Datasets:

gtfintechlab
/

CoCoHD_transcripts

	<html>
	<title> - PROVIDING MORE STUDENTS A PATHWAY TO SUCCESS BY STRENGTHENING CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION</title>
	<body><pre>
	[House Hearing, 115 Congress]
	[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]









	PROVIDING MORE STUDENTS A PATHWAY TO
	SUCCESS BY STRENGTHENING CAREER AND
	TECHNICAL EDUCATION

	=======================================================================

	HEARING

	before the

	SUBCOMMITTEE ON EARLY CHILDHOOD,
	ELEMENTARY, AND SECONDARY EDUCATION

	COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
	AND THE WORKFORCE

	U.S. House of Representatives

	ONE HUNDRED FIFTEENTH CONGRESS

	FIRST SESSION

	__________

	HEARING HELD IN WASHINGTON, DC, FEBRUARY 28, 2017

	__________

	Serial No. 115-7

	__________

	Printed for the use of the Committee on Education and the Workforce



	[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]



	Available via the World Wide Web:
	www.gpo.gov/fdsys/browse/
	committee.action?chamber=house&committee=education
	or
	Committee address: http://edworkforce.house.gov
	______

	U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE

	24-358 PDF WASHINGTON : 2017
	-----------------------------------------------------------------------
	For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Publishing
	Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512-1800;
	DC area (202) 512-1800 Fax: (202) 512-2104 Mail: Stop IDCC,
	Washington, DC 20402-0001






















	COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND THE WORKFORCE

	VIRGINIA FOXX, North Carolina, Chairwoman

	Joe Wilson, South Carolina Robert C. ``Bobby'' Scott,
	Duncan Hunter, California Virginia
	David P. Roe, Tennessee Ranking Member
	Glenn ``GT'' Thompson, Pennsylvania Susan A. Davis, California
	Tim Walberg, Michigan Raul M. Grijalva, Arizona
	Brett Guthrie, Kentucky Joe Courtney, Connecticut
	Todd Rokita, Indiana Marcia L. Fudge, Ohio
	Lou Barletta, Pennsylvania Jared Polis, Colorado
	Luke Messer, Indiana Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan,
	Bradley Byrne, Alabama Northern Mariana Islands
	David Brat, Virginia Frederica S. Wilson, Florida
	Glenn Grothman, Wisconsin Suzanne Bonamici, Oregon
	Steve Russell, Oklahoma Mark Takano, California
	Elise Stefanik, New York Alma S. Adams, North Carolina
	Rick W. Allen, Georgia Mark DeSaulnier, California
	Jason Lewis, Minnesota Donald Norcross, New Jersey
	Francis Rooney, Florida Lisa Blunt Rochester, Delaware
	Paul Mitchell, Michigan Raja Krishnamoorthi, Illinois
	Tom Garrett, Jr., Virginia Carol Shea-Porter, New Hampshire
	Lloyd K. Smucker, Pennsylvania Adriano Espaillat, New York
	A. Drew Ferguson, IV, Georgia

	Brandon Renz, Staff Director
	Denise Forte, Minority Staff Director
	------

	SUBCOMMITTEE ON EARLY CHILDHOOD, ELEMENTARY, AND SECONDARY EDUCATION

	TODD ROKITA, Indiana, Chairman

	Duncan Hunter, California Jared Polis, Colorado
	David P. Roe, Tennessee Ranking Member
	Glenn ``GT'' Thompson, Pennsylvania Raul M. Grijalva, Arizona
	Luke Messer, Indiana Marcia L. Fudge, Ohio
	David Brat, Virginia Suzanne Bonamici, Oregon
	Tom Garrett, Jr., Virginia Susan A. Davis, California
	Frederica S. Wilson, Florida














	C O N T E N T S

	----------
	Page

	Hearing held on February 28, 2017................................ 1

	Statement of Members:
	Polis, Hon. Jared, Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Early
	Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education............. 4
	Prepared statement of.................................... 6
	Rokita, Hon. Todd, Chairman, Subcommittee on Early Childhood,
	Elementary, and Secondary Education........................ 1
	Prepared statement of.................................... 3

	Statement of Witnesses:
	Global, Ms. Janet, Director of Career and Technical
	Education, Canyons School District......................... 14
	Prepared statement of.................................... 27
	Johnson, Mr. Glenn E., M.A., Manufacturing Workforce
	Development Leader, BASF Corporation....................... 8
	Prepared statement of.................................... 16
	Lufkin, Ms. Mimi, Chief Executive Officer, National Alliance
	for Partnerships in Equity (NAPE).......................... 21
	Prepared statement of.................................... 24
	Rowe, Mr. Mike, CEO, Mikeroweworks Foundation................ 34
	Prepared statement of.................................... 37

	Additional Submissions:
	Barletta, Hon. Lou, a Representative in Congress from the
	State of Pennsylvania:
	Letter dated March 21, 2017, from International Code
	Council................................................ 60
	Mr. Johnson:
	Chart: Workforce Development Pipeline.................... 63
	Mr. Polis:
	The CTE Equation in Tennessee........................... 57
	Mr. Rowe:
	CompTIA: Change in TECH Act.............................. 65
	Chairman Rokita:
	Prepared statement of.................................... 69
	Article: How Congress can help millions of Americans
	achieve career success................................. 75
	Thompson, Hon. Glenn ``GT'', a Representative in Congress
	from the State of Tennessee:
	Letter dated February 24, 2017, from Data Quality
	Campaign (DQC)......................................... 79


	PROVIDING MORE STUDENTS A PATHWAY TO SUCCESS BY STRENGTHENING CAREER
	AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION

	----------


	Tuesday, February 28, 2017

	House of Representatives,

	Subcommittee on Early Childhood,

	Elementary, and Secondary Education,

	Committee on Education and the Workforce,

	Washington, D.C.

	----------

	The subcommittee met, pursuant to call, at 10:03 a.m., in
	Room 2175, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Todd Rokita
	[chairman of the subcommittee] presiding.
	Present: Representatives Rokita, Roe, Thompson, Messer,
	Brat, Garrett, Polis, Bonamici, and Davis.
	Also Present: Representatives Foxx, Scott of Virginia, and
	Krishnamoorthi.
	Staff Present: Courtney Butcher, Director of Member
	Services and Coalitions; Amy Raaf Jones, Director of Education
	and Human Resources Policy; Nancy Locke, Chief Clerk; Dominique
	McKay, Deputy Press Secretary; James Mullen, Director of
	Information Technology; Krisann Pearce, General Counsel; James
	Redstone, Professional Staff Member; Alex Ricci, Legislative
	Assistant; Mandy Schaumburg, Education Deputy Director and
	Senior Counsel; Brad Thomas, Senior Education Policy Advisor;
	Tylease Alli, Minority Clerk/Intern and Fellow Coordinator;
	Jacque Chevalier, Minority Deputy Education Policy Director;
	Denise Forte, Minority Staff Director; Mishawn Freeman,
	Minority Staff Assistant; Eunice Ikene, Minority Labor Policy
	Associate; Alexander Payne, Minority Education Policy Advisor;
	and Elizabeth Watson, Minority Director of Labor Policy.
	Chairman Rokita. A quorum being present, the Subcommittee
	on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education will
	come to order.
	Good morning, everyone, and welcome to today's hearing.
	We're here to discuss strengthening career and technical
	education and the need to reform, improve, and modernize
	current law so that more students can experience the power of
	this important education.
	For decades, career and technical education has helped
	individuals compete in the workforce and build fulfilling
	careers. Today, State and local programs across the country are
	working to prepare students in high school and at community
	colleges for jobs in a variety of fields.
	Now, these programs serve more than 11 million students,
	helping them receive knowledge, skills, and real world
	experience in fields ranging from health care and law
	enforcement to information technology and steel manufacturing.
	Through the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education
	Act, the Federal Government provides support to these State and
	local programs. It's a worthwhile investment in growing a
	skilled workforce, preparing students for postsecondary
	education or the workplace, and helping hardworking
	individuals, particularly younger individuals, achieve their
	goals in life.
	CTE helped Paul Tse from Maryland, for example, go from a
	struggling high school student to the project manager for a
	mechanical contract company. Jasmine Morgan from Georgia
	realized her dream of becoming a sports marketing specialist
	through her experience with CTE. Alex Wolff embarked on a
	successful career in electrical engineering after participating
	in a CTE program in his home State of California.
	Now, these are just a few examples of the power CTE has to
	help students achieve their dreams and reach their full
	potential. However, changes to Federal law need to be made, and
	that's what we're here to discuss today, updating career and
	technical education policies so that more students can enjoy
	the success that Paul, Jasmine, and Alex have seen.
	The Perkins Act hasn't been updated in more than a decade.
	I don't have to tell you that much has changed in the workplace
	and our economy since then. Technology has advanced, consumer
	needs have shifted, and the country has struggled through a
	slow and tough economic recovery.
	By strengthening CTE policies, we have an opportunity to
	ensure the law reflects the current realities facing students,
	workers, and employers today. It's an important opportunity,
	one that allows us not to only help more Americans seize
	opportunities in the workforce, but help them excel in the
	high-skilled jobs that exist today.
	In recent years, we've heard more and more about the quote,
	unquote, ``skills gap,'' the idea that there are more job
	opportunities in this country than there are workers with the
	knowledge and skills necessary to fill those jobs. You heard me
	correctly, even with too many Americans still unemployed,
	millions of job openings exist. The sad truth is that many
	students aren't prepared for these jobs.
	This need for skilled labor exists in a number of critical
	industries. In manufacturing alone, 6 out of 10 positions go
	unfilled because of the skills gap and 84 percent of
	manufacturers agree there is a talent shortage. What's worse is
	that if current projections continue, more than 6 million jobs
	will remain unfilled by 2020.
	Something needs to change, and improving career and
	technical education is a great way to help bring about that
	change. Unfortunately, we are starting from scratch. Last year,
	Congress came very close to passing a bipartisan bill that
	would deliver much-needed CTE reforms. Through a bipartisan
	effort led by Representatives Glenn Thompson and Katherine
	Clark, this committee unanimously approved legislation to
	strengthen CTE. So it's worth pausing and repeating that:
	unanimously approved legislation, this committee.
	The important reforms in that legislation would empower
	State and local leaders to respond to changing education and
	economic needs. They would support innovative learning
	opportunities for students and help build better community
	partnerships, including stronger engagement with local
	employers. They would also improve accountability to ensure CTE
	programs are delivering real results and hardworking taxpayers'
	money is being well spent.
	That legislation went on to pass the House with
	overwhelming bipartisan support by a vote of 405 to 5. It also
	enjoyed broad support outside of Congress from groups
	representing students, schools, employers, and those in the
	civil rights community.
	These commonsense bipartisan reforms provide us with a
	strong foundation to continue working to improve the law.
	Through hearings like this one and the legislative work ahead,
	we have an opportunity to help fill jobs, empower more
	individuals to achieve their goals, and provide more students a
	pathway to success.
	I'd like to thank our witnesses for joining us here today
	and look forward to hearing their stories and their experiences
	about the power of CTE and what we can do to make it better. I
	know Mike Rowe has been working for years to elevate CTE, as
	well as the kinds of ``dirty jobs'' of the men and women that
	are employed in those fields. His efforts have helped shine a
	light on countless Americans whose hard work and quiet
	determination help move this country forward.
	We appreciate all that you've done to support this
	country's students and workers. We look forward to your
	testimony.
	So with that, I'll now recognize the ranking member,
	Congressman Polis, for his opening remarks.
	[The statement of Chairman Rokita follows:]

	Prepared Statement of Hon. Todd Rokita, Chairman, Subcommittee on Early
	Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education

