On April 14, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee held a hearing to examine federal lifelong education programs.
Stressing the importance of lifelong education in a “technology-driven economy,” Chair Mike Enzi (R-WY) stated, “It is estimated that 60 percent of tomorrow’s jobs will require skills that only 20 percent of today’s workers possess. It is also estimated that the average person leaving college will change careers 14 times. Without a lifetime of education, training and retraining opportunities for everyone, we will not meet these 21st century challenges.” He announced his sponsorship of the Lifelong Education Opportunities Act (S. 9), which has four stated purposes: to raise achievement levels for all students, regardless of background; to improve state accountability for performance results; to provide states with the flexibility to manage federal dollars effectively; and to support “a lifetime of learning opportunities for students and adults at all stages in life.”
Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao summarized the administration’s proposal to reauthorize the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) of 1998 (P.L. 105-220). “The centerpiece of the President’s proposal for job training reform is the consolidation of the WIA Adult, Dislocated Worker, and Youth and the Employment Service funding streams into a single grant to states. Governors would have the option of including the State’s resources from an additional five programs into that single grant…The consolidated grant would have a single State Integration Plan and a single performance and reporting system, thereby simplifying planning and reporting requirements. While program-specific requirements will be minimized, states will not be permitted to reduce participant levels for targeted populations such as veterans and individuals with disabilities.” She explained that the proposal also would strengthen the One-Stop Career Centers system: “The One-Stop system must be able to provide all the services that individuals need to find jobs and upgrade their skills, and to serve all populations, including those with the greatest barriers to employment. One-Stop Career Centers should be authorized to offer a wide range of services for low-wage workers and directed to remove barriers to serving targeted populations, including older workers and individuals with disabilities.”
Highlighting programs for secondary and postsecondary students, Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings explained that the administration has proposed $1.5 billion for a High School Initiative. The first component of the initiative is a High School Intervention program that would “support a wide range of locally determined reforms aimed at increasing student achievement, eliminating achievement gaps, and ensuring that every student graduates with a meaningful high school diploma. Schools would implement targeted interventions designed to meet the specific needs of at-risk students…[and] could include dropout prevention, integration of rigorous academic courses with vocational and technical training, and efforts to increase college awareness and preparation. They would focus, in particular, on the students who are most at risk of dropping out or leaving school without the skills or knowledge necessary for further education or employment.” The second component consists of new High School Assessments “to increase accountability for high school achievement and give principals and teachers new tools and data to guide instruction and improve student performance.” Secretary Spellings also noted that the administration’s FY2006 budget would increase the maximum Pell Grant from $4,050 to $4,550 over five years, adding, “For new students who have completed a rigorous high school program of study, our enhanced Pell Grants proposal would result in eligible students receiving an additional $1,000. Thus, a low-income student could qualify for a total of $5,050 next year and $5,150 for his or her second year in college.” She further stated, “In addition, we are proposing a new program of Short-Term Training Loans, which in [FY2006], would support up to $284 million in loans to an estimated 377,000 students, including dislocated, unemployed, transitioning, or older workers.”
Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius said that lifelong education programs “must have enough flexibility to meet the demands of an unpredictable economy and a changing worker population. These programs cannot be a one-size fits all system with rigid regulations and service delivery structures. Rather, the programs must recognize the differences among states and communities, and thus provide governors, working with local government, business, and labor to design flexible ways to meet distinct needs. At the same time, programs must remain accountable, given their reliance on public investments.” She urged Congress not to consolidate WIA programs as requested by the administration, but to “provide governors with the option, at their discretion, to pool WIA, higher education, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), and other sources of federal training money to respond to the state-level needs of workers, businesses and other interests.” Governor Sebelius also noted that governors “recommend that the federal partner agencies develop a joint initiative to align federal regulations and encourage support and participation in one-stop centers. Alignment efforts should encompass WIA, higher education, TANF, vocational rehabilitation, vocational and technical education, trade adjustment, veterans’ employment, and other distinct programs,” adding, “In particular, governors strongly support efforts to coordinate WIA and TANF to give welfare recipients and other low-income workers easier, more effective access to education and training.”
The committee also heard testimony from Pamela Boisvert, vice president of the Worcester Consortium in Massachusetts. She highlighted the federal TRIO Educational Opportunity Centers (EOCs), which assist low-income adults to prepare for workforce. Citing challenges faced by the EOCs, she explained that “low-income adult students generally must contend with complexity in their lives and a limited network of support to manage that complexity. For example, 57% of low-income adult students in postsecondary education work full-time, compared to 33% of traditional students. Additionally, 64% of low-income adult students support dependent children compared to 8% of traditional students. So in addition to assisting students in identifying an appropriate academic program and [securing] the resources to enroll, it is often necessary to assist clients in securing support from other academic and social services agencies.”
In conclusion, Ms. Boisvert shared the story of one of her current clients: “Arianne arrived at the EOC office through the encouragement of her counselor at the local housing authority. This 35 year-old African-American single mother has struggled within the walls of poverty her whole life. Her undiagnosed learning disability prevented her from ever succeeding in school. She dropped out at an early age, gave birth to a son 16 years ago and has struggled to provide for him since…Career assessment testing through the EOC has confirmed that she has the strong interest and abilities necessary to achieve her dream of becoming an Occupational Therapist. Her desire is to help children with disabilities. She is now registered for summer semester classes at the local community college [and is] taking those prerequisites necessary to enter the occupational therapy assistant’s program that she has been accepted to in the fall.”
