II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4658 

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to support apprenticeship 

programs. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 28, 2022 

Mr. BENNET introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to support 

apprenticeship programs. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Student Apprentice5 ship Act of 2022’’. 

6 SEC. 2. APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAMS. 

7 Title VII of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

8 U.S.C. 1133 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 

9 the following: 


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1 ‘‘PART F—APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAMS 

2 ‘‘SEC. 791. GRANTS TO SUPPORT APPRENTICESHIP PRO3 GRAMS. 

4 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

5 ‘‘(1) APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM.—The term 

6 ‘apprenticeship program’ means a program that is 

7 registered under the Act of August 16, 1937 (com8 monly known as the ‘National Apprenticeship Act’; 

9 50 Stat. 664, chapter 663; 29 U.S.C. 50 et seq.), as 

10 of the date of enactment of this Act, and is in com11 pliance with the regulations promulgated to carry 

12 out the Act of August 16, 1937, under part 29 of 

13 title 29, Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on 

14 the date of enactment of this Act. 

15 ‘‘(2) POSTSECONDARY APPRENTICESHIP PRO16 GRAM.—The term ‘postsecondary apprenticeship 

17 program’ means an apprenticeship program— 

18 ‘‘(A) that meets the requirements of a rec19 ognized postsecondary credential conferred by 

20 an institution of higher education; and 

21 ‘‘(B) established by the relevant State 

22 agency in the State where the program is deliv23 ered. 

24 ‘‘(3) RECOGNIZED POSTSECONDARY CREDEN25 TIAL.—The term ‘recognized postsecondary creden26 tial’ means— 


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1 ‘‘(A) a credential consisting of an industry2 recognized certificate that is credit-bearing to3 ward a postsecondary degree at the institution 

4 of higher education from which it is conferred; 

5 ‘‘(B) an associate degree; or 

6 ‘‘(C) a baccalaureate degree. 

7 ‘‘(4) STUDENT APPRENTICE.—The term ‘stu8 dent apprentice’ means an individual who is— 

9 ‘‘(A) enrolled or accepted for enrollment at 

10 an institution of higher education for the pur11 pose of obtaining a recognized postsecondary 

12 credential offered by that institution and is a 

13 participant in a postsecondary apprenticeship 

14 program; and 

15 ‘‘(B) a worker at least 16 years of age, ex16 cept where a higher minimum age standard is 

17 otherwise fixed by law, who is employed to learn 

18 an apprenticeable occupation, as described in 

19 section 29.4 of title 29, Code of Federal Regu20 lations (as in effect on the date of enactment of 

21 this Act), under standards of apprenticeship 

22 fulfilling the requirements of section 29.5 of 

23 title 29, Code of Federal Regulations (as in ef24 fect on the date of enactment of this Act). 


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1 ‘‘(5) WORKFORCE INTERMEDIARY.—The term 

2 ‘workforce intermediary’— 

3 ‘‘(A) means an entity, which may be part 

4 of an industry or sector partnership, that dem5 onstrates expertise in building, connecting, sus6 taining, and measuring the performance of 

7 partnerships in order for the entity to broker 

8 services, resources, and supports for develop9 ment, delivery, expansion, or improvement of 

10 postsecondary apprenticeship programs, and of 

11 the organizations and systems that are designed 

12 to serve covered student apprentices and em13 ployer partners, including— 

14 ‘‘(i) connecting employers to appren15 ticeship opportunities; 

16 ‘‘(ii) assisting in the design and imple17 mentation of postsecondary apprenticeship 

18 programs, including curriculum develop19 ment and delivery for related instruction; 

20 ‘‘(iii) supporting entities, and spon21 sors or program administrators, in meeting 

22 the registration and reporting require23 ments; 


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1 ‘‘(iv) providing professional develop2 ment activities such as training to men3 tors; 

4 ‘‘(v) connecting students or workers to 

5 apprenticeship opportunities; and 

6 ‘‘(vi) developing and providing person7 alized covered apprentice supports, includ8 ing supportive services and financial advis9 ing; and 

10 ‘‘(B) includes a State workforce develop11 ment board or local workforce development 

12 board, as established under title I of the Work13 force Innovation and Opportunity Act, or State 

14 workforce agency. 

