Title: An act relating to expanding opportunities for graduating secondary school students to enter apprenticeships.

Brief Description: Expanding apprenticeship opportunities for high school graduates.

Sponsors: House Committee on Appropriations (originally sponsored by Representatives Quall, Conway, Wood, Hasegawa, Haigh, Ormsby, Murray, Chase, Kessler, Morrell, Green, Roberts, McCoy, Moeller, Simpson, Sells, Lantz, McDermott, Ericks, Hankins, Kagi and Hudgins; by request of Governor Gregoire).

Brief History: Passed House: 2/09/06, 94-4.

Committee Activity: Early Learning, K-12 & Higher Education: 2/17/06, 2/22/06 [DPA-WM].

Ways & Means: 2/23/06, 2/27/06 [DPA(EKHE)].

SENATE COMMITTEE ON EARLY LEARNING, K-12 & HIGHER EDUCATION

Majority Report: Do pass as amended and be referred to Committee on Ways & Means.Signed by Senators McAuliffe, Chair; Pridemore, Vice Chair, Higher Education; Weinstein, Vice Chair, Early Learning & K-12; Schmidt, Ranking Minority Member; Berkey, Carrell, Delvin, Eide, Kohl-Welles, Rasmussen, Rockefeller, Schoesler and Shin.

Staff: Stephanie Yurcisin (786-7438)

SENATE COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS

Majority Report: Do pass as amended by Committee on Early Learning, K-12 & Higher Education.Signed by Senators Prentice, Chair; Fraser, Vice Chair, Capital Budget Chair; Doumit, Vice Chair, Operating Budget; Zarelli, Ranking Minority Member; Brandland, Fairley, Kohl-Welles, Parlette, Pflug, Pridemore, Rasmussen, Regala, Roach, Rockefeller, Schoesler and Thibaudeau.

Staff: Bryon Moore (786-7726)

Background: Apprenticeship programs enable individuals to learn trades and occupations through a combination of on-the-job training and related supplemental instruction. Programs are sponsored by joint employer and labor groups, individual employers, and/or employer associations. The sponsor of an apprenticeship program plans, administers, and pays for the program. The Washington State Apprenticeship and Training Council (WSATC) is the administrative arm of the apprenticeship section of the Department of Labor and Industries. The WSATC has the authority to, among other things, establish standards for apprenticeship programs and assist sponsors with local administration of training programs.

Some high schools in Washington have established programs in partnership with local apprenticeships. The programs allow students to earn high school credits through courses at the high school and work-based internships at an employer's job site. Upon graduation, the students who complete these programs are typically qualified to enter directly into a full apprenticeship.

The State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) designates certain community and technical colleges as Centers of Excellence to focus on a "targeted industry." A targeted industry is defined as one that is strategic to the economic growth of a region or the state. The mission of Centers of Excellence includes providing responsive education, translating industry research into best practices, and building a competitive workforce.

Summary of Amended Bill: Centers of Excellence, as designated by the SBCTC, as well as other colleges with a high density of apprenticeship programs, must act as brokers of information and resources on available grants, scholarship opportunities, job openings, and industries of growth.

Within existing resources, the WSATC, together with state-approved apprenticeship training programs and the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI), must lead an educational outreach program. The program may include activities such as assistance with curriculum development and the establishment of practical learning opportunities.

Within existing resources, the WSATC must approve and oversee direct-entry programs for graduating secondary students into building and construction-related apprenticeships by assisting individual school districts in using and leveraging existing resources and by developing guidelines, including guidelines that ensure that graduating students will receive appropriate education and training. The guidelines must be developed with input from a number of listed experts and stakeholders. The WSATC will award up to ten incentive grants for the 2006-07 school year to school districts statewide based on these guidelines, which are to be used solely for personnel to negotiate and implement agreements with local apprenticeship programs to accept graduating high school students with appropriate training into apprenticeship programs.