	For decades, career and technical education has helped individuals
	compete in the workforce and build fulfilling careers. Today, state and
	local programs across the country are working to prepare students in
	high school and at community colleges for jobs in a variety of fields.
	These programs serve more than 11 million students--helping them
	receive knowledge, skills, and real-world experience in fields ranging
	from health care and law enforcement to information technology and
	manufacturing.
	Through the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act, the
	federal government provides support to these state and local programs.
	It's a worthwhile investment in growing a skilled workforce, preparing
	students for postsecondary education or the workplace, and helping
	hardworking individuals--particularly younger individuals--achieve
	their goals in life.
	CTE helped Paul Tse from Maryland go from a struggling high school
	student to the project manager for a mechanical contract company.
	Jasmine Morgan from Georgia realized her dream of becoming a sports
	marketing specialist through her experience with CTE. Alex Wolff
	embarked on a successful career in electrical engineering after
	participating in a CTE program in his home state of California.
	These are just a few examples of the power CTE has to help students
	achieve their dreams and reach their full potential. However, changes
	to federal law need to be made, and that's what we are here to discuss
	today--updating career and technical education policies so more
	students can enjoy success like Paul, Jasmine, and Alex.
	The Perkins Act hasn't been updated in more than a decade. I don't
	have to tell you that much has changed in the workplace and our economy
	since then. Technology has advanced, consumer needs have shifted, and
	the country has struggled through a slow, tough economic recovery.
	By strengthening CTE policies, we have an opportunity to ensure the
	law reflects the current realities facing students, workers, and
	employers today. It's an important opportunity--one that allows us not
	only to help more Americans seize opportunities in the workforce but to
	help them excel in the high-skilled jobs that exist today.
	In recent years, we've heard more and more about the ``skills
	gap''--the idea that there are more job opportunities in this country
	than there are workers with the knowledge and skills necessary to fill
	them. You heard me correctly. Even with too many Americans still
	unemployed, millions of job openings exist. The sad truth is we simply
	haven't prepared students for them.
	This need for skilled labor exists in a number of critical
	industries. In manufacturing alone, six out of 10 positions go unfilled
	because of the skills gap, and 84 percent of manufacturers agree there
	is a talent shortage. What's worse is that if current projections
	continue, more than 6 million jobs will remain unfilled by the year
	2020.
	Something needs to change, and improving career and technical
	education is a great way to help bring about that change. Fortunately,
	we aren't starting from scratch.
	Last year, Congress came very close to passing a bipartisan bill
	that would deliver much-needed CTE reforms. Through a bipartisan effort
	led by Representatives Glenn Thompson and Katherine Clark, this
	committee unanimously approved legislation to strengthen CTE. Let me
	pause to repeat that: unanimously approved legislation.
	The important reforms in that legislation would empower state and
	local leaders to respond to changing education and economic needs. They
	would support innovative learning opportunities for students and help
	build better community partnerships, including stronger engagement with
	local employers. They would also improve accountability to ensure CTE
	programs are delivering real results and hardworking taxpayer dollars
	are being well spent.
	That legislation went on to pass the House with overwhelming
	bipartisan support by a vote of 405 to 5. It also enjoyed broad support
	outside of Congress from groups representing students, schools,
	employers, and those in the civil rights community.
	These commonsense, bipartisan reforms provide us with a strong
	foundation to continue working to improve the law. Through hearings
	like this one and the legislative work ahead, we have an opportunity to
	help fill jobs, empower more individuals to achieve their goals, and
	provide more students a pathway to success.
	I'd like to thank our witnesses for joining us today and look
	forward to hearing their stories and experiences about the power of
	CTE, and what we can do to make it better. I know Mike Rowe has been
	working for years to elevate CTE, as well as all kinds of ``dirty
	jobs'' and the men and women employed in these fields. His efforts have
	helped shine a light on countless Americans whose hard work and quiet
	determination help move this great country forward. We appreciate all
	that you've done to support this country's students and workers, and we
	look forward to your testimony.
	______

	Mr. Polis. Good morning, and thank you, Chairman Rokita.
	Today's hearing is very important because we're going to be
	examining the very important role in an evolving 21st century
	economy of career and technical education programs. Career and
	technical education programs help prepare our country's
	students, including those who are coming from nontraditional
	pathways, for either success in college or career. And many of
	the programs across our school districts or in partnership with
	our school districts are funded under the Carl D. Perkins
	Career and Technical Education Improvement Act of 2006, which
	the committee is hoping to reauthorize this session.
	According to Georgetown University's Center on Education
	and the Workforce, in the next 5 years 65 percent of jobs in
	our economy in our country will require training beyond high
	school. In my own State of Colorado, career and technical
	education is really receiving a new facelift to reinvent it for
	the 21st century. Last year, our State created a pilot program
	where school districts receive $1,000 for students who complete
	a credential in a high-demand industry or finished a workplace
	training program or complete an AP computer science course.
	This past fall, I visited the new P-TECH high school in
	Longmont, Colorado, that serves many students in my district.
	P-TECH, which also is known as Pathways in Technology Early
	College, allows all students to earn their high school diploma
	and an associate's degrees in a STEM field. P-TECH is a
	partnership between the school district, Front Range Community
	College, and IBM. Other P-TECH partnerships include other
	private sector companies that are willing to provide
	educational internships for the students and educational
	support. And also the cooperation of a local community college
	is very important.
	In addition to supporting P-TECH -- and there was language
	in last year's reauthorization that we hope to include in this
	year's as well, supportive of the P-TECH concept -- Perkins
	also provides an excellent opportunity to support dual and
	concurrent enrollment programs, which are growing across the
	country. Dual enrollment, frankly, is one of the most
	successful educational programs that I've seen, in my State and
	nationally. Every day, dual and concurrent enrollment are
	breaking down barriers to accessing college for many low-income
	and first-generation students.
	Students that participate in dual and concurrent enrollment
	programs are less likely to need remediation in college. They
	are 23 percent more likely to continue into postsecondary
	education after high school.
	It's also very cost effective for students and their
	families. Last year, I visited Colorado Early College High
	School in Fort Collins. For students at Colorado Early College
	High School, they graduate high school with an associate's
	degree, often in 4 years. It can take 5 or 6 years as well, but
	the vast majority of the students complete high school and an
	associate's degree in 4 years.
	These graduates are not only able to receive college credit
	and reduce the cost of college and cut the cost of a 4-year
	degree in half, but also receive the ability to have a
	deployable talent in the marketplace.
	Career and technical education is critical for fulfilling
	high-need jobs. This last fall, I met with representatives from
	the Northern Colorado Labor Council. They shared how there's
	openings for apprenticeships in northern Colorado which pay a
	good wage and lead to a good job, but they don't have enough
	qualified people to fill those openings. This really gets to
	the heart of why we need strong career-readiness programs.
	In many places, there are good-paying jobs available for
	people who have the right skills. The Federal Government has an
	important role to play in partnering with school districts to
	ensure students have the skills to fill good-paying jobs.
	Unfortunately, after the harmful sequestration cuts, public
	funding for career and technical education is at historic lows.
	It's clear that we should not continue to cut funding for
	critical programs like career and technical education, programs
	that actually can engage students with an integrated and
	practical and applied curriculum of core academic content and
	real world, work-based relevance.
	We need to support high-quality career and technical
	education programs. And for many years, the Perkins Act has
	supported the development of career and technical education
	programs that cultivate in-demand skills among secondary and
	postsecondary students.
	Reauthorization of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical
	Education Act gives this committee the opportunity to ensure
	that these programs are high quality, emphasize equity, align
	with academic and labor market demands to help grow our
	economy, and provide opportunities for all students, especially
	those who are historically underserved, to receive credentials,
	lead to high-skills, high-wage, in-demand career opportunities
	in the 21st century.
	We also need to ensure that any reauthorization is
	bipartisan, comes with strong accountability, transparency, and
	quality indicators, to make sure that a diverse population of
	students is served, and that every student is served well. We
	can achieve these goals through increased collaboration and
	flexibility at the State and local level while maintaining the
	authority federally to make sure that the legislation meets its
	goals.
	I look forward to hearing from our distinguished panel of
	witnesses today and discussing how we can best equip our
	Nation's students with the skills that they need to succeed in
	our rapidly evolving economy.
	Thank you, and I yield back the balance of my time.
	[The statement of Mr. Polis follows:]

	Prepared Statement of Hon. Jared Polis, Ranking Member, Subcommittee on
	Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education

	Good morning, and thank you, Chairman Rokita.
	Today's hearing will examine the critical role of career and
	technical education (CTE) programs in preparing our nation's students,
	including those who are entering or coming from nontraditional
	pathways, for success in college and career. Many of these programs are
	funded under the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education
	Improvement Act of 2006.
	According to Georgetown University's Center on Education and the
	Workforce, in the next five years, 65 percent of all jobs in the United
	States' economy will require training beyond high school. In my home
	state of Colorado, career and technical education is receiving a
	renewed focus. Last year, Colorado created a pilot program where school
	districts receive $1,000 for each student who completes a credential in
	a high-demand industry, finishes a workplace training program, or
	completes an AP Computer Science course.
	This past fall, I visited the new P-TECH school in Longmont,
	Colorado that serves many students in my district. P-TECH, also known
	as Pathways in Technology Early College allows students to earn their
	high school diploma and an associate's degree in a STEM field in six
	years. P-TECH is a partnership between the school district, Front Range
	Community College, and IBM, and gives students the opportunity to get
	on-the-job training while they're getting their degrees.
	In addition to P-TECH, Perkins CTE provides an excellent
	opportunity to lift up and support dual and concurrent enrollment. Dual
	enrollment is one of the most successful education programs in
	Colorado, and it's breaking down barriers to accessing college for many
	low-income and first generation students. Students in Colorado that
	participate in dual and concurrent enrollment are less likely to need
	remedial courses in college, and they are 23 percent more likely to
	continue into postsecondary education after high school. It's also an
	effective cost-saving strategy for students. Last year, I visited
	Colorado Early College High School in Fort Collins, or CEC. For
	students at CEC, they graduate high school with an associate's degree,
	sometimes in four years, and sometimes in five or six. Those graduates
	are not only able to get college experience, but they've effectively
	cut their cost for a four-year degree in half.
	CTE is also critical for filling high-needs jobs. Just last fall, I
	met with representatives from the Northern Colorado Labor Council. They
	shared how there are openings for apprenticeships in Northern Colorado,
	which pay a fair wage and can lead to a job, but they don't have anyone
	to fill the openings. This gets to the heart of why we need strong
	career readiness programs. In many places there are good-paying jobs
	available. The federal government has a role to play in helping ensure
	students are trained to fill them.
	Unfortunately, after harmful sequestration cuts, public funding for
	CTE is at historic lows. It is clear that we should not continue to cut
	funding for critical programs, like CTE, that engage students with an
	integrated curriculum of core academic content and real-world, work-
	based relevance.
	Instead, we must support high-quality CTE programs. For many years,
	the Perkins Act has supported the development of CTE programs that
	cultivate in-demand skills among secondary and postsecondary students.
	Reauthorization of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical
	Education Act presents this Committee with an opportunity to ensure
	that CTE programs are of high quality, emphasize equity, align with
	academic and labor market demands, and provide opportunities for all
	students - especially those historically underserved - to receive
	credentials that lead to high-skill, high-wage, in-demand career
	opportunities. We also need to ensure that any reauthorization is
	bipartisan, and comes with strong accountability and quality indicators
	that ensure not only that a diverse population of students are being
	served, but also that every student is being served well. We can
	achieve these goals through increased collaboration and flexibility at
	the state and local level, while maintaining secretarial authority to
	regulate and enforce the legislation at the federal level.
	I look forward to hearing from our distinguished panel of witnesses
	and discussing how we can equip our nation's students with the skills
	they need to succeed in a rapidly evolving 21st century economy.
	Thank you, and I yield back my time.
	______