15 ‘‘(b) GRANT PROGRAM.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in collabo17 ration with the Secretary of Labor, shall award 

18 grants to eligible partnerships to enable the partner19 ships to develop and implement a postsecondary ap20 prenticeship program. 

21 ‘‘(2) DURATION.—Grants awarded under this 

22 section shall be 4 or 5 years in duration. 

23 ‘‘(3) ELIGIBLE PARTNERSHIP.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In this section, the 

2 term ‘eligible partnership’ means a partnership 

3 that— 

4 ‘‘(i) shall include— 

5 ‘‘(I) an institution of higher edu6 cation or a consortium of such institu7 tions; 

8 ‘‘(II) an individual employer or 

9 consortium of employers; and 

10 ‘‘(III) a workforce intermediary, 

11 unless waived by the Secretary be12 cause the partnership demonstrates 

13 that a high-quality program is in 

14 place or it would be a hardship to in15 clude a workforce intermediary; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) may include— 

17 ‘‘(I) a State agency responsible 

18 for the administration of career and 

19 technical education in the State or for 

20 the supervision of the administration 

21 of career and technical education in 

22 the State; 

23 ‘‘(II) a labor organization; 

24 ‘‘(III) an economic development 

25 agency or organization, such as a 


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1 chamber of commerce, business alli2 ance, or industry association; 

3 ‘‘(IV) a community-based organi4 zation; 

5 ‘‘(V) a State educational agency; 

6 or 

7 ‘‘(VI) a local educational agency. 

8 ‘‘(B) FISCAL AGENT.—The lead fiscal 

9 agent of an eligible partnership shall be any of 

10 the following: 

11 ‘‘(i) An institution of higher edu12 cation. 

13 ‘‘(ii) An industry association. 

14 ‘‘(iii) A workforce intermediary that is 

15 an entity that is described in section 

16 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

17 1986 and exempt from taxation under sec18 tion 501(a) of such Code. 

19 ‘‘(4) APPLICATION.— 

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An eligible partner21 ship that desires to receive a grant under this 

22 section shall submit an application to the Sec23 retary at such time, in such manner, and ac24 companied by such information as the Secretary 

25 may require. 


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1 ‘‘(B) INCLUSIONS.—An application sub2 mitted under subparagraph (A) shall include— 

3 ‘‘(i) a plan to recruit and retain a 

4 high number or high percentage of partici5 pants who are from nontraditional appren6 ticeship populations, including women, mi7 norities, individuals with disabilities, vet8 erans, and individuals with barriers to em9 ployment, such as opportunity youth, low10 income youth and adults, young adults and 

11 adults of color, and individuals who have 

12 been impacted by the criminal justice sys13 tem; 

14 ‘‘(ii) letters of support and a labor 

15 market analysis that demonstrate that the 

16 occupation for which the program prepares 

17 participants— 

18 ‘‘(I) is feasible and in demand; 

19 ‘‘(II) is a high-growth, high-wage 

20 occupation; or 

21 ‘‘(III) is a response to in-demand 

22 industry sectors or occupations as de23 termined by the State or local work24 force boards; 


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1 ‘‘(iii) a plan for reaching desired out2 comes, as described in paragraph (7); 

3 ‘‘(iv) a plan for ensuring that the 

4 partnership has the capacity to access data 

5 to measure desired outcomes and the out6 comes described in clause (v); and 

7 ‘‘(v) a plan for— 

8 ‘‘(I) increasing associate or bac9 calaureate degree and credential at10 tainment; 

11 ‘‘(II) sustaining the program for 

12 at least 20 months beyond the grant 

13 period; and 

14 ‘‘(III) including a provider of 

15 support or specialized services, such 

16 as financial counseling. 