Beginning December 1, 2006, the WSATC must annually report to the Governor and the Legislature about the guidelines established; the names of the schools receiving incentive grants; the results of negotiations between school districts receiving incentive grants and local apprenticeship programs; a list of apprenticeship programs that have agreed to accept qualified graduating high school students; and the number of qualified graduating high school students entering into apprenticeship programs each year through direct-entry programs.

Subject to funding, up to four pilot projects are created to expand student enrollment in pre-apprenticeship programs, particularly building and construction apprenticeships. The OSPI, in consultation with the SBCTC and the WSATC, must award grants on a competitive basis for these pilot projects. Two of the pilot projects must involve Skill Centers and two must involve community and technical colleges. At least one of the pilot projects is encouraged to involve small or rural high schools.

To review grant applications, the OSPI and the WSATC must convene a review committee representing the SBCTC, the Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board, business and labor interests with ties to apprenticeship fields, apprenticeship program coordinators, and career and technical educators in the public schools. Grant award recipients must be notified by June 1, 2006.

The pilot projects must be ready to enroll students in 2006-07 and must operate for three years. To the maximum extent possible, students in the pilot projects must receive dual credit through tech-prep agreements or Running Start. In addition to enrolling students in career and technical programs that enable them to enter apprenticeships upon graduation, pilot projects may engage in other activities, including developing curriculum to align with apprenticeship entry requirements and skill expectations and negotiating direct-entry agreements with apprenticeship programs to accept graduates.

The pilot programs are established subject to funding. The funding model for a community and technical college that enrolls a high school student in a pilot project is through contracts with OSPI. When a student enrolls in a pilot project at a community or technical college, standard tuition fees do not apply.

The pilot programs must report annually to the WSATC, beginning December 1, 2007, certain statistics about the students involved in the programs and resulting apprenticeships and about lessons learned that might lead to improvements in additional pre-apprenticeship programs. The WSATC shall then provide an annual summary of this information to the Governor and the Legislature.

Using existing resources, the OSPI must convene a workgroup to identify barriers and opportunities for further expansion of pre-apprenticeship programs and must submit recommendations to the Legislature by December 1, 2006. The workgroup, which expires on August 31, 2009, must include representatives from the WASTC, local or regional apprenticeship programs, the Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board, community and technical colleges, high schools, and skill centers. Issues to be considered by the workgroup may include: expanding participation and opportunities in Running Start for career-technical courses; "highly qualified teacher" requirements; cross-crediting; the funding model for skills centers; benchmarks to measure outcomes; and the impact of current student assessment and achievement requirements on student participation in pre-apprenticeship programs.

Amended Bill Compared to Original Bill: The bill as referred to committee was not considered.

Appropriation: None.

Fiscal Note: Available.

Committee/Commission/Task Force Created: No.

Effective Date: April 1, 2006.

Testimony For: When the Governor gave her State of the State address, she specifically mentioned Running Start for the Trades. This link between education and trades would allow students to access existing programs and to prepare students for academic and life success. This bill comes as a request from Washington Learns.

There is a growing demand for highly skilled workers, and the impending retiring of many of the baby boomers who currently occupy these jobs will make the gap in supply even larger. Much of our K-12 emphasis is placed on directing kids towards college, but we also should emphasize building knowledge and skills for trades.

Some of the technical details need to be addressed to ensure that everything is correct by the time this becomes law, but there is very broad support for this bill from all sides.

Testimony Against: None.

Who Testified: PRO: Representative Quall, prime sponsor; Represenative Conway, sponsor; Dana Richardson, Office of the Governor; John Aultman, New Market Skills Center; Jim Crabbe, State Board for Community and Technical Colleges; Wes Pruitt, Workforce Board; Mark Martinez, Pierce County Building Trades; Terry Tilton, Washington State Building and Construction Trades Council; Kathleen Lopp, Washington Association for Career and Technical Education; Rick Slunaker, Associated General Contractors; Kyra Kester, Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction; Judy Hartman, Office of the Governor