	Chairman Rokita. I thank the gentleman.
	Pursuant to committee rule 7(c), all members will be
	permitted to submit written statements, which will be included
	in the permanent hearing record. And without objection, the
	hearing record will remain open for 14 days to allow such
	statements and other extraneous material referenced during the
	hearing to be submitted for the official hearing record.
	I will now turn to the introduction of our distinguished
	witnesses.
	First, we have Mr. Glenn Johnson. He is a workforce
	development leader for BASF, where he works to develop
	partnerships with educational agencies and postsecondary
	partners.
	Welcome.
	Ms. Janet Goble is the director of career and technical
	education for Canyons School District in Sandy, Utah, where she
	oversees CTE course offerings, business partnerships, and work-
	based learning student experiences.
	Welcome.
	Ms. Mimi Lufkin is the executive director for the National
	Alliance for Partnerships in Equity, where she conducts
	professional development activities and provides technical
	assistance to State and local education agencies focused on
	best practices for serving special population students.
	Ms. Lufkin, welcome.
	And finally, Mr. Mike Rowe, best known for the Discovery
	Channel show ``Dirty Jobs,'' now runs the mikeroweWORKS
	Foundation, which awards scholarships to students pursuing a
	career in the skilled trades.
	Mr. Rowe, welcome. Thank you for being here.
	I will now ask our witnesses to raise your right hand.
	[Witnesses sworn.]
	Chairman Rokita. Let the record reflect that all witnesses
	answered in the affirmative.
	Before I recognize you to provide your testimony, let me
	briefly explain our lighting system, which is reminder for us
	up here as much as it is for you. You each have 5 minutes, of
	course, to present your testimony. When you begin, the light
	will be green, and then when there is 1 minute left, it will be
	yellow, and when it's red, it's time to stop. So please do that
	so we can keep on time. I'd appreciate it.
	Members then will each have 5 minutes to ask their
	questions, and the red light applies to them just as equally.
	So with that, I'd like to recognize Mr. Johnson for 5
	minutes for your testimony.

	TESTIMONY OF GLENN E. JOHNSON, M.A., MANUFACTURING WORKFORCE
	DEVELOPMENT LEADER, BASF CORPORATION

	Mr. Johnson. Thank you very much for this opportunity to
	talk about CTE and how BASF has become very involved and very
	engaged in this type of work and activity.
	I'd like to also mention that I began my own career as
	very, very near the bottom, starting as a process operator and
	working my way through the technical operations of
	manufacturing and technical careers. So I've lived the life
	that I advocate for these young people -- and even retooling
	adults -- to get involved with and very passionate about it.
	BASF has 154 locations in 29 States. Eighty-one of those
	are production facilities and 17 are research and development.
	We have 15,000 employees who work in operations, engineering,
	research and development, and sales and marketing. In 2016
	alone we contributed more than $4.5 million to the communities
	that we live and worked with in those areas.
	Wherever possible, BASF seeks out to promote collaborations
	with K through 12 through graduate school. Perkins grants are
	an important tool that enhances the collaborative process and
	adds to student success.
	Important to talent acquisition is to seek the best
	candidates. But in addition to that, it starts much earlier. We
	want to entice the best candidates to seek us. And this gets
	back to some of the things I've already heard through what
	we've talked about today. It's talking to students and letting
	them know the true realities of these technical jobs and the
	misconceptions of the past, getting those things cleared away.
	We have a problem, which has already also been mentioned:
	11,000 baby boomers are turning 70 every single day as of 2016.
	That's one every 7.5 seconds. So it is happening, there's a
	delayed effect, but it is happening, and this will result in
	what we project in a 2 million job shortage in the
	manufacturing sector.
	Jobs in technology are among the most at risk, and that is
	why BASF has taken such an engaged approach that we call
	pipeline relationship management, where we are driving
	relationships, not just participation with our different
	education and industry partners and the workforce potentials
	that are out there. So this involves direct involvement in all
	stages of workforce development.
	The three basic pieces that we go after, our pillars, I
	guess you could call, is to, one, drive career and technical
	education awareness. This is our approach to increase the size
	of the pipeline. So the illustration that you see on the
	monitors now is basically what -- it's a graphic that displays
	the complexity of the workforce pipeline whenever we talk about
	it.
	I speak to so many people, and I get the vision from
	listening to what they say that they really see the pipeline as
	the singular pipe, that people go in one side, they come out
	with skills and hired at the end. Where in reality, these three
	pieces of career and technical education awareness, where we
	are increasing the size or the quantity of workforce potentials
	coming through the pipeline, working with our nested
	educational partners to increase the quality of those workforce
	potentials in that pipeline, and then working with our
	government and industrial partners to increase the productivity
	of that pipeline so that we can supply that projected 2 million
	job shortage.
	One of the problems is that 52 percent of students today
	when surveyed say they have no interest in manufacturing jobs.
	But that same data also tells us that the thing that makes them
	change their mind the most, the one that makes them decide what
	careers to pursue, is what they're most familiar with. And this
	drives our need to do more to familiarize students and
	workforce potentials, as well as retooling adults, with the
	true realities of technology and manufacturing today.
	Since 2010, more than 380,000 schoolchildren in grades K
	through 12 have participated in science education programs that
	BASF has put together. Through programs like BASF's Kids' Lab,
	we are helping grade school students build on their natural
	curiosity for how things work and to develop an interest in
	science. In programs like BASF's Science Academy and BASF's
	Tech Academy we seek to attract high school students to skilled
	career paths in science, technology, engineering, and
	mathematics.
	Retooling adults. We focus what we talk to them about to
	make sure that they understand the misconceptions of pay, that
	the average pay in manufacturing is actually $10,000 on average
	more per year than all other sectors combined. This lifestyle,
	the job availability projections, we hear all the time in the
	news and other places the endless counts of where people with
	4-year degrees can't find jobs. And at the same time, we have a
	skills gap. We have a projected absence in manufacturing. And
	these jobs actually pay more.
	In one school in the Houston area, of the multiple, many
	technical colleges in the areas, in one school alone there are
	currently 600 students that have a 4-year degree, can't find
	work, are going back to get an associate's degree or a
	certificate to become more employable, and it is just an
	example of the type of ideas that it takes to fix this problem.
	[The testimony of Mr. Johnson follows:]

	[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]


	Chairman Rokita. Thank you, Mr. Johnson.
	Ms. Goble, you are recognized for 5 minutes.

	TESTIMONY OF JANET GOBLE, DIRECTOR OF CAREER AND TECHNICAL
	EDUCATION, CANYONS SCHOOL DISTRICT

	Ms. Goble. Good morning, Chairman Rokita, Ranking Member
	Polis, and distinguished members of the subcommittee. My name
	is Janet Goble, and I'm the director for career and technical
	education for Canyons School District in Sandy, Utah, which is
	a comprehensive school district serving approximately 35,000
	students. Additionally, I serve as the administration division
	vice president for the National Association for Career and
	Technical Education. I'm honored to be here today, and thank
	you for the invitation to share some of the wonderful
	opportunities students have in CTE.
	This morning I would like to highlight programs of study,
	business partnerships, and work-based learning opportunities,
	all of which are extremely beneficial for our students and are
	key tenets of the Carl B. Perkins Act.
	In Canyons School District students have the opportunity to
	participate in 35 different programs of study. These pathways
	start in 9th or 10th grade, and are followed by a succession of
	related courses that lead students into postsecondary education
	or careers. Students are able to earn industry credentials as
	juniors or seniors, and some leave high school with Utah
	licenses in areas like health care.
	With these credentials, students are prepared to be
	successful in their chosen pathway and are ready to hit the
	ground running in the workplace. Last year, our students earned
	an impressive 1,739 industry credentials.
	Many of our CTE students also plan to pursue higher
	education. This year, we are offering 44 CTE dual-enrollment
	courses with our higher education partners. Students in these
	courses have the opportunity to experience the rigor of
	college-level course work while saving time and money toward
	earning a college degree.
	Business partnerships are a key component of our program of
	study effort. For example, we have worked with major diesel
	companies across the State and other partners to develop the
	Utah Diesel Technician Pathway. In direct response to providing
	the workforce for the diesel industry, the pathway starts with
	dual-enrollment courses in high school, transform to college
	courses, and then allow students into enter the workforce with
	industry-grade skills.
	Along with donating many hours of job-shadow experiences
	and giving presentations about this viable career pathway,
	industry partners donated 12 diesel engines and stands to our
	district, valued at approximately $180,000, so students can
	learn on up-to-date equipment.
	We are also launching a new Medical Innovations Pathway
	driven by industry partners in the medical device manufacturing
	area. Students will take high school courses whose standards
	and objectives have been developed by industry to gain
	necessary skills for this career area. In addition, we are
	poised to participate in a new statewide building construction
	initiative and look forward to a similar partnership in the
	information technology area.
	Last October, in an effort to connect more students with
	industry, we were an integral part of our region's Pathways to
	Professions expo event where students and teachers were able to
	directly interface with businesses. In its maiden year, over
	8,500 students attended. There were even a few students who
	were hired on the spot.
	Opportunities like the expo that connect students with
	industry are critical. In our district, career exploration
	activities start with elementary school career days. College
	and Career Awareness, a required middle school course, exposes
	students to occupations across all the career clusters. Then in
	high school, examples of work-based learning activities cover a
	continuum from field trips, guest speakers, and lunch-and-
	learns, to internships.
	All high school students participate in career fairs. Work-
	based learning facilitators recruit professionals in their own
	community to represent dozens of possible careers. Having the
	support of 70-plus businesses is overwhelming and helps
	students learn about careers they might not even know exist.
	We also host an annual job-shadow event giving students a
	firsthand look at the workplace. A wide range of careers are
	represented, from engineers to graphic designers. This year, 89
	students and 41 businesses took part in the event. Some
	students realize that the career they shadow is not a good fit,
	which is a valuable experience and allows them time to
	reevaluate their career aspirations. And as for those students
	who have found their passion, this experience serves to cement
	their career decision and also gives them the opportunity to
	network with industry professionals.
	Another activity, our annual You Go Girls conference, with
	300 girls attending, aims to introduce middle school-aged girls
	to traditional occupations. It is very empowering for these
	young girls to hear from female role models and realize that
	they too can succeed in these careers. Since initiating this
	event, the percentage of students enrolled in high school non-
	trad programs has risen from 26 percent to 53 percent.
	With our Perkins allocation, we fund work-based learning
	personnel and activities like these. Without this flexible
	funding, we would be unable to offer many of these valuable
	opportunities for our students.
	When students are engaged in more learning -- and certainly
	work-based learning and programs of study elevate that
	engagement -- they are more likely to stay in school. In
	Canyons district, 94 percent of CTE concentrators graduated
	from high school, while the overall district graduation rate is
	85 percent.
	With the reauthorization of the Carl D. Perkins Career and
	Technical Education Act, Congress has the opportunity to ensure
	that high-quality CTE programs, including work-based learning
	experiences, are available to all students.
	Again, thank you for the opportunity to provide testimony,
	and I look forward to your questions.
	[The testimony of Ms. Goble follows:]


	[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]


	Chairman Rokita. Thank you, Ms. Goble.
	Ms. Lufkin, you're recognized for 5 minutes.

