Middle School Technical Education Program Act or the Middle School STEP Act - Directs the Secretary of Education to:
[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2788 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
113th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 2788
To provide support for the development of middle school career
exploration programs linked to career and technical education programs
of study.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
September 10, 2014
Mr. Kaine (for himself, Mrs. Boxer, Mr. Casey, and Mr. Warner)
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide support for the development of middle school career
exploration programs linked to career and technical education programs
of study.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Middle School Technical Education
Program Act'' or the ``Middle School STEP Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
(1) Career and technical education prepares students to be
college and career ready by providing core academic, technical,
and employability skills.
(2) Eighty percent of students taking a college preparatory
academic curriculum with rigorous career and technical
education courses met college and career readiness goals,
compared to 63 percent of students taking the same academic
core who did not experience rigorous career and technical
education courses.
(3) Students concentrating in career and technical
education improved their 12th grade National Assessment of
Educational Progress scores by 8 points in reading and 11
points in mathematics, while students who took no career and
technical education courses did not increase their mathematics
scores and only increased reading scores by 4 points.
(4) The average high school graduation rate in 2008 for
students concentrating in career and technical education
programs was 90 percent, compared to the average nationwide
high school graduation rate of 75 percent.
(5) Partnerships between businesses and educators help
adults build academic, technical, and employability skills
through education and on-the-job training.
SEC. 3. PURPOSE AND DEFINITIONS.
(a) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to support the development
of middle school career exploration programs linked to career and
technical education programs of study.
(b) Definitions.--In this Act:
(1) Career and technical education exploration program.--
The term ``career and technical education exploration program''
means a program that is developed through an organized,
systemic framework and is designed to aid students in making
informed plans and decisions about future education and career
opportunities and enrollment in career and technical education
programs of study.
(2) Eligible partnership.--The term ``eligible
partnership'' means an entity that--
(A) shall include--
(i) not less than 1 local educational
agency that receives funding under section 131
of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical
Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2351), or an
area career and technical education school or
educational service agency described in such
section;
(ii) not less than 1 eligible institution
that receives funding under section 132 of the
Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education
Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2352); and
(iii) not less than 1 representative of
either a local or regional business, industry,
nonprofit organization, or apprenticeship
program; and
(B) may include other representatives of the
community, including representatives of parents'
organizations, labor organizations, nonprofit
organizations, employers, and representatives of local
workforce development boards (established under
subtitle A of title I of the Workforce Innovation and
Opportunity Act).
(3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Education.
SEC. 4. CAREER EXPLORATION PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT GRANTS.
(a) Authorization.--The Secretary shall create a pilot program to
support the establishment of career and technical education exploration
programs. In carrying out the pilot program, the Secretary shall award
grants to eligible partnerships to enable the eligible partnerships to
develop middle school career and technical education exploration
programs that are aligned with career and technical education programs
of study described in section 122(c)(1)(A) of the Carl D. Perkins
Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2342(c)(1)(A)).
(b) Grant Duration.--Grants awarded under this Act shall be for a
period of not more than 4 years.
(c) Application.--An eligible partnership seeking a grant under
this section shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time
and in such manner as the Secretary may require. Each application shall
include--
(1) a description of the partner entities comprising the
eligible partnership, the roles and responsibilities of each
partner, and a demonstration of each partner's capacity to
support the program;
(2) a description of how the eligible partnership will use
grant funds to carry out each of the activities described under
subsection (e);
(3) a description of how the middle school career and
technical education exploration program aligns to regional
economies and local emerging workforce needs;
(4) a description of how the new middle school career and
technical education exploration program is linked to--
(A) one or more career and technical education
programs of study offered by the agency or school
described in section 3(b)(2)(A)(i); and
(B) one or more career and technical education
programs of study offered by the postsecondary
institution described in section 3(b)(2)(A)(ii);
(5) a description of the students that will be served by
the middle school career and technical education exploration
program;
(6) a description of how the middle school career and
technical education exploration program funded by the grant
will be replicable;
(7) a description of how the eligible partnership will
disseminate information about best practices resulting from the
middle school career and technical education exploration
program to similar career and technical education programs of
study, including such programs in urban and rural areas;
(8) a description of how the middle school career and
technical education exploration program will be implemented;
(9) a description of how the middle school career and
technical education exploration program will provide
accessibility to students, especially economically
disadvantaged, low-performing, and urban and rural students;
and
(10) a description of how the eligible partnership will
carry out the evaluation required under subsection (f).