17 ‘‘(C) DESCRIPTION OF INSTRUCTION.—In 

18 addition to the information described in sub19 paragraph (B), an application submitted under 

20 subparagraph (A) shall include a description of 

21 the organized, related instruction the apprentice 

22 will receive in technical subjects related to the 

23 occupation for which the program prepares par24 ticipants, which— 


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1 ‘‘(i) shall include not less than 2000 

2 hours of on the job learning and a rec3 ommended 144 hours for each year (with 

4 an allowance for a student to spread it out 

5 over 2 years) of related technical instruc6 tion unless an alternative requirement is 

7 put forth by the employer and sponsor that 

8 reflects industry standards and is accepted 

9 by the Secretary; 

10 ‘‘(ii) may be accomplished through 

11 credit-bearing classroom instruction, occu12 pational or industry courses, successful 

13 demonstration of acquired skills and 

14 knowledge as part of an approved com15 petency-based program, instruction pro16 vided through electronic media, or other 

17 instruction approved by the registration 

18 agency; 

19 ‘‘(iii) shall be provided by one or more 

20 qualified instructors who— 

21 ‘‘(I)(aa) meet the career technical 

22 education instructor requirements of 

23 the applicable education agency of the 

24 State of registration; or 


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1 ‘‘(bb) are subject matter experts, 

2 defined for purposes of this subpara3 graph as individuals (including 

4 journeyworkers) recognized within an 

5 industry as having expertise in a spe6 cific occupation; and 

7 ‘‘(II) have training in teaching 

8 techniques and learning styles or will 

9 obtain such training before an in10 structor begins providing the related 

11 technical instruction; and 

12 ‘‘(iv) shall, to the maximum extent 

13 practicable, be aligned to a career pathway, 

14 as defined in section 3 of the Workforce 

15 Innovation and Opportunity Act. 

16 ‘‘(5) SELECTION.—The Secretary shall, in se17 lecting eligible partnerships to receive grants under 

18 this section— 

19 ‘‘(A) consider the equitable geographic dis20 tribution of grants among rural and urban 

21 areas; and 

22 ‘‘(B) leverage significant State, local, insti23 tutional, or private resources, including in-kind 

24 contributions, to support the activities assisted 

25 under this section. 


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1 ‘‘(6) USE OF GRANT FUNDS.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An eligible partner3 ship that receives a grant under this section 

4 shall use the grant funds to develop and imple5 ment a postsecondary apprenticeship program 

6 in high-skill, high-wage, or in-demand industry 

7 sectors or occupations. 

8 ‘‘(B) PERMISSIBLE USE OF FUNDS.—An 

9 eligible partnership that receives a grant under 

10 this section to develop and implement a postsec11 ondary apprenticeship program may use the 

12 grant funds for any of the following: 

13 ‘‘(i) Program design and implementa14 tion costs, including— 

15 ‘‘(I) development of curricula and 

16 standards; 

17 ‘‘(II) development of a com18 petency-based approach to awarding 

19 credits; and 

20 ‘‘(III) use of subject matter ex21 perts in instructional delivery or cur22 riculum design. 

23 ‘‘(ii) Development of on-the-job learn24 ing, mentoring, and additional supervision 


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1 structures and professional development 

2 for mentors and supervisors. 

3 ‘‘(iii) Tuition for the related instruc4 tion of the apprenticeship. 

5 ‘‘(iv) Development of articulation 

6 agreements with institutions of higher edu7 cation that result in awarding an associ8 ate’s or higher degree. 

9 ‘‘(v) Assessment of prior learning for 

10 the purpose of awarding credit. 

11 ‘‘(vi) Certifying examinations. 

12 ‘‘(vii) Recruitment of student appren13 tices or students participating in concur14 rent postsecondary programs while in high 

15 school. 

16 ‘‘(viii) Need-based supportive services, 

17 including tutoring, transportation, child 

18 care, and housing subsidies. 

19 ‘‘(ix) Not more than 20 percent of 

20 grant funds for the purchase of updated 

21 equipment. 

22 ‘‘(x) Not more than 10 percent of 

23 grant funds for administrative functions, 

24 such as program management and grant 

25 reporting. 


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1 ‘‘(xi) Aligning data reporting for aca2 demic programs and apprenticeships. 

3 ‘‘(C) WAGES.—An eligible partnership that 

4 receives a grant under this section— 

5 ‘‘(i) may not use any of the grant 

6 funds directly to pay wages to a student 

7 apprentice; and 

8 ‘‘(ii) shall ensure that any wages paid 

9 to a student apprentice under the postsec10 ondary apprenticeship program are not less 

11 than $15 an hour. 

