTE to make one more push to maintain CTE funding. On October 21, we sent a letter to congressional leaders urging them to protect critical CTE and workforce development investments in the final bill. You can read the letter here. 

• Senate Confirms Department of Education Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights: On October 20, the U.S. Senate confirmed Catherine Lhamon as Assistant Secretary for the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights. Lhamon, who previously held the position during the Obama Administration, will work to combat discrimination on the basis of race, sex, and disability and to protect students’ civil rights in education. In other nomination news, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee announced a committee vote on Dr. Amy Loyd's nomination as the Assistant Secretary of OCTAE on October 26.  

• Department of Education Releases Resource on Student Mental Health: The Department of Education has released a new resource, Supporting Child and Student Social, Emotional, Behavioral and Mental Health, to provide information and resources to enhance the promotion of mental health and social and emotional well-being among children and students. This resource highlights seven key challenges to providing school- or program-based mental health support across early childhood, K–12 schools, and higher education settings, and presents seven corresponding recommendations.

CTE Advocates Take Action During Budget Reconciliation on Twitter

On October 12, ACTE launched a social media campaign to urge Members of Congress to maintain the robust funding levels provided in the budget reconciliation bill, known as the Build Back Better Act, for CTE and other workforce development programs as the final negotiations on that bill continue! 

As of October 22, 77 Tweets have been sent through ACTE’s Action Center, which facilitates delivery of emails and Tweets to Members of Congress. For those without Twitter accounts, advocates were encouraged to send a letter supporting the funding levels through the Action Center – so far, 335 letters have been sent to Capitol Hill.  

ACTE members contacted senators and representatives from California, Colorado, Florida, Iowa Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, Nebraska, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Vermont and Virginia on Twitter. Here is a sampling of the Tweets ACTE members sent to make their voices heard: 

 

 

 

 

To read more Tweets from the campaign, visit the #careerteched hashtag on Twitter! It is also not too late to participate in the campaign! It is important to continue advocacy efforts to help keep CTE top of mind for policymakers as they make key funding decisions and urge federal policymakers to prioritize critical investments in CTE. Please visit the Action Center to send a Tweet or letter to your federal policymakers today! 

Senate Releases FY 2022 Appropriations Bill Text

With significant attention on the budget reconciliation process, the FY 2022 appropriations bills have been on the back-burner. However, with the current continuing resolution (CR) expiring on December 3, significant congressional action is needed to wrap up this work. To begin to move things forward, on October 18, the Senate Appropriations Committee released its Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education appropriations bill, which funds education and workforce development programs, including Perkins. In the Senate bill, the Perkins Basic State Grant received a $50 million increase over the FY 2021 level and $30 million over what President Biden recommended in his budget proposal in May. This total funding level, $1.38 billion, is identical to the House of Representatives’ bill that was released in July, providing a solid foundation for a potential increase for the Perkins Basic State Grant in the final appropriations bill.

With the Perkins National Programs line item, the Senate bill fell short of the House bill’s $100 million competitive grant program to carry out evidence-based middle and high school career and technical education innovation programs, instead allocating just $25 million total for Perkins National Programs, including this competitive grant. That said, on a positive note, the Senate bill did not include the House’s language amending Perkins V making apprenticeship programs eligible for Basic State Grant funds. The discrepancies between the two bills will need to be hashed out between the House and the Senate over the coming weeks.

Overall, the bill allocates $98.4 billion to the Department of Education, an increase of about $25 billion over FY 2021 (although about $4.4 billion lower than the House bill and the President’s request). This would represent a historic investment in education overall, with large programs such as Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) and the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA), and Pell grants seeing considerable increases in funding. The Department of Labor would receive $13.8 billion under the Senate bill, which is a $1.3 billion increase over FY 2021.