(d) Selection of Grantees.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary shall determine, based on
the peer review process described in paragraph (3) and subject
to the requirement in paragraph (4), which eligible partnership
applicants shall receive funding under this Act, and the amount
of the grant funding under this Act that each selected eligible
partnership will receive.
(2) Grant amounts.--In determining the amount of each grant
awarded under this Act, the Secretary shall--
(A) ensure that all grants are of sufficient size,
scope, and quality to be effective; and
(B) take into account the total amount of funds
available for all grants under this Act and the types
of activities proposed to be carried out by the
eligible partnership.
(3) Peer review process.--
(A) Establishment of peer review committee.--The
Secretary shall convene a peer review committee to
review applications for grants under this Act and to
make recommendations to the Secretary regarding the
selection of grantees.
(B) Members of the peer review committee.--The peer
review committee shall include the following members:
(i) Educators who have experience
implementing career and technical education
programs and career exploration programs.
(ii) Experts in the field of career and
technical education.
(4) Rural or small local educational agencies.--The
Secretary shall set aside not less than 5 percent of the funds
made available to award grants under this Act to award grants
to eligible partnerships that include rural or small local
educational agencies, as defined by the Secretary.
(e) Use of Funds.--Each eligible partnership receiving a grant
under this section shall use grant funds to develop and implement a
middle school career and technical education exploration program that--
(1) shall--
(A) include introductory courses or experiential
activities, such as student apprenticeships or other
work-based learning methods, and project-based learning
experiences;
(B) include the implementation of a plan that
demonstrates the transition from the middle school
career and technical education exploration program to a
career and technical education program of study that is
offered by the entity described in section
3(b)(2)(A)(i);
(C) include programs and activities related to the
development of individualized graduation and career
plans for students; and
(D) offer career guidance and academic counseling
that--
(i) provides information about
postsecondary education and career options; and
(ii) provides participating students with
readily available career and labor market
information, such as information about
employment sectors, educational requirements,
information on workforce supply and demand, and
other information on careers that are aligned
to State or local economic priorities; and
(2) may include expanded learning time activities that--
(A) focus on career exploration, including
apprenticeships and internships;
(B) are available to all students in a middle
school; and
(C) take place during a time that is outside of the
standard hours of enrollment for students that are
served by the local educational agency.
(f) Evaluations and Report.--
(1) Evaluation.--
(A) In general.--Each eligible partnership that
receives a grant under this Act shall collect
appropriate data, or otherwise document through records
(in a manner that complies with section 444 of the
General Education Provisions Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g),
commonly known as the ``Family Educational Rights and
Privacy Act of 1974'' and other applicable Federal and
State privacy laws) the information necessary to
conduct an evaluation of grant activities, including an
evaluation of--
(i) the extent of student participation in
the middle school career and technical
education exploration program carried out under
this Act;
(ii) the impact of the middle school career
and technical education exploration program
carried out under this Act on the students'
transition to, or planned participation in,
career and technical programs of study (as
described in section 122(c)(1)(A) of the Carl
D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act
of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2342(c)(1)(A)); and
(iii) any other measurable outcomes
specified by the Secretary.
(B) Resources of the eligible partnership.--The
evaluation described in this paragraph shall reflect
the resources and capacity of the local educational
agency, area career and technical education school, or
educational service agency that is part of the eligible
partnership in a manner determined by the Secretary.
(2) Report.--The eligible partnership shall prepare and
submit to the Secretary a report containing the results of the
evaluation described in paragraph (1).
<all>
Introduced in Senate
Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S5509)
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Llama 3.2 · runs locally in your browser
Ask anything about this bill. The AI reads the full text to answer.
Enter to send · Shift+Enter for new line