	TESTIMONY OF MIMI LUFKIN, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, NATIONAL
	ALLIANCE FOR PARTNERSHIPS IN EQUITY (NAPE)

	Ms. Lufkin. Good morning, and thank you, Chairman Rokita,
	Ranking Member Polis, and members of the subcommittee, as well
	as Chairwoman Foxx and Ranking Member Scott, for the
	opportunity to testify before you today.
	My name is Mimi Lufkin. I am the chief executive officer of
	the National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity. NAPE is a
	consortium of State and local education agencies supporting
	educators and carrying out the equity and special population
	provisions in the Perkins Act, as well as other education and
	workforce development legislation.
	Nationwide, some 13 million students are enrolled in CTE
	programs in secondary and postsecondary institutions. These
	programs are developing America's most valuable resource -- its
	people -- helping them gain the skills, technical knowledge,
	academic foundation, and real world experience they need to
	prepare for high-skill, high-demand, high-wage careers and keep
	America working in every sense of the word.
	CTE provides a positive return on investment for both
	students and the economy. Students who earn a CTE-related
	associate's degree or certificate can make an average of $9,000
	more per year, $20,000 more per year in health career fields.
	Students who engage in high-quality CTE have higher academic
	achievement and are more likely to graduate from high school.
	Attendance in a CTE program more than doubles the rate of
	college entrance for minority students.
	In Florida, CTE students taking dual-enrollment courses are
	22 percent more likely to enroll in postsecondary institutions
	as compared to their peers; and in Indiana, the community
	college system estimated savings of $14.1 million in tuition
	costs for students in dual-credit courses.
	CTE plays a critical role in creating a skilled workforce
	and a more diverse workforce. Since its reauthorization in
	1972, the Perkins Act, then the Vocational Education Act, has
	contained provisions supporting disadvantaged students and
	special populations, such as low-income students, students with
	disabilities, English-language learners, single parents,
	displaced homemakers, and students pursuing nontraditional
	careers, with access and success in CTE programs.
	Increasing access to high-quality CTE programs for every
	student, especially for unrepresented students, must be a
	priority in Federal policy. By 2024, employers need to fill
	more than 2 million middle-skilled jobs, those that require
	less than a baccalaureate degree, in information technology,
	manufacturing, transportation, distribution, and logistics --
	all fields that are critical to the health of our Nation's
	economy and security.
	Only 11 percent of the workers in these fields are women.
	In the 2014-15 school year, women represented only 23 percent
	of IT concentrators, 12 percent of manufacturing concentrators,
	and 9 percent of transportation, distribution, and logistics
	concentrators in postsecondary CTE programs. In addition, men
	represented only 19 percent of concentrators in health career
	programs. These high-demand fields cannot afford to have half
	the population unavailable as potential members of their
	workforce pool.
	Under the provisions in the Perkins Act, NAPE has been
	working with educators at the State and local level across the
	country to move the needle on equity in CTE. For example, in
	Oregon, Douglas Education Service District increased the
	enrollment of girls in their welding program from 4 in the fall
	of 2015 to 38 in the spring of 2016.
	In California, Cordova High School increased female
	participation in their Project Lead the Way, Introduction to
	Engineering Design course from 4 to 14 girls in one semester.
	And in Ohio, Morgan Local Schools increased the enrollment of
	boys in health sciences to 50 percent of enrollment.
	States play a critical role in leading the implementation
	of innovative and high-quality CTE programs. The sharing of
	these best practices, providing technical assistance,
	collecting and sharing disaggregated accountability and
	participation data, ensuring civil rights enforcement, and
	holding States accountable are all critical roles the Federal
	Government plays.
	The CTE community has benefited from the initiatives that
	the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Career, Technical
	and Adult Education has lead, such as the Data Quality
	Institutes, the Peer Collaborative Resource Network, and the
	Advancing Equity in CTE project, to name a few.
	Our State members have also found the U.S. Department of
	Education's monitoring visits to be valuable in highlighting
	successes and uncovering opportunities for improvement,
	particularly in regards to ensuring the needs of special
	populations are being met.
	NAPE has benefitted from access to national data on
	accountability measure performance and CTE concentrator data
	disaggregated by gender, race, ethnicity, and special
	population status as we work with States and local education
	agencies to close participation and achievement gaps.
	It's critical that the Federal role be maintained in the
	Perkins Act to ensure that CTE continues to transform itself to
	meet the needs of the military, business, and a workforce
	competing in a global economy.
	Most importantly, for any of this to be possible requires
	that Perkins be fully funded. Since 1991, the Perkins basic
	State grant program has been reduced by 45 percent when
	adjusting for inflation. Now is the time to invest in America's
	educational system that creates its most valuable technical
	workforce.
	I want to congratulate the House Education and the
	Workforce Committee for its bipartisan passage of H.R. 5587,
	Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st
	Century Act, in the 114th Congress, and look forward to working
	with you to ensure that the reauthorization of the Perkins Act
	in the 115th Congress builds on that good work.
	Our Nation needs every individual to be able to access
	high-quality CTE programs that lead to occupations with a
	family-sustaining wage, and our Nation's economy needs a
	diverse workforce to ensure we continue to be globally
	competitive and the world's leader in innovation. CTE can help
	make that a reality.
	Thank you for allowing me to testify. And I welcome any
	questions you may have.
	[The testimony of Ms. Lufkin follows:]


	[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]


	Chairman Rokita. Thank you, Ms. Lufkin.
	Mr. Rowe, you're recognized for 5 minutes.

	TESTIMONY OF MIKE ROWE, CEO, MIKEROWEWORKS FOUNDATION

	Mr. Rowe. Thanks. Pleasure to be here. Appreciate the
	invitation.
	I'm not sure who the ladies are to my left, but I'd wish to
	acknowledge them.
	I don't know what you're doing, but it is fascinating to
	watch you do it. Honestly.
	Back in 2011, the Transportation and Commerce Committee
	invited me to share my thoughts on how to close America's
	widening skills gap. So I came to this building to talk about a
	critical part of the solution most often overlooked by
	politicians and educators. That would be the pressing need for
	better PR. I talked specifically about the stigmas and
	stereotypes that dissuade millions of people from exploring
	thousands of genuine opportunities in the skilled trades and
	the urgent need to challenge those myths and misconceptions.
	I pointed out that President Obama's promise of 3 million
	shovel-ready jobs sounded great, but I worried that filling
	those jobs would be challenging, especially in a country where
	fewer and fewer people aspired to pick up a shovel. I concluded
	by telling the committee that millions of open positions will
	remain unfilled until society changes its opinion on the
	definition of a good job. And then I invited those present to
	join me in a larger effort to that very thing.
	Shortly after my testimony to the committee, the skills gap
	closed, unemployment plummeted, and America got back to work.
	I'm kidding. Shortly after my testimony, the skills got
	widened, unemployment grew, and society continued to ignore
	thousands of opportunities that comprise a critical part of our
	workforce.
	So a few years later, I was invited back to the Hill to
	address the Natural Resources Committee and talk more about the
	causes of our widening skills gap. This time I focused on the
	unintended consequences of promoting a 4-year degree as the
	best path for the most people. There was a time when higher
	education needed a PR campaign and it got one. Unfortunately,
	the push for 4-year institutions came at the expense of
	community colleges, trade schools, and apprenticeship programs.
	Thus, every other educational opportunity began to feel
	subordinate.
	Also, the overall push for college coincided with an
	overall removal of vocational arts from high schools across the
	country, and the effects of that one-two punch laid the
	foundation not just for a widening skills gap, but for a level
	of student debt that's massive, premature, and completely
	unnecessary.
	I testified that tuition had soared in part because
	thousands of well-intended parents and guidance counselors were
	telling millions of kids, irrespective of their individual
	skills, that their best hope of success was the most expensive
	path available. The pressure on kids to borrow money was
	enormous, and so they did. Consequently, college tuition rose
	faster than the cost of food, energy, real estate, and health
	care.
	I also shared some personal stories with the committee that
	day, including a run-in with my own guidance counselor 35 years
	earlier. In 1980, Mr. Dunbar did everything in his power to
	dissuade me from attending a local community college. I was
	told outright that a 2-year school was beneath my potential.
	But a 4-year school would have been a huge mistake at that
	point in my life. I was 17 years old, I had no money, and I had
	no idea of what I wanted to do. The local community college
	offered hundreds of courses in my price range, so that's where
	I went, and that experience opened doors that I didn't even
	know existed. But that same experience is precisely what
	thousands of kids are discouraged from pursuing every single
	year.
	I told the committee then that this cookie-cutter approach
	to promoting higher education has led to thousands of graduates
	with expensive degrees from excellent schools, but with no
	prospects in their chosen field and no way to pay off their
	student loans.
	With the universal push for a 4-year degree more intense
	than ever, I argued then that our skills gap is the direct
	result of a mistaken belief that the best path for the most
	people is a 4-year degree, and I concluded with another appeal
	to aggressively confront the stigmas and stereotypes that
	discourage people from entering the trades, along with a
	challenge to guidance counselors to present a more balanced
	presentation of educational alternatives beyond high school.
	After my testimony in 2013, the skills gap closed, public
	education re-embraced the vocational arts, college tuition
	returned to affordable levels, and America finally got back to
	work.
	I'm kidding. Shortly after my testimony, the skills gap got
	even wider, tuition got even more expensive, and guidance
	counselors continued to use a career in the trades as a
	cautionary tale for those who resisted a 4-year degree. Now the
	situation has devolved even further, and my own mother has
	concluded that I am part of the problem. ``The more you
	testify,'' she said to me last night, ``the worse things get.''
	She may be right. Today, the skills gap is wider than it's
	ever been, 5.6 million jobs, according to the BLS. Vocational
	education is still missing from an overwhelming majority of
	high schools. Bills like the one before this committee still
	meet resistance in part because millions of Americans still
	view a career in the trades as some kind of vocational
	consolation prize.
	It's a bias as misguided as any other prejudice with us
	today and it poses a clear and present danger to our country's
	overall economic security. The student loan bubble is going to
	burst, as bubbles always do. Currently, the outstanding debt is
	$1.3 trillion. And yet we continue to lend money we don't have,
	to kids who can't pay it back, to teach them jobs that no
	longer exist, while ignoring all kinds of careers that actually
	do.
	In Springfield, Massachusetts, right now there are tens of
	thousands of manufacturing jobs available, yet the unemployment
	rate in Springfield is just as high as it is in the rest of the
	State. The mismatch between available skilled jobs and the
	unemployed local population is enormous. And it's happening
	everywhere. And so at the risk of making things worse, I have
	come here today to address the House Committee on Education and
	the Workforce. Alas, I have nothing new to tell you.
	[The testimony of Mr. Rowe follows:]

	[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]


