On the Hill with Klein, Week 8

First off, I promise this newsletter is much shorter than last week. I appreciate you taking the time to read last week?s article but I will try to keep this one shorter. This week we were able to pass several good bills from the House. They now head to the Senate where they will hopefully be passed as well. We also continued work in committees to pass many of the Senate?s bills out of committees.

The House acted this week on a bill to reform Iowa?s Career and Technical Education (CTE) delivery system, passing it in a bipartisan manner. The bill was presented to the Legislature after two years? worth of effort on the part of the Task Force convened to look at the issue. The recommendations and legislation look at updating and modernizing what hasn?t been touched substantively since the late 1980s.

The current economy is increasingly driven by knowledge and innovation. Technological change and globalization are changing the state?s economy and the jobs being created today require a higher skill level than in the past. In some sectors, there are education and skill gaps which result in essential positions being left vacant, hampering economic growth. It is with this in mind that the Task Force was created.

The Secondary Career and Technical Education (CTE) Task Force was established as part of House File 604 in 2013 to make recommendations to reduce skill shortages, enhance economic growth, and ensure that all students have access to high-quality, globally competitive career and technical education programs.

Consisting of 25 members covering businesses, industry, community partners, skilled trades, school districts, community colleges, economic development entities, licensing boards, labor unions, and the regents universities, the Task Force first met in December 2013. It finished its work in October 2015 and delivered five recommendations to the legislature for consideration.

The bill voted on by the House tried to capture the message sent in the Task Force report. It focuses on primarily secondary education, grades nine through 12, ensuring students in those grades are not only college-ready, should they choose that route after high school, but also career-ready. It provides a mechanism through regional planning partnerships to ensure that school districts have the resources necessary to expose students to a wide variety of career options that might begin right there during their high school career with on-the-job opportunities in skilled occupations that are in need of employees in Iowa.

Much work is already going on in the state to create some of these opportunities for students. But it?s not everywhere and it?s often not consistent. These regional partnerships will ensure that the high quality opportunities available to some students now are available to all students, making sure none are left at a competitive disadvantage. The bill attempts to provide a cohesive framework in which these delivery systems can function while not prohibiting any of the good work already under way.

The bill will move on to the Senate for consideration next. To read the Task Force?s full report, you can go to https://www.educateiowa.gov/secondary-career-and-technical-education-cte-task-force

As always, if you have any questions or concerns reach out by emailing me at jarad.klein@legis.iowa.gov or call or text me at 515-689-5430. Please do include your name and address so I can be sure to respond to the wonderful people of House District 78 first.