Policymaker Perspectives:
A Discussion with Representative Bobby Scott
Policymaker Perspectives is a discussion series between ACTE and federal policymakers. It is intended to allow CTE professionals to hear directly from policymakers about their priorities and the work taking place in Washington to strengthen the CTE ecosystem.
Congressman Bobby Scott (D-VA) was first elected to represent Virginia’s Third Congressional District in 1992. Prior to his election, he served in both chambers of the Virginia Legislature and practiced law. Rep. Scott is the first African-American elected to Congress from Virginia post-Reconstruction, and is the first voting member of Congress with Filipino ancestry. He attended Harvard College and Boston College Law School, and served in the Massachusetts National Guard and United States Army Reserve.
In 2014, Rep. Scott was elected to serve as the Ranking Member of the Committee on Education and the Workforce. As the top Democrat on the committee, he plays a crucial role in setting the nation’s education and workforce development policy. He was one of four primary negotiators of the Every Student Succeeds Act, has fought for affordable higher education, and has prioritized reforms to assist at-risk youth and juvenile offenders.
The Congressman was raised in Newport News as the son of a surgeon and educator. He has continued to live there since graduating from law school. ACTE recently spoke with Representative Scott as part of our Policymaker Perspectives discussion series.
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ACTE: The passage of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) was important to the CTE community because it prioritized alignment of academics and CTE, emphasized students’ access to career exploration and recognized CTE as an important part of a well-rounded education. The law largely took effect at the beginning of this school year. What are your thoughts on its implementation thus far?
Representative Scott: When Congress came together to draft ESSA, it was important to recognize improvements in the delivery of high quality CTE and its important role in expanding educational opportunity, especially for low-income and at-risk students. That’s why I, along with Senator Murray, fought to ensure that the law pushed states to better align CTE with general education academic standards. When students have access to quality CTE programs, they’re more engaged, less likely to drop out of school, and graduate college- and career-ready. ESSA turned a lot of decision-making on how to improve student outcomes and struggling schools over to state, and especially local, school leaders. But with flexibility comes responsibility – states and districts can make good decisions and not-so-good decisions. It will be up to teachers, parents, students, and communities to hold those decision-makers accountable for meeting the needs of all students. I am hopeful that states and districts will use this new-found flexibility to employ innovative approaches to improve educational equity, including through expanding opportunities for vulnerable students to benefit from excellent CTE programs.
ACTE: Late last year the Committee on Education and the Workforce passed a Higher Education Act reauthorization bill called the PROSPER Act. You and every Democrat on the committee opposed the bill. What are your priorities for a higher education bill? How can the higher education landscape better reflect today’s CTE system?
Representative Scott: Committee Democrats believe quality higher education must be accessible and affordable. It must empower America’s working families to succeed in our economy. By forcing students to borrow more, pay more, and pay more to borrow more, the PROSPER Act (H.R. 4508) makes college more expensive for millions of students. H.R. 4508 also waters down accountability standards while removing student protections from fraud and abuse. It puts corporate profits before students, asking families and students to pay more for a lower quality education.
On access: Higher education is out of reach for too many students. Many families have never sent a member to college and think that higher education is unattainable, unnecessary, or too expensive even though studies and projections tell us that some form of higher education will be necessary to succeed in the 21st century economy. CTE and the partnerships created between K-12 schools and community colleges should play an important role in increasing access, whether through dual enrollment programs, early college, pathways to four-year degrees, better marketing of opportunities, or demonstrated career success of graduates. Access, however, should not come at the cost of quality and the promotion of for-profit programs that cost more than community colleges even though their graduates have worse outcomes. H.R. 4508 would create an unregulated apprenticeship program ripe for abuse by for-profit colleges that already have a track record of fraudulent behavior. Committee Democrats are supportive of creating high-quality apprenticeship programs, but those programs should have protections for students and be administered by the Department of Labor, not legislated through the Higher Education Act, which is administered by the Department of Education.
On affordability: Due to state budget cuts, growth in college costs have outpaced inflation by approximately two percent each year over the last 20 years. On top of that, Federal student aid programs, such as the Pell Grant, have not kept up with the rising cost of college. In 1980, the Pell Grant covered 77 percent of the cost of attendance at a four-year public college. Now it’s 29 percent. The purchasing power of a Pell Grant doesn’t fare much better for a two-year degree or certificate. It used to cover 100 percent of costs, it now covers 62 percent. Instead of making financial aid more robust, H.R. 4508 eliminates important Federal financial aid programs and replaces them with one loan program that will push students to borrow more and pay more interest over the life of the loan. Committee Democrats support a reauthorization that helps CTE students attend a postsecondary institution so they can complete their program of study.
