CTE Policy Watch: A blog for CTE advocates

DC Digest: November 3-10

It was a relatively quiet week on the federal education policy front, with the House on recess and no major Committee activity. The House returns this week though, and Washington will be celebrating National Apprenticeship Week, so there is likely more activity in the future! In the meantime:

• Progress on Education Appropriations: With the current November 21 funding deadline looming, congressional leaders have taken positive steps to ensure the government remains funded while working toward a longer term Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 solution. On Tuesday, Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby (R-AL) and House Appropriations Chairwoman Nita Lowey (D-NY) met to discuss the path forward. Also, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) announced that the House is likely to introduce a new short-term CR that extends funding to December 20 to give lawmakers more time to come to consensus on funding the 12 appropriations bills for FY 2020.

• World Standards Week on the “Workforce of the Future”: On November 7, the American National Standards Institute hosted a conference on Building an Effective Workforce for the Future, which ACTE attended. During the day, there were two keynote speakers and four panel sessions which covered challenges to meet the workforce needs of the future and how education and trainings are going to have to adapt to meet those needs.
  
  
• National Day of Action for ESSA Title IV: On November 6, ACTE joined other national associations and advocates for a National Day of Action to support awareness of and funding for Title IV of the Every Student Succeeds Act, Student Success and Academic Enhancement Grants, which can be used for career development activities and other parts of a “well-rounded” education. You can view our tweet and others that were part of the campaign!
  
  
• Federal STEM Investments Reviewed: On November 8, the Trump Administration reported on $540 million dollars that has been allocated to support STEM education to expand opportunities in the STEM workforce. This is part of the five-year federal STEM education strategic plan in which all Americans will have access to lifelong STEM education, as well as to make America a leader in the STEM field.
  
  

DC Digest: October 27-November 2

The biggest education news this week on Capitol Hill was the House Education and Labor Committee’s marathon mark-up of its Higher Education Act reauthorization bill, which lasted for three days! You can read more about that markup on the blog at https://ctepolicywatch.acteonline.org/2019/11/democrats-pass-hea-reauthorization-proposal-out-of-house-committee.html.

In other news:

• Work on Education Appropriations Remains Stalled: On October 31, the Senate rejected a procedural motion that would have allowed for debate to start on the four-bill minibus, H.R. 2740 (116), that includes the Fiscal year (FY) 2020 funding for the Department of Education. The vote, 51-41, failed to reach the 60 vote threshold needed to advance. Democrats voted against motion on the grounds that their Republican colleagues did not engage them when they set the overall spending levels, which were much lower for education than the House bill.
  
  
• Regulations on Accreditation and Distant Education Finalized: On November 1, Secretary DeVos released the final accreditation and state authorization distance education regulations. These regulations, a part of the broader “rethink higher education” agenda, are aimed to “expand educational options for students, holistically lower the cost of education post-high school, and ensure occupationally-focused education meets current workforce needs,” according to the Secretary, but have been met with some concern. Check back on the CTE Policy Watch Blog soon for a more detailed summary.
  
  
• Senate CTE Caucus Briefing: On October 31, the Senate CTE Caucus, in partnership with the National Skills Coalition (NSC), hosted a briefing on the importance of aligning Perkins V and the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), and how they can work together to drive economic success. Organizations who participated on the panel include: the National Association of State Workforce Agencies (NASWA), Advance CTE, Rural Local Initiatives Support Corporation (Rural LISC) and NSC.
  
  
• Nation’s Report Card Results Released: Significant attention in DC was placed on the release of the latest National Assessment of Educational Progress results, which were released on October 30. While these results are not specific to CTE, as they are based on assessments in fourth and eighth graders’ reading and math scores, they do have implications for educational policy overall. Unfortunately, the overall news was not positive. The results for reading were lower for both grades compared to 2017, and the results for math were one point higher in fourth-grade students and one point lower for eighth-grade students compared to 2017. Department of Education Secretary DeVos said in a press release that the results were “devastating” and proposed support for school choice initiatives to help counteract the results.

DC Digest: October 20-27

Most of the education attention in Washington was on the Higher Education Act this week, as work moved forward in the House on the reauthorization of that bill. The House Education and Labor Committee has scheduled a mark-up of the legislation introduced earlier this month for October 29. We will provide additional coverage as the bill moves forward! In other news:

• Bills Introduced to Support Working Students: Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Representative Ami Bera (D-CA) introduced the Working Students Act(S. 2655/ H.R. 4787) in their respective chambers. The legislation increases the amount of money that working students can earn before those earnings are counted against them when accessing need-based federal financial aid. ACTE endorsed the bills and was quoted in Baldwin’s press release.
• President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology Created:On October 22, President Trump established a council to provide guidance on science, technology, education and innovative policy. The council will also be responsible for informing the public on relevant public policy on the economy, the American worker, national and homeland security and other topics. The council will be composed of 16 appointed members.
• Aspen Institute Highlighted Opportunity in America:On October 27, the Aspen Institute hosted an afternoon of discussions on opportunity in the United States. The three panels, which ACTE attended, included discussions on measuring opportunity, access and inclusion, and the business role in developing economic opportunity. Read more.