	Chairman Rokita. Thank you, Mr. Rowe. I can't let your
	celebrity bend the laws of the clock.
	Mr. Rowe. I appreciate that. Very well. The only thing in
	television that takes 5 minutes is 20.
	Chairman Rokita. And please let the record reflect that the
	ladies that the witness was referring to were our court
	reporters, who I think used to work at the NSA and have friends
	at the IRS.
	Mr. Rowe. I believe it.
	Chairman Rokita. You're going to be fine, Mr. Rowe. I think
	you'll be fine.
	I'm going to pass temporarily on my questioning and
	recognize the chairman of the full committee, Dr. Foxx, for 5
	minutes.
	Ms. Foxx. Thank you very much, Chairman Rokita. And I will
	add to what the chairman said about those wonderful ladies on
	your left. My understanding is that there are lots of job
	openings in that field and it pays very well.
	Mr. Johnson, BASF has a clearly demonstrated commitment to
	collaborating with educational institutions to address its
	workforce needs. I'm very familiar with what you do. Many
	smaller companies, however, lack the resources and expertise
	that someone like BASF has and makes it difficult for them to
	dedicate time and energy to maintain the partnerships with
	educational institutions. How do your educational partnerships
	help local small and medium-size employers address their own
	workplace needs?
	Mr. Johnson. Thank you very much for the question.
	For what we do with BASF, we look for our corporate
	partners, our industry partners to come along with us for the
	ride, because we cannot do it alone. The last thing I would
	ever want whenever I go to an advisory committee for a
	technical school to talk to them about the alignment between
	their learning outcomes and our KSAs, knowledge, skills and
	abilities that we need to hire, is for us to be the only ones
	at the table.
	We want our other industry partners there so that we come
	together with what we think the foundation should be so that
	there is a true handshake between our individual training
	programs inside industry where we can all take over. So we want
	them there with us, and not only do we want, but we actually
	seek them out to be sure that they are part of everything that
	we do when it comes to career and technical education
	awareness.
	Ms. Foxx. Thank you.
	And I want to say to all our witnesses and to Ranking
	Member Polis, I'm so grateful that you presented so many facts
	today on the positive impact of career and technical education,
	because I think it's so important that we get that information
	out there in the public to offset what Mr. Rowe talks about,
	and that is helping to change the image of career and technical
	education.
	And I can't let this hearing go by without reminding people
	that Harvard College began as a vocational school. And if you
	don't believe me, look it up.
	Ms. Goble, in your testimony you described how work-based
	learning elevates the student experience and leads to more
	engaged students. I agree that work-based learning is critical
	for exposing students to the skills they need to succeed in the
	workplace. But, unfortunately, too few students have the
	opportunity to participate in such programs.
	Tell me the challenges you've faced in expanding the number
	of work-based learning opportunities for students and how
	you've overcome these challenges.
	Ms. Goble. Thank you.
	Yes, it is a challenge to have every student participate in
	work-based learning activities, and part of that is driven by
	how many industry partnerships you have. In our district, we
	are continuing to get more and more industry partners, which
	helps facilitate that.
	Additionally, we've tried to overcome that challenge by
	having all school career fairs where every student in the high
	school participates and they have a chance to interface with
	industry. As I mentioned with our region Pathways to
	Professions expo event, that was a great opportunity for work-
	based learning where students could actually talk with
	businesses, they were exchanging business cards, making
	arrangements for job shadows, and all sorts of other
	activities.
	But it is a challenge. In a perfect world, we would have
	every one of our students do a half-day job shadow in their
	high school experience. It's just not practical, we don't have
	that many business people.
	Ms. Foxx. Thank you very much. I know this is a challenge.
	I used to have interns in my office when I worked at
	Appalachian State University from the local high school who
	were in the business programs. So I know it's been going it on
	for a long time. We just need to broaden it.
	Mr. Rowe, I want to thank you for being the incredible
	advocate that you have been for hard work in the skilled
	trades. And I agree with you completely, we need to change the
	way people think about career and technical education. And I do
	think that we all have a responsibility to do that. All of us
	here, all of us in any part of education in particular.
	And I want to say that folks who have been around me for
	very long know that I really get on to people for their
	language as it relates to what we're talking about. And I do
	think getting rid of the word vocational education would help
	us a great deal, because I ask people when they are going to
	college: What do you want when you get out of college, 4-year
	college? Or now 6-year college. It takes 6 years to get a
	degree. They all say: A job. So all of education is vocational
	education, in my opinion. So we can work on changing our
	language.
	Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I apologize for going over.
	Chairman Rokita. I thank the chairwoman.
	Mr. Scott, you're recognized for 5 minutes.
	Mr. Scott. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
	Ms. Lufkin, in the old days, vocational education was an
	alternative to an academic career. You'd learn a little trade,
	shop or something, get a job and keep it for 40 years. Now
	people are changing jobs frequently during their career and
	they need the education. So career and technical education
	should not be an alternative to academics, but an alternative
	setting where you can learn the same thing and not get off
	track.
	Does the present CTE legislation require the basic
	education to be achieved instead of an alternative to learning
	what you need to know?
	Ms. Lufkin. Thank you for the question, Chairman Scott.
	The current Perkins legislation has extremely strong
	provisions in it for the integration of academic and career and
	technical preparation. There includes an academic performance
	measure for secondary students. Technical skill attainment are
	also included in the performance accountability system.
	So the connection between academic preparation and
	technical skill preparation is really a critical component of
	current the Perkins legislation.
	Mr. Scott. Does that need to be improved to make sure that
	they get the academics or is that sufficient?
	Ms. Lufkin. Well, certainly I think any improvement in that
	area would help continue to make those connections. The
	legislation that was passed by this body last fall also
	continued that and strengthened that, I think, to some degree.
	I think that the issue here also which I think is
	critically important to look at is to ensure that States and
	local educational agencies are collecting disaggregated data by
	special population, status, race, ethnicity, and gender, to
	ensure that any academic achievement gaps are addressed in
	order to identify those equity gaps and close them. And the
	legislation that you passed last fall included a needs
	assessment language in it that was, I think, a really good
	provision that moves towards that.
	But certainly strengthening the connection between
	technical skill attainment and academic preparation. To
	eliminate those lines, as Congresswoman Foxx mentioned, there
	really should be no difference between academic preparation and
	technical skill attainment. Education is education, and the
	outcome we hope for that is for every student to come out of
	their experience with a career. Hopefully, not be in school for
	the rest of their life.
	Mr. Scott. Thank you. And how do you focus on those most
	likely to unemployed, to make sure money is targeted to where
	it most needs to go?
	Ms. Lufkin. So the way the funds are distributed now
	through an allocation process includes student population, as
	well as income levels as part of the formula, and that's an
	important component of this. The schools that have the highest
	need in terms of low-income students also potentially have the
	highest need for career and technical education to ensure
	students obtain the benefits of higher wage potential in their
	future and to become economically self-sufficient.
	Provisions in the legislation, I think, that are also
	critical include in addition to accountability measures that
	look at the performance of those students through disaggregated
	data, but also the kinds of incentives that exist through the
	required uses of funds section of the legislation that actually
	puts a priority on ensuring that low-income students and
	students who are likely to be unemployed also receive benefits.
	I think one of the biggest challenges in the current
	technical education system or in the education system more
	broadly is that students who are at risk of dropping out are
	often sent to alternative schools, and alternative schools
	don't always have the best access to career and technical
	education. And that is a real problem.
	When I was working as a teacher in California, we
	frequently saw students who were pregnant and parenting
	students, students who had behavioral issues in the regular
	high school, sent to an alternative school, and then were
	removed from having access to career and technical education.
	Actually, CTE is a dropout prevention. It is 1 of the 15
	strategies of the National Dropout Prevention Center has
	identified as a best practice, and it needs to be available to
	every student regardless of the systems that they are in.
	Mr. Scott. So when Ms. Goble suggested that high school
	students could get credit, save money, and save time to get
	credentials and reduce the dropout rate, was she right?
	Ms. Lufkin. Yes, absolutely.
	Mr. Scott. Thank you.
	Chairman Rokita. I thank the gentleman.
	Dr. Roe, you're recognized for 5 minutes.
	Mr. Roe. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And it's good to have a
	relative on the panel today, a fellow Roe.
	Mr. Rowe. You're missing a W.
	Mr. Roe. Thank you.
	In the State of Tennessee we recognized this problem a few
	years ago, and hats off to our State legislature and the
	Governor who provides -- ours is the only State in the union, I
	think, that provides free community college and technical
	college for anyone.
	We also have a program -- Mr. Johnson brought up 11,000
	people, seniors, turning 70, each and every day. And we have
	also a program in the State called Tennessee Reconnect where
	you can bring people, let's say their job has gone to Mexico,
	China, wherever, and they need to retrain, they can be brought
	into our technical schools, 27 of them in the State. And we
	have one within 1 hour of every person in our State that can
	come back. I told the Governor: I don't know whether it will
	help you or me, but I think certainly in the future, in the
	next 20, 30 years, it will be tremendously beneficial to our
	State.
	Just to give you a couple of statistics, even during the
	height of the Great Recession, between 80 and 90 percent of the
	people who trained in the technical schools were able to be
	employed in the skill that they had learned.
	Mr. Rowe pointed out that his guidance counselor gave him
	some advice. My guidance counselor in high school advised me to
	not go to college, to take up a trade. I did take up a trade,
	it was called doctoring, but I did go on to medical school. So
	I had a trade, it was operating on people.
	Other people had a different trade, and one of the things I
	found out in my practice was that we needed those skills to
	operate the practice. So we trained people in our office,
	nursing assistants, LPNs, on and on. I'm not talking about the
	degree people. But you can't operate in the healthcare sector
	without these folks or many sectors.
	The average beginning wage of a welder that leaves one of
	our technical schools from my local community is $35,000. And I
	talked to a young man not long ago and his guidance counselor.
	This young man just a couple or 3 years out of technical school
	was making a six-figured income in welding.
	Eighty to 90 percent of our students get job placement in
	their field immediately, as opposed to what Mr. Johnson and
	others of you all have said about you graduate from college and
	you can't find a job.
	So I've become a huge career leader for CTE. I think it is
	a road. And the question I have for any of you on the panel,
	and maybe I'll start with Mr. Rowe, is how do we convince young
	people it's a great thing do? I mean, I have a lot of status
	with what I did. But there is status in making a good living
	for your family also.
	So how do we get this drilled down -- I think you guys are
	right -- down into the fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth grade
	level to tell kids, ``Hey, there are a lot of things you can
	do''?
	So I'll start with you, Mr. Rowe.
	Mr. Rowe. Well, if you want to make America great again,
	you've got to make work cool again. You've got to make it
	aspirational. It can't be this thing that's sitting there for a
	whole bunch of people who failed on the aspirational road. It
	can't be that vocational consolation prize. You just have to
	change the image of the opportunity.
	And, you know, there are so many ways you can look at the
	language and see how we got to where we are. But, you know, the
	word vocational is an interesting thing to kind of riff on,
	because it didn't used to be vocational education or even shop,
	it used to be the vocational arts. So what we did was we took
	the art out of the vocation and all we left was some version of
	drudgery.
	And you could do that to your career or mine or really
	anybody's. If you take the artistry out of it, you're just not
	left with much that's visually appealing from the outsiders.
	So we just have to be aware of how we present these
	opportunities to kids. And, obviously, on the front line of
	that are the parents of the kids and the guidance counselors.
	So the language matters, the opportunity matters, and the
	challenge matters, too, you know. My foundation focuses on
	these jobs, but we do it through the lens of work ethic. You
	know, we challenge people: You've got to make a case for
	yourself if you're going to get access to our little pile of
	money, and then you need to enthusiastically advance. So it is
	a slightly different way of coming at it and a long way of
	saying you've just got to make it cool somehow.
	Mr. Roe. Well, one of things I hear, and maybe -- we don't
	have a lot of time left -- but I go to a lot of manufacturers
	in my district, and I hear over and over again: We can teach