On completion: The face of the average American postsecondary student has changed. More students are taking classes part-time while working a job and providing for a family. Others are starting school at an older age and taking classes over a longer period of time. Some are completing industry-certified certificates while serving prison terms. Quality CTE programs provide great opportunities for all of these students. These programs are successful not just because of their excellent teaching and partnerships with local industry, but also because of the student supports they provide. These supports range from providing child care for student-parents to counseling programs for first-generation postsecondary students or students recovering from addiction. H.R. 4508 does not increase supports for these programs. In several cases, the bill actually removes funding for postsecondary institutions to provide these supports. Committee Democrats support reauthorization that increases investments for programs that help support students from all backgrounds complete their degree or industry-recognized credential.
Unfortunately, H.R. 4508 does not make quality degrees that lead to a good-paying job more affordable or accessible, which is why Committee Democrats were unified in opposition to the bill.
ACTE: You are a leading voice in Congress on criminal justice reform, particularly as it relates to juvenile justice issues. What role does CTE have to play as a resource for at-risk youth and juvenile offenders?
Representative Scott: For most of my time in Congress, I served on both the Education and the Workforce Committee and the Judiciary Committee, and when addressing students, I’d often say that the students will take advantage of the laws we pass on one committee or feel the effects of the laws we pass on the other committee. We know that many adult criminals start on the path to prison at an early age, falling into what has been termed the school-to-prison pipeline. While there are many factors that contributed to its creation, poverty, a struggling education system, and an unresponsive, punitive juvenile justice system are the most impactful ones.
I worked on a bipartisan basis to write and pass the bipartisan Juvenile Justice Reform Act (H.R. 1809) this year to reauthorize the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA), which includes a version of my Youth PROMISE Act in the bill. This provision provides funding to dismantle the cradle to prison pipeline and create a cradle to college and career pipeline. Without access to engaging, meaningful programs designed to capture their curiosity and create a sense of belonging, students can easily fall prey to gangs and crime, searching for purpose and community. I continue to be an advocate of working with localities to create alternative pipelines of evidence-based programs designed to engage students at every age, get them on the right track, and keep them there until they are either in college or in the workforce. Evidence shows that continuums of programs like these will result in money saved and reduced crime. We are engaged with the Senate and hope to have a bill that includes a version of the Youth PROMISE Act on the President’s desk by the end of the year.
High-quality CTE programs also play a strong role in dismantling those pipelines. They can serve as school engagement programs that promote attendance and show real world application of theoretical academic concepts. The clear applicability of CTE courses helps students recognize career opportunities that may have otherwise seemed unobtainable or irrelevant. They can serve as re-entry programs giving juveniles leaving detention facilities a better chance to re-establish themselves in society and the education system. And most importantly, CTE programs can be tools to close the opportunity gap and provide students who may have become disconnected from school or the workforce a second chance.
ACTE: The Committee on Education and the Workforce passed overwhelmingly bipartisan legislation in the past two sessions of Congress to reauthorize the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act. Both times, you co-sponsored the legislation. Why is a strong CTE system important for your district and the nation?
Representative Scott: In several good-paying industries, thousands of jobs go unfilled because of a lack of skilled workers. For example, in my state of Virginia businesses are looking to fill 30,000 technology positions, 17,000 of which are in cybersecurity, but cannot find qualified applicants. The average starting salary for a cybersecurity job is $88,000. Strong CTE systems have the ability to prevent this mismatch and help individuals find employment in fulfilling jobs. Virginia is a leader in CTE, with more than half a million sixth through twelfth grade students participating in CTE across the Commonwealth. The state has expanded access to CTE programs that equip secondary school students with recognized postsecondary credentials through innovative programs, such as dual enrollment and registered apprenticeships. In my district, there are several Governor’s STEM academies and a joint health science academy between Newport News and York County. With continued collaboration and investments in these efforts, Virginia can create a future workforce qualified to fill ever-changing industry needs.
The Federal government needs to support state efforts, like the ones in Virginia, and ensure CTE systems promote equity and opportunity. The Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act does that, which is why the House of Representatives passed the legislation unanimously. I encourage ACTE members to request the Senate to pass this legislation as well.
The bill received such strong support because it increases funding for state CTE systems while also pushing CTE programs to improve outcomes for students, employers, and communities. The legislation increases accountability for student outcomes; emphasizes collaboration between businesses, communities, and schools; ensures opportunity in CTE programs for underserved youth, and focuses on high-skill, high-wage careers. I am hopeful that this legislation will become law so students can benefit from high-quality CTE systems.