DC Digest: October 13-19

After a two-week-long break, Congress has returned and will be back in session until November 21 to, among other things, try and pass a spending bill for Fiscal Year 2020. The current continuing resolution expires then and an agreement for moving forward has yet to be reached. Visit ACTE’s Action Center for a message you can send to Congress to support CTE funding as discussions continue. Also last week:

• House HEA Reauthorization Bill Reintroduced: On October 15, House Democrats introduced their proposed bill to reauthorize the Higher Education Act, which include several topics relating to CTE. Read more in-depth coverage on the CTE Policy Watch blog.
  
  
• Department of Labor Released WIOA Youth Program Resources: The Department of Labor released additional technical assistance resources for WIOA youth programs. These resources include Requests for Proposals, monitoring (and here) and individual service strategies (hereand here).
  
  
• Brookings Institution Focused on Equity: Last Tuesday, the Brookings Institution hosted a “Girl’s Education Research and Policy Symposium: Learning across a lifetime,” which ACTE attended. The event included panels on girls’ opportunities in STEM and CTE leading to more girls entering into the workforce world-wide. Read more.

DC Digest: October 8-14

• Guide for Educational Institutions with Federal Contracts: The Department of Labor released a new Technical Assistance Guide (TAG) for educational institutions to use to provide compliance assistance for federal government contractors. This guide is designed to help contractors strive for equal employment opportunities and meet legal requirements and responsibilities set by federal guidelines.
  
  
• Nita Lowey Announces Retirement: On Thursday, the House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Nita Lowey (D-NY) announced her decision to not seek re-election in 2020 after 31 years in Congress. As the chair of the committee, she oversees more than $1.3 trillion, including all federal education funding like Perkins grants.
  
  
• Possible Release of HEA Reauthorization Proposal: House Democrats are expected to release their proposal for a Higher Education Act (HEA) reauthorization as soon as October 15. It is expected that the bill will be similar to the Aim Higher Act that was introduced last year, however, ACTE will provide additional details once the bill is released.

DC Digest: October 1-7

• More new grants for Education and Workforce Development: In addition to the Perkins Innovation and Modernization grants released this week (read the full blog here), several other new grants have been awarded related to CTE. The Department of Labor awarded workforce development grants to 18 organizations in the Appalachian and Delta regions that are recovering slowly from economic transition. The Department of Education also announced that it awarded 41 grants from the Education Innovation and Research (EIR) program to improve academic achievement for high-need students, and to conduct an evaluation for these results to be researched and built on by others. Within these grants, 29 grantees will focus on STEM education.
• National Blue Ribbon Schools Awards: A number of schools that have a significant focus on CTE were recognized by the Department of Education as Blue Ribbon Schools! See the complete list here.
• Presidential Cybersecurity Education Award Nominations: Starting in the spring of 2020, the Presidential Cybersecurity Education Award will be awarded to two educators, one elementary and one secondary, for their excellence in teaching and mentoring students in the field. Nominations are open now and will close on January 31, 2020.
• Google Workforce Development CTE Opportunities: Google is expanding its online training program with an IT Support Professional Certificate at 100 community colleges. This move is to educate and train the current workforce as part of the White House’s Pledge to America’s Workers. The announcement was made at a roundtable in Texas with Ivanka Trump and Google CEO Sundar Pichai.

DC Digest: September 24-30

• Eguene Scalia Confirmed as New Labor Secretary: On Thursday, the Senate confirmed Eugene Scalia to replace Alex Acosta as the Secretary of Labor by a vote of 53-44. Son of late Supreme Court justice Antoine Scalia, his background is in cooperate law. Scalia will take over the lead of the Department of Labor, which oversees the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act and apprenticeships, among many other programs.
• Federal Focus on School Safety: On Wednesday, the Trump Administration released a new school safety district guide as part of an effort to support schools in developing and maintaining emergency and operations plans. The House of Representatives also maintained its spotlight on school safety issues. On Thursday, the House Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Response and Recovery held a hearing about perceptions on school security, as well as testimony from family members of those killed in the 2018 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School mass shooting.
• Decrease in Federal Aid for Children: A new report from the Urban Institute found that federal spending on children (including funds spent on education, health care, nutrition and various tax benefits) is at the lowest level in a decade, below two percent of the country’s gross domestic product, and funds are projected to continue to decline from the current level of $41 billion in 2018 to $36 billion in 2029. Although overall investments in children has decreased, federal investments in programs that benefit children from low-income families increased to 61 percent of all child-related expenditures.

