Last week, Congress held multiple hearings pertaining to education and workforce development, with testimony from both Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, and Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su. Meanwhile the Departments of Education and Labor continued to stay busy, working on FAFSA processing and preparing for their first Youth Apprenticeship Week, May 5-11. Keep reading for more details!
- Kaine Reintroduces Bill to Expand Skills Training for New Infrastructure Jobs: Senator Kaine reintroduced the Building U.S. Infrastructure by Leveraging Demands for Skills (BUILDS) Act. The legislation would help develop high-quality work-based learning programs to train workers for in-demand infrastructure careers, and ACTE has endorsed this bill.
- House Committee on Education and the Workforce Holds Hearing “Examining the Policies and Priorities of the Department of Labor”: The House Committee on Education and the Workforce heard testimony from Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su regarding various topics impacting the Department and the American workforce today, including Registered Apprenticeship, WIOA, and other job training, CTE and workforce development initiatives. Read more on the CTE Policy Watch Blog.
- Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 CTE Earmarks Analysis: ACTE has analyzed the Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 omnibus appropriations bill signed into law in March 2024, which contained over 130 earmarks that awarded funding to educational institutions, government agencies and nonprofit partners related to CTE and workforce development. Read more on the CTE Policy Watch Blog to get ideas for future requests.
- Youth Apprenticeship Week: May 5-11, the Departments of Education and Labor are celebrating the first Youth Apprenticeship Week, designated to uplift and promote the opportunities available for young people to gain in-demand skills and prepare for the workforce. Tune into the “Investing in America” Agenda: Registered Apprenticeship and Other Pathways for Opportunity Youth webinar to learn more, and follow ACTE’s public policy social media (@ACTEpolicy) to keep up with Youth Apprenticeship Week content!
- New Training at the Registered Apprenticeship Academy: The Registered Apprenticeship Academy shared newly published training modules available to Registered Apprenticeship Sponsors, registration agencies and Department of Labor-funded investment partners.
- Biden Administration Will Rework Policies For Federal Tech Employees: The Administration announced this week that there will be a new focus on skills-based hiring, and a focus on testing candidates for capabilities instead of relying educational credentials to qualify job-seekers for federal IT roles.
- Department of Education Completes Processing for Impacted FAFSA Forms: The Department of Education announced that it has completed reprocessing 2024-25 FAFSA forms impacted by known issues with IRS data, enabling all institutions to package financial aid offers.
- Department of Labor Awards Grants to Support Training and Increase Apprenticeships in High-Demand Careers: The Department of Labor announced $98M in grants to provide training and employment services to expand apprenticeship opportunities, prepare young workers for quality jobs and strengthen the workforce to meet industry demands.
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