Additional funding levels of programs relevant to the CTE community include:

• Federal Work Study – $1.23 billion, a $40 million increase over FY 2021
• ESEA Title II – Supporting Effective Instruction State Grants – $2.2 billion, a $50 million increase over FY 2021
• ESEA Title IV-A – Student Support and Academic Enrichment Grants – $1.3 billion, a $100 million increase over FY 2021
• Registered Apprenticeships – $245 million, an increase of $60 million over FY 2021
• Workforce Innovation and Opportunity (WIOA) State Grants – $2.9 billion, an increase of $93 million over FY 2021
• Adult education – $723 million, a $34 million increase over FY 2021
• National Youth Employment Program – a new program that would receive $25 million

Moving forward, the House and Senate will likely begin negotiating on a final bill that must be passed by December 3, unless Congress passes another CR on or before that date. It is not expected that the Senate will hold committee markups or entertain any amendments to its version prior to these bicameral negotiations. There is much to come over the next 6 to 8 weeks, so please stay tuned for more information and further opportunities to take action in support of CTE priorities!

DC Digest: October 11-17

This week in Washington, both the House and Senate were out of session for most of the week, but are scheduled to return the week of October 18. The most significant development during the week was that the House passed and President Biden signed into law an increase in the debt limit that will stabilize the country's financial systems and avoid a federal default until early December. A longer-term solution must now be found over the next few weeks.  In addition, congressional leaders are still negotiating on the budget reconciliation package, although there still has not been significant movement on the bill publicly. At this stage of the process, it is important to continue advocacy efforts and urge federal policymakers to prioritize critical investments in CTE – more details are provided below. As we await further action by Congress, here is the most important news from Washington this week: 

• ACTE Launches Budget Reconciliation Social Media Campaign: ACTE is calling on Congress to maintain the robust funding levels provided in the Build Back Better Act for CTE and other workforce development programs as the negotiations continue! As CTE stakeholders, it has never been more important to engage in the #careerteched conversation on Twitter to meet Members of Congress where they are and urge them to prioritize critical investments in CTE. We need your help to keep CTE programs top of mind for Members of Congress as they make key funding decisions affecting CTE! If you have a Twitter account, CLICK HERE to send a Tweet urging Members of Congress to support CTE funding in the Build Back Better Act. You can read more about the campaign here. 

• House Members Send Letter to Congressional Leadership on Workforce Funding: Over 30 House members sent a letter to congressional leaders on October 13 urging them to provide no less than the nearly $80 billion in workforce development funding that was included in the House Education and Labor Committee’s portion of the Build Back Better Act.  

• Advance CTE Announces Request for Proposals: Advance CTE is launching an effort to provide a cohort of 4-5 states with 10 months of intensive technical assistance to advance the principle(s) and actions within CTE Without Limits that are most critical to strengthening their career preparation ecosystems and providing each learner with the greatest opportunities to reach their full potential. An optional virtual office hour will be held on October 22 from 3:00-4:00 pm ET or November 3 at 3:00-4:00pm ET for an overview of the application and to ask any questions pertaining to the application and selection process. RSVP to Kate Kreamer at kkreamer@careertech.org to receive meeting information. You can learn more about this opportunity and how to apply here

• Department of Education Approves Additional ARP-ESSER Funds: The Department of Education announced that it has approved ARP-ESSER plans for Guam, Maryland, Nebraska and Virginia. ARP-ESSER funds are used to support schools and students as they reopen for in-person learning, and to help sustain the safe operation of schools. 

• Department of Labor Announces Return to In-Person Job Corps Instruction: The Department of Labor announced that Job Corps centers will reopen new student enrollment for in-person instruction and job training at Job Corps centers across the nation.

Research Roundup: Community College Enrollment

Supporting Working-age Adults: Although community colleges nationwide are experiencing historic enrollment declines due to COVID-19, interest in these institutions among working-age learners remains strong. Through large-scale surveys and interviews with adult learners, a report by Strada Education Network documents 20.5 million working-age adults that intend to enroll in a community or technical college within the next two years. The following are challenges that working-age learners who intend to go to college face and recommendations community colleges can implement to help these learners succeed:

• Guidance and coaching: About 58% of these prospective students would be first-generation students and almost half worry they won’t succeed in college. Some effective ways to increase confidence and access to information among these learners are implementing career coaching programs and mapping curricula to in-demand skills.
• Wraparound supports: Approximately 31% earn an income less than $24,000. These learners can succeed in their academics at higher rates when provided assistance with food, housing, transportation and technology, which has been shown to double completion rates.
• Flexible and affordable education: About 52% of respondents are employed full time and 53% have children. Learners with multiple responsibilities can benefit from acceleration options like prior learning assessments, which can increase the number of graduates by 20 percentage points, and on-the-job learning through apprenticeships, which can nearly triple graduation numbers.
• Equity-based approaches: More than half of respondents are Black or Latino. These learners can be supported by equity-focused practices, such as earlier advising and support with academic and career planning, which have been shown to improve enrollment and completion gaps by race.