DC Digest: September 17-23

• U.S. Department of Education Back to School Tour: Scott Stump, the assistant secretary for career, technical and adult education, visited New Mexico, Arizona (1 and 2), Nevada and West Virginia schools as part of the Education Department’s National Back to School Tour. He was visiting to see the CTE work being done in high schools and community colleges.
• New Report on Allowing Funds from IDEA for Dual Enrollment and Postsecondary Transition: On Tuesday, the Department released a question and answer guide on “Increasing Postsecondary Opportunities and Success for Students and Youth with Disabilities.” This guide addresses how stakeholders can coordinate to assist students with disabilities in high schools and postsecondary institutions who are participating in early college, dual enrollment or postsecondary transition programs by using funding allocated in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
• Committee for Education Funding (CEF) Legislative Conference and Gala: On Wednesday, CEF hosted a legislative conference addressing the history and future of education funding and America’s views on financing education. A gala followed the conference. Representative Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) was awarded the James G. O’Hara Award for outstanding leadership in advocacy for education, and Senator Pat Roberts (R-KS) was awarded the William H. Natcher Award for elevating education as a priority to ensure better opportunities for students.

DC Digest: September 10-16

• Appropriations Bill Markup Postponed: On Tuesday, the Senate Appropriations Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Subcommittee postponed its scheduled markup of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 Labor-H appropriations bill. The postponement was due to a disagreement between both parties around a healthcare-related provision. There has been no announcement of a new date for the markup. With the FY 2019 fiscal year ending September 30, Congress must act on new appropriations bills quickly or pass a continuing resolution to avoid a government shutdown. We will keep you apprised of new developments, and we encourage you to contact your senators and voice your support for an increase in Perkins CTE funding in FY2020!
• Report on Equity and Diversity in Apprenticeships: As apprenticeships become an increasingly popular subject in Washington, Jobs for the Future released a report on “Growing Equity and Diversity Through Apprenticeships: Business Perspectives”. Included in the report are strategies from leading companies about how to advance equity in their companies and apprenticeship models.
• 2019 State of the Workforce Report Released: The National Association of State Workforce Agencies published its first 2019 State of the Workforce Report, which highlighted each state’s labor market data and profile, and drew attention to exemplary programs states use to help their workforces.

DC Digest: September 4-9

New Video on Coordination Between Perkins and WIOA: The Office of Career, Technical and Adult Education (OCTAE) recently released a new video on joint Perkins Act and Workforce Innovation and Opportunities Act (WIOA) plans. The video has been added to OCTAE’s online video library. This brief video explains the history between Perkins and WIOA, and gives examples of states who are building these joint plans.

New Perkins V Guidance on Program Income: According to a memo released on Friday by Assistant Secretary for Career, Technical, and Adult Education Scott Stump, the Department of Education will continue providing prior authority for eligible recipients or subrecipients under the newly-authorized Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21^st Century Act (Perkins V) to use the addition and/or cost sharing or matching options for program income pursuant to 2 CFR 200.307(e) of the Uniform Guidance. This updated guidance will ensure programs that earn income from school-based enterprises can continue to do so without losing Perkins funds as long as they follow the guidelines included.

Rep.  Susan Davis Announces Retirement: On Wednesday, Rep. Davis, who chairs the subcommittee overseeing higher education for the House Education and Labor Committee, announced she will not be seeking reelection. As chair of this subcommittee,  she oversees reauthorization of the Higher Education Act, so may push for action before her term in office ends.

Administration Releases FY 2021 Research and Development Priorities: The Office of Management and Budget and the Office of Science and Technology Policy recently sent a memo to all federal agencies outlining the Administration’s FY 2021 research and development budget priorities. “Build and Leverage a Diverse, Highly Skilled American Workforce” is one of the cross-cutting priority actions identified in the memo, which states: “Departments and agencies should prioritize efforts to build strong foundations for STEM literacy, to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEM, and to prepare the STEM workforce, including college-educated STEM workers and those working in skilled trades that do not require a four-year degree.”
Agencies will reference these priorities as they invest discretionary research and development funds throughout the next year, and the ideas will likely impact overall budget development for FY 2021 as well.