Act now: Support career- and tech-education bill in Congress

From AGC of America

The U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce approved the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act, legislation which would reauthorize and reform the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act. AGC has been calling on Congress (Perkins reauthorization is part of AGC’s Workforce Development Plan) to reform and reinvigorate the Perkins bill to meet the current workforce needs through better program alignment, better reporting, increased work-based learning, promoting industry-recognized credentials and increased federal investment.

The draft bill generally addresses these recommendations and AGC is calling on Congress to approve the legislation in an expeditious manner. Please contact your federal representative and Senators and urge them to support this legislation.

The Perkins bill is the primary federal funding vehicle for career and technical education programs, providing more than $1 billion annually to secondary and post-secondary vocational training programs. The bill was last authorized over a decade ago, and it no longer addresses the skills gap in today’s workforce. The legislation, as approved by the committee, gives greater flexibility to states on how they spend their allotments, improves performance metrics and aligns the programs with other education and workforce training legislation: the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) and the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). Similar to other education and workforce training programs, the success of the program rests on how it is ultimately implemented and how well employers collaborate and engage with educators in their local and state communities.

For more information, please email or call Jim Young of AGC of America, 202.547.0133.