12 ‘‘(7) ASSESSMENT.—An eligible partnership 

13 that receives a grant under this section shall monitor 

14 and report on the following participant-level out15 comes: 

16 ‘‘(A) With respect to interim outcomes— 

17 ‘‘(i) the number of student appren18 tices in the program; 

19 ‘‘(ii) the percentage of participants 

20 who are from nontraditional apprenticeship 

21 populations, including women, historically 

22 underrepresented groups, individuals with 

23 disabilities, veterans, and individuals with 

24 barriers to employment; 


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1 ‘‘(iii) outcomes for the participants 

2 described in clause (ii); 

3 ‘‘(iv) the accumulation of postsec4 ondary credit; 

5 ‘‘(v) the attainment of a recognized 

6 postsecondary credential; and 

7 ‘‘(vi) wage increases realized during 

8 the course of the apprenticeship. 

9 ‘‘(B) Completions— 

10 ‘‘(i) that are on time, disaggregated 

11 by credit, credential, or degree received; 

12 and 

13 ‘‘(ii) that are within 150 percent of 

14 the expected time of completion, 

15 disaggregated by credit, credential, or de16 gree received. 

17 ‘‘(C) With respect to end-of-program out18 comes for both participants who complete the 

19 program and participants who do not complete 

20 the program each of the following: 

21 ‘‘(i) The accumulation of postsec22 ondary credit toward a degree reported not 

23 later than one year after the end of the 

24 grant period. 


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1 ‘‘(ii) The share of enrolled students 

2 who attain a postsecondary degree re3 ported not later than one year after the 

4 end of the grant period. 

5 ‘‘(iii) The share of enrolled students 

6 who attain a recognized postsecondary cre7 dential reported not later than one year 

8 after the end of the grant period. 

9 ‘‘(iv) Subsequent enrollment in ad10 vanced education, disaggregated by level. 

11 ‘‘(v) Whether the place of employment 

12 for participants aligns with area of study 

13 disaggregated by students who completed 

14 the program and students who did not 

15 complete the program reported not later 

16 than one year after the end of the grant 

17 period. Such data may be collected through 

18 a survey. 

19 ‘‘(vi) Unsubsidized employment rate 

20 after the second quarter after exit from the 

21 program. 

22 ‘‘(vii) Unsubsidized employment rate 

23 after the fourth quarter after exit from the 

24 program. 


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1 ‘‘(viii) Median earnings after the sec2 ond and fourth quarters after exit from the 

3 program. 

4 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

5 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

6 such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2023 and 

7 each of the 5 succeeding fiscal years.’’. 

8 SEC. 3. FEDERAL WORK STUDY FUNDING. 

9 Section 442 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

10 U.S.C. 1087–52) is amended by adding at the end the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(f) FUNDING FOR STUDENT APPRENTICES.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

14 provision of this part— 

15 ‘‘(A) the postsecondary apprenticeship pro16 gram of a student apprentice (as defined in sec17 tion 791) shall qualify as a work-study program 

18 that is eligible for assistance under this part; 

19 and 

20 ‘‘(B) funds appropriated to carry out this 

21 part may be used by the Secretary to pay the 

22 tuition of such student apprentices except that 

23 Federal work study should not supplant the 

24 wages of student apprentices. 


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1 ‘‘(2) PELL GRANT ELIGIBILITY.—A student ap2 prentice who is a participant in a postsecondary ap3 prenticeship program that qualifies as a work-study 

4 program under this part and is otherwise eligible to 

5 receive a Federal Pell Grant under subpart 1 of part 

6 A may receive a Federal Pell Grant for enrollment 

7 at the institution of higher education that awards 

8 the recognized postsecondary credential that is a 

9 part of such postsecondary apprenticeship program. 

10 ‘‘(3) CREDIT FOR APPRENTICES.—A student 

11 apprentice who is a participant in a postsecondary 

12 apprenticeship program that qualifies as a work13 study program under this part shall receive credit 

14 toward a postsecondary degree for such participa15 tion. 

16 ‘‘(4) COMPENSATION.—A student apprentice 

17 who is a participant in a postsecondary apprentice18 ship program that qualifies as a work-study program 

19 under this part shall receive pay for work in the 

20 postsecondary apprenticeship program that is not 

21 less than $15 an hour.’’. 

Æ 


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