	you how to do these things. If you can present with the soft
	skills, will you show up at 8 o'clock, will you be there at 5
	o'clock, and you pass a drug test? I hear it all the time. And
	I think those are the things we have got to teach young people,
	that work is important, you also have to have these other
	skills to be able to be successful at work.
	Mr. Chairman, I yield back. Thank you.
	Chairman Rokita. Thank, Doctor.
	Mr. Garrett, you're recognized for 5 minutes.
	Mr. Garrett. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and members of the
	panel. It's a real -- speaking with the chair of the full
	committee --
	Chairman Rokita. Would the gentleman turn his mike on?
	Mr. Garrett. Sometimes you've got to find your passion and
	sometimes you walk headlong into it. But this CTE topic today
	is so important. And I'm really heartened to hear someone far
	smarter than myself, Mike Rowe, sort of articulate some of the
	things that I have been saying for years. And I want to pound
	on these because I think they bear repeating.
	I've referred to an educational-industrial complex to get
	to the heart of it and to bring home to people just how bad the
	problem I think has become. We've created a paradigm wherein we
	define success for young people as a 4-year degree from a
	liberal arts school and a lot on the corner in a subdivision,
	and that's wonderful for everybody for whom it's wonderful.
	But, you know, I think 9 percent of my high school went on to
	4-year colleges, and the guy who I graduated with who fixes my
	car can do things that I could never begin to do. And he, by
	the way, has a son who's on a full ride to a graduate degree in
	molecular biology at the University of Notre Dame. There's no
	dishonor in an honorable career. I would contend that every
	American is entitled to two things: number one, an opportunity,
	and number two, the right to define success for themselves so
	long as long as it doesn't impact the liberty of others. And we
	have painted into a corner the skilled laborer that built this
	Nation, and it's tragic. So we have to break that paradigm. And
	you've done more to do that in the last 6 or 7 years than I may
	ever do, and I thank you.
	Mr. Rowe. You're welcome.
	Mr. Garrett. As it relates to CTE, I know we can do it
	because I've seen it done here in this country. I recently was
	in Germany and visited the Bayer Corporation and watched where
	they had some 200-plus young people straight out of high school
	who were learning to do things like be lab chemists, like care
	for animals, physical security, data analysts who came straight
	out into these fields because the private sector decided that
	they were going to create the employees that they needed to be
	successful. BASF, I think, deserves some credit for doing that
	same sort of thing. But we can do more of that.
	Having said that, as we look to what the paradigm moving
	forward should be, I would argue that the best arbiter of the
	needs of the working world are the local communities. In my
	former job in the Virginia Senate we saw the community
	colleges, PVCC, CVCC, Southside Virginia Community College,
	partner with entities like BWX and Areva, with UVA Health
	System, and say, ``Where are the needs?'' and then start
	creating a workforce for those needs.
	So we can do this. But sometimes, I think, when we try to
	dictate it from on high at a Federal level, we just miss the
	target because we don't know exactly what we ought to be aiming
	at as well as the State and local folks do.
	Having said that, I will turn right back around and commend
	the Old Dominion Job Corps, with whom I work directly. And it
	was an eye-opening experience when I walked in there a couple
	years ago and I said, ``Where are you having your best luck
	placing young people?'' And these are young people from
	challenging backgrounds, socioeconomic distress, tough
	scenarios, single-parent households. And they said, ``Well, we
	have 16 kids in the machining program, 15 of them are placed.
	The 16th has a mother who's sick with cancer. He's going to go
	home and spend some time with her and then pick from a series
	of job options.''
	I said, ``What's the average starting hourly?'' They were
	in the mid-20s, and the master machinist may very well at one
	point, hopefully, live across the street from the doctor and
	the lawyer and the college professor. But nobody is telling our
	young people this.
	So to the extent that we can make an impact by continuing
	to do what a lot of you -- and particularly you, Mr. Rowe --
	have done and saying, ``Hey, guys, this is an option, there is
	no shame in it, in fact there's honor in it,'' we have a duty
	to do that.
	So I apologize for having more a soliloquy than a question-
	and-answer session, but to the extent that I could lend my
	voice to the small but hopefully growing chorus, this is a no-
	brainer. The question then becomes how we best do it.
	And I would argue we need to listen to the localities and
	the States about what their needs are in their specific
	geographical area, and then let employers like BASF and BWX
	drive the need train. Because what I don't want to do is watch
	the money be sent from the locality to the Federal level and
	then have the administrative cost of handling money take 40
	cents out of every dollar and then plow it back down to only
	create more young people who have skills but not in the area
	where the demand exists in their communities.
	So having said that, I'd yield back the balance of my time,
	but thank you immensely, and say that I really look forward to
	hopefully continuing to work in this area. There is a message
	that's more important really than anything else, and that, I
	think, Mr. Rowe hit on, and that is there is no shame in any of
	this. An honest career in a skilled field is as honorable as
	anything anybody on this dais will do.
	Thank you.
	Chairman Rokita. The gentleman yields.
	I recognize myself for 5 minutes.
	I want to thank the witnesses again for your testimony. I
	continue to learn a lot.
	Mr. Rowe, I'd like to start with you, picking up on Mr.
	Garrett's theme. I mean, we're all in this room together. We
	all want the same thing. We've heard from your testimony
	specifically that the skills gap continues to widen, because of
	you mostly but maybe some other things.
	So what advice do you have for us? I mean, if I understand
	your background correctly, it's in theater, it's in some other
	things, and it's in experience in this very part of our
	economy. What do you have for us in terms of efforts to change
	the public's perception specifically? Any to-do list or
	anything like that?
	Mr. Rowe. Yeah. I mean, it's that thousand-points-of-light
	thing, on the one hand.
	I was at a gala two nights ago my foundation sponsored
	called Project JumpStart up in Baltimore. Basically, to your
	point, you know, this is a foundation that evolved because the
	local builders simply couldn't find people who were enthused
	about learning a trade. So they went into the inner city, and
	they also focused on nonviolent offenders. They set up a pre-
	apprenticeship program 10 years ago. Eight-hundred people have
	matriculated. The stick rate is 75 percent. No other similar
	effort in workforce development has yielded that kind of
	result.
	So we have to find those opportunities where they exist,
	and then we have to shine a really bright light on them, and we
	have to tell stories of the guy I met two nights ago. Toemore
	Knight was his name. He was making $10 a day 8 years ago. Now
	he's a master electrician, 52 bucks an hour. He should be on a
	poster, you know?
	In the 1950s, our country had this terrible, dysfunctional
	relationship with litter. You know, way before the green thing,
	there was ``Keep America Beautiful.'' That was a campaign that
	actually started with some government help, some NGOs, some
	concerned citizens, and some big businesses. And they got
	together -- you'll remember the weeping Indian on the side of
	the highway. That was an iconic image. And it took about a
	generation and a half for the needle to move, but it did. And a
	lot of money went into a media campaign. And in a lot of
	different ways, that consortium challenged our relationship
	with litter.
	We can do the same thing with work, but it will take time.
	That's what I meant when I said we've got to make it cool
	again. We need images, we need portrayals, and we need to
	challenge the stigmas and stereotypes where we find them.
	Right? Not every plumber in the world is 300 pounds with his
	pants halfway down. Even though that's what it looks like on
	TV, that's not the way it is.
	So we need to have fun with it, call it out when we see a
	misrepresentation, and provide better optics. There are a
	thousand ways to do it.
	Chairman Rokita. Thank you, Mr. Rowe. I appreciate your
	leadership again.
	And I guess for the rest of you three, let me set this up,
	taking Mr. Rowe's comments and saying, you know, if we're going
	to have a free republic, if we're going to continue to have
	one, we need engaged citizens. I need critical thinkers. We
	need all these things.
	And one of my fears -- and maybe some others share it, and
	it's apparently unfounded, but I want you to address it -- is
	that we can't have automatons. And I remember back when I was
	in high school -- I'm a bit of a gearhead. I still restore
	cars. I break as much as I fix, and that kind of thing, but
	it's something I'm very interested in. It's good therapy, Mr.
	Rowe, for being in Congress. I can actually try to fix things.
	And what I was pleased about was my mother insisted that I
	go on to college, where I learned more critical thinking
	skills, where I learned about Locke and Hobbes and all these
	other people who had big ideas. And I use that today still.
	For the one that goes to career and technical education as
	a 17-, 15-, 18-year-old but that might be the entrepreneur that
	hasn't been exposed to that yet, that might be the next
	President or the leader, how do we ensure that those skills are
	preserved while we're teaching them such a technical education?
	Ms. Goble?
	Ms. Goble. One valuable way that we do in our district --
	and this is prevalent across the Nation as well -- is through
	our career and technical student organizations. When you talk
	about those foundational skills, critical thinking,
	presentations, soft skills, those types of things that are so
	critical in the workplace, having students participate in those
	organizations such as FBLA, FFA, and other things really helps
	those students gain those leadership skills. And those are the
	types of things that last throughout their entire life.
	It also addresses what Mr. Rowe was bringing up about it
	being fun and cool to be participating in CTE. When students
	are engaged in those CTSOs, those student organizations,
	they're having a good time, and they're learning some valuable
	skills they will keep a lifetime.
	Chairman Rokita. Thank you.
	Mr. Johnson, can I give you the last 10 seconds on my
	question? Thank you.
	I'm sorry, Ms. Lufkin. I'm not going to get to you.
	Mr. Johnson. Sure. No problem.
	One of the best ways that we've seen to do it is to be sure
	that the different courses, the certificate programs versus the
	associate degrees, are stackable skills so that we can focus on
	the technical education part of it, what they need to know to
	perform on the job, but then, as they complete that first
	portion of that training or that technical education, they're
	able to move on to the critical-skills types of learning as
	well.
	And whether they do all together, if they go ahead and get
	their first job through that certificate, then they can
	continue on with those critical thinking skills.
	Chairman Rokita. Do you feel you have engaged citizens at
	BASF working as your employees?
	Mr. Johnson. Absolutely.
	Chairman Rokita. Thank you.
	Ms. Bonamici, you're recognized for 5 minutes.
	Ms. Bonamici. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
	When I'm home in Oregon, I spend as much time as I can
	visiting schools and meeting with students and educators and
	parents. And every community I visit, there's universal support
	for Perkins CTE and the high-quality CTE programs.
	I visit programs that are serving diverse students,
	challenging them academically, preparing them for high-skilled,
	in-demand jobs. One of my favorite visits, although there have
	been many, was the girls-only welding class at Sherwood High
	School. I also visited a great auto tech program recently at
	Beaverton High School.
	And I know that it takes strong partnerships to develop
	successful CTE programs that serve all students, especially
	those in underrepresented communities that are aligned with
	local labor markets.
	In Oregon, the Portland Area Career Technical Education
	Consortium, PACTEC, is an example. In my district, Portland
	Community College manages partnerships with school districts
	and industry groups and develops those strong articulation
	agreements. And this means that high school students pursuing
	programs of study can earn college credit and transition to the
	community college and gain skills that are used by industry
	partners.
	A number of the school districts in PACTEC are relatively
	small and are situated in rural areas, so forming that
	consortium and partnering with community colleges help these
	districts. But, still, delivering the high-quality CTE programs
	in rural areas often requires overcoming financial and
	geographic obstacles.
	I do want to mention, too, that Yamhill Carlton High School
	in my district has a viticulture program that teaches students
	how to work in the wine industry, which is a big part of the
	economy in that rural community. I think it's the only high
	school with a vineyard.
	So, Ms. Lufkin, can you discuss what more the Federal
	Government can do to help rural schools in particular develop
	high-quality CTE programs and advance equity in CTE?
	Ms. Lufkin. Thank you.
	So I'm a former ag teacher -- I should admit that openly
	here -- and taught in a very small rural high school actually
	in northern California. That experience has taught me quite a
	bit about how to access resources in a community that's
	disengaged from an urban center. And I, of course, was doing
	that at a time when we didn't have the technology that we have
	available today.
	So in the work that we're doing -- and in your State,
	actually, we have a significant initiative going on with the
	Oregon Department of Education through the Perkins Act that is
	supporting increasing access and success of underrepresented
	students in nontraditional career and technical education
	programs across your State. And that has been incentivized
	basically by the accountability provisions in the Perkins Act
	and also by the other provisions around the State leadership
	funds that encourage support for nontraditional students.
	We've been working with a significant number of rural
	schools. You mentioned Roseburg -- there's a school in Roseburg
	that has a very large class of young women who are in their
	welding program. And that happened as a result of this
