Brief Summary of Substitute Bill

Requires the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, in consultation with the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges and the Washington State Apprenticeship and Training Council, to examine opportunities for promoting registered preapprenticeship and registered youth apprenticeship opportunities for high school students and report to the Governor and the Legislature by November 1, 2018.

Background:

An apprenticeship is a combination of on-the-job training under the supervision of journey-level workers and a certain number of instructional hours. Apprenticeships can last from one to six years. During the apprenticeship, apprentices are paid lower wages than journey level workers.

The Washington State Apprenticeship and Training Council (WSATC), which is part of the Department of Labor and Industries, establishes apprenticeship program standards, approves apprenticeship training programs, and otherwise governs the programs. Employers may partner with an approved apprenticeship program to offer apprenticeships, or develop their own apprenticeship program that is approved by the WSATC.

In 2017, in Washington, there were over 17,000 active apprentices, of which over 5,000 were registered apprentices.

Apprenticeship preparation programs, also called preapprenticeship programs, are education-based programs that focus on educating and training students to meet or exceed minimum qualifications for entry into apprenticeship programs upon graduation. These preapprenticeship programs must be endorsed by one or more registered apprenticeship sponsors, and must be approved by the WSATC.

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Summary of Substitute Bill:

Subject to the appropriation of specific funds, the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI), in consultation with the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges and the WSATC, must examine opportunities for promoting registered preapprenticeship and registered youth apprenticeship opportunities for high school students.

By November 1, 2018, the OSPI must solicit input from persons and organizations with an interest or relevant expertise in registered preapprenticeship programs, registered youth apprenticeship programs, or both, and provide a report to the Governor and the Legislature that includes recommendations for:

improving alignment between college level vocational courses at institutions of higher education and high school curriculum and graduation requirements, including High School and Beyond Plans. These recommendations may include the development or revision of career and technical education course equivalencies for college level vocational courses successfully completed by a student while in high school and taken for dual credit;

identifying and removing barriers that prevent the wider exploration and use of registered preapprenticeship and registered youth apprenticeship opportunities by high school students and opportunities for registered apprenticeships by graduating secondary students; and
increasing awareness among teachers, counselors, students, parents, principals, school administrators, and the public about the opportunities offered by registered preapprenticeship and registered youth apprenticeship programs.

"Institution of higher education" is defined to mean community or technical colleges, public tribal colleges, and Central Washington University, Eastern Washington University, Washington State University, and The Evergreen State College. It does not include University of Washington, Western Washington University, or private colleges.

Substitute Bill Compared to Original Bill:

The substitute bill specifies that the promoted preapprenticeship opportunities must be registered preapprenticeships, and that the promoted apprenticeship programs must be registered youth apprenticeship programs. In addition, it specifies that the recommendations related to college level vocational courses must be for courses taken for dual credit, rather than taken at an institution of higher education.

Staff Summary of Public Testimony:

(In support) The needs of all students must be met; not just the needs of students going to four-year universities. Some students want to take career and technical education (CTE) courses and go into preapprenticeship programs. This bill helps to align the CTE courses and preapprenticeship programs with coursework in the high schools. Students often do not take these courses and programs if they do not know how they can get dual credit, what graduation requirements are waived if they take CTE courses, and whether pursuing a more technical career path will affect their on-time high school graduation. Students should be able to take the CTE courses at the community and technical colleges (CTCs) and receive dual credit. The high schools do a good job of notifying students about dual credit opportunities for students who are doing four-year preparatory work, but do not do as good of a job for the CTE students, such as students taking welding.

The CTCs support the delivery of apprenticeship and preapprenticeship programs. Youth can benefit greatly from the earn-and-learn model, which puts them on a pathway toward postsecondary credential attainment. The Governor is focused on youth apprenticeship. The CTCs help ensure quality education that will put youth on a path towards self-sufficiency and further educational attainment. The CTCs are already looking at collaboration with the OSPI and school districts to align earn-and-learn models with high school coursework.

It is important to tell school staff, students, families, and the community about the value of apprenticeships. Apprenticeship is complicated because of how it has been built up over the years. It is important to review the alignment of the CTE programs to allow students and youth to better navigate these programs. It is important to ensure that registered youth apprenticeships are included in the bill. There also must be a consideration of youth wage laws because the youth need to be able to earn enough to continue moving forward in an apprenticeship program.

(Opposed) None.