Building Back Enrollment: To determine whether community colleges enable students to access high-quality career or transfer opportunities, the Community College Research Center created a data tool that allows users to view which credentials and programs are being completed within each state and college. Using the data tool, CCRC found misalignment in transfer opportunities between associate degree programs and bachelor’s degree programs, specifically for liberal arts and sciences programs, as well as the need for certificate and associate degree programs to improve connections to high-wage job opportunities.

Enrollment Silver Linings: The American Association of Community Colleges has outlined innovative strategies that colleges have used to increase their enrollment in fall 2021. Some colleges are focusing on recruiting high school students through dual enrollment courses. For instance, Northeastern Technical College in South Carolina created a summer program for high school students with mid-range GPAs who were at risk of falling through the cracks. This fall, all 121 participants signed up for dual enrollment courses and, owing to this and other recruitment and retention strategies, the college’s enrollment increased by 34%. Other colleges are addressing barriers to enrollment by offering free tuition for adult learners or providing transportation options. In addition, a few colleges like, Windward Community College in Hawai’i, created short-term certificates for their most popular programs.

Assessing Pandemic Predictions: When the COVID-19 pandemic closed postsecondary institutions across the country in April 2020, researchers predicted declines in enrollment, increases in transfer rates and permanent closures. To determine whether these predictions were fulfilled, the Chronicle of Higher Education published an article using fall 2020 data from the U.S. Department of Education to reveal how institutions actually fared. The following are key findings from the article:

• While overall enrollment did not decline as significantly as predicted, declines in enrollment for first-time, full-time students reached high rates across all institutions. Public two-year institutions faced the steepest declines in first-time, full-time students, at a rate of 16.5%.
• Although closures of postsecondary institutions were predicted, only 15 colleges closed permanently, merged with or were acquired by another institution. Two of these colleges were private two-year institutions and the rest were four-year universities.
• It was predicted that students would start their postsecondary education at community colleges or transfer to them at higher rates than in years past. However, transfer student enrollments at public associate-degree-granting colleges dropped by 19% in fall 2020 from the year prior.

Updated: Financial Services Sector Sheet

This fall, ACTE has updated its Sector Sheet on CTE’s role in developing the workforce for the finance sector with current labor market information, descriptions of how CTE prepares individuals for careers in financial services, and examples of exemplary programs in finance.

The U.S. economy is rapidly evolving and employers in financial services are seeking an adaptable workforce that can respond to industry changes. Employment in business and financial services is predicted to grow faster than average and will add more than 476,000 new jobs by 2029. These occupations can pay well above the national median wage, including jobs that require education below the bachelor’s degree level. For example, insurance sales agents earn more than $52,000 annually, on average, while claims adjusters, appraisers, examiners and investigators make $68,000 – more if they work for the federal government.

CTE programs are at the forefront of preparing individuals for financial services careers. On the secondary level, the Academy of Finance at Como Park Senior High School in Saint Paul, Minnesota, offers a rigorous, cohort-based program. The academy, which received Advance CTE’s Excellence in Action Award in 2019, includes extensive work-based learning opportunities such as the on-campus Hiway Federal Credit Union branch. Students can receive up to 16 college credits as well as a business certificate from Saint Paul College. On the postsecondary level, the Applied Finance Institute at Metropolitan Community College (MCC) in Nebraska gives students access to high-demand credentials in the field of finance. In 2020, the Applied Finance Institute began offering a financial counseling certificate program, making MCC the first community college in the nation to provide a pathway to becoming an Accredited Financial Counselor®. All programs at the Applied Finance Institute offer opportunities for students to stack credentials or articulate to an Associate in Applied Science degree in Business Administration.

ACTE’s Sector Sheet series is generously supported by Pearson.