	initiative.
	And it's really the Federal policy that's in the Perkins
	Act that has driven this. It creates an incentive. It creates a
	sense of need. Whether it's the carrot or a stick approach in
	this case, what I love is when I hear principals say, I had no
	idea this was an issue for us, and when they discover it, that
	they actually can effect it.
	Ms. Bonamici. I want to follow up. You mentioned
	accountability, and I really agree with the need for
	accountability in any CTE reauthorization to make sure we're
	really increasing participation in CTE, especially with groups
	historically underrepresented.
	So can you talk about what this committee can do to give
	States and districts the tools they need to use data?
	Oftentimes, school districts don't have the capacity to make
	use of disaggregated data. So what can we do to help to make
	sure that they're continually improving their programs and that
	they adopt research-backed strategies for advancing equity in
	CTE?
	Ms. Lufkin. Well, actually, there are a few provisions that
	you included in the bill that you passed last fall that do
	that.
	So one is the requirement for disaggregated data to begin
	with. Actually, you might be surprised, but when we go and work
	with schools, they have really the capacity to deal with that
	data in a much better way than I think we assume they do.
	Ms. Bonamici. That's reassuring.
	Ms. Lufkin. Yes. Yeah. Database analysis of performance
	gaps has become common-day practice, at least in career and
	technical education for sure.
	Ms. Bonamici. In my few remaining seconds, last Congress I
	worked with Representative Stefanik to include language in the
	CTE bill that would authorize Federal funds for integrating
	arts and design skills into CTE programs. We're an innovation
	economy.
	Can you discuss the benefits for students and local
	economies of teaching arts and design skills in CTE programs of
	study?
	Ms. Lufkin. Absolutely. Those skills are critical for
	innovation. And what we know is that students who have the
	ability to think creatively can be more innovative. There has
	been, actually, research studies that show that kind of
	practice in technical settings, the combination of design and
	critical thinking skills, creates more innovative solutions.
	Ms. Bonamici. Thank you.
	And as I yield back, I invite all my colleagues to join the
	bipartisan STEAM Caucus.
	Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
	Chairman Rokita. We love bipartisanship.
	The gentlewoman's time has expired.
	Mr. Thompson, you're recognized for 5 minutes.
	Mr. Thompson. Mr. Chairman, thank you. Thank you so much
	for having this hearing.
	I want to thank all the witnesses, your organizations, your
	companies, your personal work, everything you've done in terms
	of being champions for career and technical education training.
	As cochair of the Career and Technical Education Caucus, I
	mean, I share your passion. I know how important that is.
	Mr. Rowe, good to see you, as a brother Eagle Scout. The
	last time we met -- the first time we met, actually, and the
	last time we met was at the National Jamboree in West Virginia.
	Hopefully I'll see you there later this year. Hopefully you'll
	be coming back, and I'm looking forward to visiting.
	My first question is for you, Mike. In your testimony, you
	mentioned Project JumpStart, a very successful job-training
	program which really does sound like music to my ears and those
	of my colleagues, I'm sure.
	Now, you mentioned its success in urban areas. Do you or
	have you seen this model work in rural areas?
	Mr. Rowe. No, I haven't. In fact, I haven't seen it
	firsthand work anywhere but Baltimore, which is why I'm behind
	it. I grew up there, but I also think that, as a format or a
	template, it's low-hanging fruit. It's something that could
	easily be identified. It's not really on point to the bill I
	know we're contemplating, but it does check a few of the boxes,
	you know.
	I would suggest an even better organization to make people
	more aware of is SkillsUSA. You mentioned the Boy Scouts; you
	mentioned Future Farmers of America. You know, I've worked
	pretty closely with both of those groups. But nobody hits it as
	squarely on the head as SkillsUSA -- 300,000 kids basically
	competing every year in national competitions within the CTE
	world. And it's phenomenal to watch their passion, and it's
	amazing to watch them grow. And it's criminal that more people
	don't know about them. I mean, literally, you fill a room with
	1,000 people and 950 have never, ever heard of them.
	But they're the best example I have of a private
	organization that really stepped up to kind of fill in that
	smoldering crater we created when we took the vocational arts
	out of high school. There are many, many others, but, in terms
	of PR, we've got to hear more about JumpStart and we've got to
	hear more about SkillsUSA.
	Mr. Thompson. I mean, you raised a very important issue I
	think we're all aware of, is a lack of -- well, we're aware of,
	but it's the lack of awareness of the incredible opportunities.
	And some of that can be achieved through raising awareness of
	SkillsUSA and other great programs that we have in place.
	Because I think today we still deal with a stigma, you know,
	among students and, more specifically, among parents. And I
	know that with the legislation last year that we'll be
	reintroducing here hopefully next month, part of that was
	pushing down an awareness to the middle school, earlier, for
	kids to be able to have that information.
	Ms. Lufkin, first of all, thank you for your service as a
	former agriculture educator. Agriculture certainly is one of
	the -- well, it is the largest industry in Pennsylvania. One
	out of seven jobs come from agriculture. And the connection
	between strengthening career and technical education and
	improving the agriculture industry is undeniable. I love the
	STEAM Caucus, but I have a double A; it's arts and agriculture.
	Your testimony made it clear that students who engage in
	CTE during their time in school tend to have access to a higher
	quality of life. How can a reauthorization of the Perkins Act
	help give more students from all backgrounds this promising
	opportunity to succeed?
	Ms. Lufkin. That's a big question.
	So I think access to high-quality career and technical
	education is sort of the key component of this. And that is
	ensuring that every career and technical education program
	that's funded with Federal funds is of that nature.
	So I know that the Association for Career and Technical
	Education -- we have been involved in this -- are in the
	process of creating criteria around what that particularly
	means. And so certainly the Federal legislation could support
	the inclusion of what ``high quality'' stands for. So
	articulated credits, integrated curriculum; equity is a
	component of that; access to work-based learning; dual
	enrollments -- all of those and more could certainly be
	incentivized in the legislation.
	I think also ensuring that special populations have access,
	more than just nondiscriminatory language, but actually
	proactive strategies for engaging special population students
	in career and technical education, are also other ways that the
	legislation could be supportive of the question of access to
	CTE.
	Mr. Thompson. Thank you.
	Thank you, Chairman.
	Chairman Rokita. I thank the gentleman.
	I now recognize Mr. Polis for 5 minutes.
	Mr. Polis. Thank you.
	Ms. Lufkin, I want to thank you for being here again today.
	You know, in Denver, the Career Education Center Early
	College Magnet School helps prepare students for the workforce
	by providing career and technical education through dual and
	concurrent enrollment. I am very proud to say that about 10,000
	students in Colorado participated in career and technical
	education concurrent enrollment courses, which is about 40
	percent of all concurrent enrollment students. So it's become a
	very prevalent part of our concurrent enrollment system.
	As you indicated in your testimony, concurrent enrollment
	is a proven method for helping students have access to career
	and technical education. I wanted you to talk about the role of
	concurrent enrollment and particularly how it can support
	first-generation students, nontraditional college-goers, and
	other disadvantaged youth and the role that plays in career and
	technical education?
	Ms. Lufkin. Thank you for the question. And I think that
	there are lots of ways that dual enrollment actually does that.
	First of all, access to college for a first-generation
	student may contain within it a variety of barriers, whether
	they're financial, whether it's parental support. It could even
	be an issue of transportation, location, especially when we're
	talking about rural schools. And the availability of
	postsecondary credit while obtaining a high school diploma is a
	significant incentive for particularly low-income students to
	access college in a way that doesn't do what Mr. Rowe was
	talking about, creating this huge college debt.
	First-generation students also may not have the same
	support systems in place for students to be able to access
	college. So for students to have success in a dual enrollment
	system, for example, can provide them with their own internal
	incentives to continue. And the research shows that actually is
	the case.
	Mr. Polis. Mrs. Goble, do you have experience with dual
	concurrent enrollment programs in Utah? And do you want to
	speak to their relevance to career and technical education?
	Ms. Goble. Absolutely. You know, we offer a lot of dual
	enrollment, partnering with Salt Lake Community College. As Ms.
	Lufkin mentioned, it is a great opportunity for particularly
	underrepresented students to be able to do that. In Utah, it's
	only $5 a credit, which is a huge bonus for them. To be able to
	do college courses --
	Mr. Polis. By the way, what is the normal cost for a credit
	outside of that?
	Ms. Goble. It's about $150.
	Mr. Polis. It's a big difference.
	Ms. Goble. Yeah, a huge difference. And to be able to have
	students participate in college-level coursework within the
	safe confines of a regular classroom that they're familiar with
	bridges that gap, and they feel like they have the internal ``I
	can do it,'' and they do.
	Mr. Polis. The other topic I wanted to touch on is the
	value of apprenticeship programs in career and technical
	education. Colorado recently launched CareerWise, a public-
	private partnership that has a goal of training 20,000 students
	for need-based, high-paying jobs through apprenticeships.
	Colorado's program is an example, but it's something we need to
	do more of. Many unions have been leading the way on
	apprenticeship programs for decades.
	I wanted to go to Mr. Rowe and Mr. Johnson -- we'll go to
	Mr. Rowe first -- to briefly talk about the role of
	apprenticeships, how they support and prepare students and how
	they can be an effective model for career and technical
	education.
	Mr. Rowe. I just can't imagine a more important paradigm or
	model, you know, in any trade, in any vocation, the business of
	showing up and putting your hands on the thing, whether you're
	a doctor or a mechanic.
	Mr. Polis. And do you think it makes a difference that many
	of the apprentices are actually getting paid? And they probably
	need to get paid during that period. Does that make a
	difference in participation as well?
	Mr. Rowe. Sure, it does. You know, I mean, and you can see
	it right now in so many private companies too. Caterpillar has
	a program called Think Big, I believe. And a lot of companies
	have a different version of it, but it's a transitional way to
	get a kid right from high school right into the work and reward
	them along the way.
	With the Project JumpStart thing we were mentioning, you
	know, they use stipends, you know, instead of a paycheck. But
	the interesting thing is with JumpStart is there's a
	consequence. Somebody was talking about soft skills. You show
	up late, they take the stipend. Shirt's not tucked in, cell
	phone goes off -- so it's a great way, the apprenticeship
	model, to, again, reward the kind behavior you want to
	encourage.
	Mr. Polis. And, Mr. Johnson, can you address why it's
	important to include apprenticeships in Perkins CTE
	reauthorization?
	Mr. Johnson. Apprenticeships provide such a connection with
	the job before they finish their actual education that they get
	a realistic job preview the entire time that they're getting
	the education. It not only increases their direct applied skill
	because it's the actual work that they'll be doing, but it
	conveys even more knowledge to them that they can talk to their
	friends about. And it becomes really an awareness that pushes
	career and technical education awareness in the forefront in
	that way.
	Mr. Polis. Thank you.
	And I yield back.
	Chairman Rokita. I thank the gentleman.
	The gentleman from Indiana is recognized for 5 minutes.
	Mr. Messer. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I appreciate this
	important hearing.
	You know, we've talked about it before in this committee,
	but it is important we start to rethink many of these programs.
	You know, some of our higher education programs are some of the
	most successful Federal programs ever invented, but many of
	them are structured on a what I called four-homecomings-and-a-
	backpack kind of approach, where we think of an 18-year-old kid
	grabbing her backpack, running off to school. Some kids do
	that, but, of course, in today's world where careers can change
	many times throughout your lifetime, that doesn't fit
	everybody's needs. And, as others have discussed, we need to
	get folks prepared for a job in the economy. That's where we
	really give them value. And 6 in 10, as many as 6 in 10,
	manufacturing jobs go unfulfilled because we don't have folks
	that are trained and prepared for that job.
	I wanted to direct my first question to Mr. Johnson.
	And we've heard and I've heard in my district from many
	employers that discuss the challenges they face in finding
	skilled employees. How do these workforce shortages affect
	companies?
	Mr. Johnson. Well, I've attended a number of conferences
	recently where we talk about that very thing. We talk about
	this projected skills gap, this projected gap of employees that
	are going to be available for even in the manufacturing sector.
	And, sadly, some of the organizations are now beginning to
	plan on the possibility that that's actually going to happen.
	It's almost -- they're not trying to -- they're still trying to
	fix the problem, but they're so convinced that it's an
	inevitability that they're planning on that not happening.
	So we basically must continue to push that idea that this
	is a job that is worth people having.
	Mr. Messer. And I guess what you're saying there, Mr.
	Johnson, is that they may have to decide to mechanize or make
	other decisions as a company because they're worried that they
	don't have the workforce to meet their needs, or move somewhere
	else, or --
	Mr. Johnson. Absolutely. I mean, we have to remember that
	part of the biggest problem I think that we have is that -- and
	we've touched on it a number of times -- is the message that
	we're delivering.
	Organizations all around have what they call a value
	proposition. They talk about, this is why it's a great place to
	come and work for our organization. Technical sectors,
	manufacturing sectors have to have what I refer to as a
	manufacturing value proposition: This is why this sector of
	employment is a great place to be. This is the type of
	messaging that, whenever I go and talk to students or retooling
	adults, that any of us on the panel or any of you go, we should
	be saying the same things, they should be hearing the same
	things, so that we have a branded message.
	We talk about we don't say the things all the time, but we
	don't talk about what specifically are the things that we need
	to say. An example of that is, when I see students' eyes open
	the most is whenever we show them a chart that we created that
	shows the people that are graduating high school at the same
	time, and they choose four or five different careers. The
	careers we have are welder, process operator, lawyer, teacher.
	And we show where they go in debt to begin with, basically
	spending money on school one way or another, and then they
	begin making money, which is their average income.
	When we show the chart and we can actually show the
	students and retooling adults that it actually takes a lawyer
	in the Houston area 20 years to catch up with a welder or a
	process operator because of the length of time they're still in
	school while these welders and process operators are making
	money --
	Mr. Messer. Bottom line is --
	Mr. Johnson. That's an example of the type of information
	that we have to have a branded way of talking.
	Mr. Messer. Bottom line, many of these jobs are good-paying
	jobs. We also in our district are working on getting kids to
	come in high school into manufacturing facilities so they can
	see what they look like, right, and that they can see that
	these can be very pleasant places to work.
	Ms. Goble, in my limited time, I wanted to follow up on
	some of Mr. Polis' comments and ask, are these dual enrollment
	opportunities accessible to students from low-income
	backgrounds? And are there programs to help students afford
	these programs if they're unable to cover the costs?
	Ms. Goble. Absolutely. Students who are unable to pay for
	the cost -- the college still does require the $5 per credit
	hour. However, the principals of our high schools have the
	available funds to cover that for any student, because we're
	dedicated to make sure that they have those same opportunities.
	Mr. Messer. Yeah.
	I think, with my limited time, I'll just yield back the
	rest after just thanking you all for all your work that you do
	every day to make sure that people in America have an
	opportunity and, again, thank the chairman for this important
	hearing.
	Chairman Rokita. I thank the gentleman.
	The gentleman yields.
	I would now recognize for 5 minutes Mr. Krishnamoorthi, a
	member of the full committee, a guest of the subcommittee
	today.
	Welcome, sir.
	Mr. Krishnamoorthi. Thank you so much. I'm honored to be
	part of your subcommittee for today. And I think this is such a
	great topic. It's one that people on both sides of the aisle
	can really get together on and make some progress on.
	It's my humble belief that, at some point in the history of
	the United States, we're going to go from a compulsory
	education system of K through 12 to K through 12-plus. And that
	``plus'' is yet to be defined, but I think it's going to have a
	heavy career and technical education component.
	And here is my, kind of, comment and question, which is
	that I believe that the ultimate indicator of success of these
	career and technical educations is not, kind of, coming out
	with a piece of paper that's a certificate but, rather, an
	offer letter. Are they going to have a job? That's what my
	constituents keep asking me, you know. How do we get jobs for
	our young people?
	And so I believe very much in pushing decision making in
	the CTE program down to local levels as much as possible,
	because people at the local levels know what the local demands
	are in terms of skills and they know what the skill shortages
	are.
	However -- this is my question -- with regard to the
	accountability measures, there's been some questioning of is
	there enough accountability for whether the programs that are
	funded through the, you know, Perkins CTE are strong enough.
	And one of the accountability measures I'd like to ask about
	is, you know, what do you folks think about, you know,
	requiring that the students who graduate from these CTE
	programs have a job, or that it's a significant measure of the
	success of those programs?
	Mr. Rowe, would you like to comment on that?
	Mr. Rowe. Well, I can't speak probably as eloquently to the
	measures in the bill as the other folks, but I can tell you, in
	my foundation, it's critical.
	You know, there's this notion, I think, that the existence
	of opportunity is the balm for unemployment, for instance. And,
	of course, the skills gap tells us that that's not the case at
	all. There are 5.6 million opportunities, right?
	So back to the enthusiasm. We can't just assume, in my view
	-- I can't just say, ``Hey, look at what's here,'' and then get
	out of the way and watch the people stampede toward it, right?
	So the way we approach it is we challenge them, you know. We
	say, look, in our little world, you need to comply with some
	things that might not be in this bill. You need to write an
	essay. You need to submit a video. You need to make a
	persuasive case for yourself. You need to submit references.
	You need to demonstrate work ethic in some way that we can
	demonstrably reward.
	And when we find those kids -- well, we've got about 600
	who have gone through so far. And they work. And they're using
	the opportunity for what it is, which is a tool to get to the
	next level.
	I would also say very, very briefly that it's so tempting
	to talk about these jobs as destinations, but what we've seen
	through our foundation and certainly in my show, so many small
	businesses wind up forming around people who begin their
	careers by mastering a trade. That has to be a part of the
	proposition as well, in my view.
	Mr. Krishnamoorthi. I'm a former small-businessman. I
	totally agree that I think that the folks coming out of these
	CTE programs could be our future entrepreneurs. And I hope that
	they are. But I kind of go back to this issue of, I'm all for
	CTE, I'm passionate about it, but I just want to make sure that
	the dollars that go to these postsecondary institutions,
	especially, that are going to be doing the CTE are ending up
	putting our children and students into jobs. Job placement is
	so critical, I think, right now.
	Mrs. Goble?
	Ms. Goble. Yeah. With our business partnerships that I
	referenced earlier, one of the main tenets of that is the
	students who go through those partnerships that are driven by
	industry actually have preferential treatment in the hiring and
	interview process. So that is one thing that we're really
	striving for in every one of those partnerships.
	Mr. Krishnamoorthi. Okay. Thank you very much.
	I think Mr. Johnson wanted to say something.
	Mr. Johnson. So I think there is a way to put real metrics
	behind it and assure this accountability is there.
	An example is, within BASF, for us to determine which ones
	that we will work on the most, we do hiring projections. You
	know, what are the jobs that are going to be needed the most in
	the next 1, 5, and 10 years? The ones that have the highest
	need for that community is where we spend our time and effort.
	That very same thing can be done with your funding
	allocations by basically looking at what are the jobs that
	really have projected openings and that we don't know how we're
	going to fill -- should probably have some level of funding
	that's increased versus jobs that we know there's unemployed
	people all over because there's no jobs for it.
	So some way to balance that funding toward jobs we know
	that America needs and are short on is the best way to do that
	metric system.
	Chairman Rokita. I thank the gentleman.
	Mr. Krishnamoorthi. Thank you.
	Chairman Rokita. The gentleman's time has expired.
	I would tell the gentleman that I think you're right on
	track, and the work that we've done last year and that should
	be in the bill this year is a publishing of some sort of job
	tracker, both at the State level and at the Department of
	Education.
	So I'm glad to know that we're going to agree on everything
	in this committee. That's a great start.
	The ranking member is recognized for a closing.
	Mr. Polis. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
	There's a report that studied various data sets to identify
	high-growth and high-wage occupations in Tennessee. And the
	information and message that they used can be replicated in
	other States to help States determine if their CTE programs are
	aligned with the local labor market needs. And I ask for
	unanimous consent that this research report be entered in the
	record.
	Chairman Rokita. Without objection.
	[The information follows:]
	[Extensive material was submitted by Mr. Polis. The
	submission for the record is in the committee archive https://
	www.cna.org/cna--files/pdf/CIM-2015-U-011930.pdf for this
	hearing.]
	Mr. Polis. I want to thank our witnesses.
	I think a couple takeaways from today's hearing or running
	theme is that career and technical education programs need to
	be relevant and reflective of the actual needs of the labor
	market. We all know the economy today is not what it was 10
	years ago, is not what it was 50 years ago. And sometimes,
	frankly, our school districts and other stakeholders are slow
	to adapt. Federal investments should ensure that we have that
	flexibility at the local level and encourage that flexibility
	to meet real workforce needs.
	Career and technical education programs should also invest
	in all students and diverse students and students from
	underserved communities and have gender parity in the quality
	of the jobs that students are being prepared for.
	As Ms. Lufkin shared, CTE can be a ladder that lifts
	students into the middle class. CTE is an opportunity to
	reengage disconnected youth, like the work that I cited at the
	Colorado Early College School in Denver, where all students
	graduate with an associate's degree from high school.
	In order for career and technical education to be
	effective, it has to be adequately funded. We've suffered under
	sequestration and budget cuts to Perkins, and, frankly, that's
	hurt the ability of CTE programs to serve students. Career and
	technical education is one of the best ways to ensure we have a
	qualified, relevant workforce and our country stays
	competitive. And, frankly, at the end of the day, we need to
	invest in that.
	I want to refer back to Chairman Rokita's opening remarks.
	Chairman Rokita spoke about our effort to reauthorize CTE last
	Congress. As he said, this committee produced a bipartisan
	bill. It passed on the House floor. I'm optimistic that any
	reauthorization will also be bipartisan, pass overwhelmingly.
	If we have good ideas both sides of the aisle that improve
	and build upon our mark from last session, I think Members
	should be encouraged to bring those forward and create a work
	product that we as legislators can be proud of and
	fundamentally will help meet the needs of students across the
	country in preparing them for jobs to support their families or
	for college.
	Thank you again for holding today's hearing, and I yield
	back.
	Chairman Rokita. I thank the gentleman.
	And I thank the members who joined us here today.
	I thank the witnesses. Again, I continue to learn a lot on
	this subject and look forward to working with you as leaders in
	this community to get this job done, the job being the mountain
	we are going to climb again this Congress, in terms of getting
	this bill passed and signed into law. And we're very optimistic
	up here about those probabilities, but we're also very sober in
	terms of the hard work that's ahead of us. So I hope you can
	join us -- I'm motioning to the witnesses -- I hope you can
	join us in that effort, and I know you will.
	Career and technical education provides increased
	opportunity for all students so that, as Mr. Garrett said in
	his remarks, Americans can define their own success. And I
	think that's the key to it.
	Congress and this committee especially will work to change
	the policies and the perceptions of CTE. And, Mr. Rowe, I look
	forward to -- we look forward to working with you in that
	regard. And, again, thank you for your leadership.
	It seems to me that the actual partnerships with employers
	are the ones that seem to provide the most fruit, not putting
	any others aside. But I'm going to take that as one of my to-
	dos, to make sure that concept is promulgated as much as
	possible from a leadership perspective but also in the language
	of the bill.
	With regard to the money, of course that's always the issue
	around here. And we are $20 trillion in debt. I completely
	agree with Ranking Member Polis that this is a priority and
	this is one of the things that could lead to not only
	individual success but our success as Americans going forward.
	So I see this as a high priority.
	But what Mr. Polis didn't mention, and I'll simply mention
	it for him and I and everyone else up here: If that is the
	priority, if that is one of the higher priorities, there has to
	be a lesser priority, or else we're trading problems. We're
	giving your future workers, the beneficiaries of your
	foundation and everyone that you work for, a different problem
	-- that is, a higher debt. So budgets are about priorities,
	appropriations are about priorities. If this is a high
	priority, like I just agreed to, we also have a duty to decide
	what isn't working, what's less of a priority, if we're going
	to put more money to this. So I simply say that as a reminder
	not only to me but to the whole committee as we work forward on
	this issue.
	And, with that, again, I want to thank the witnesses. I
	want to thank everyone for their leadership going forward as we
	climb this mountain, as I said.
	And seeing no further business before the committee, I put
	the committee in adjournment.
	[Additional submission by Mr. Barletta follow:]

	[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]



	[Additional submission by Mr. Johnson follow:]


	[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]


	[Additional submission by Mr. Roe follow:]


	[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]


	[Additional submissions by Chairman Rokita follow:]


	[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]



	[Additional submission by Mr. Thompson follow:]


	[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]


	[Whereupon, at 11:37 a.m., the subcommittee was adjourned.]

	[all]
	</pre></body></html>