[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2407 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2407

              To establish a career pathway grant program.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            February 8, 2018

    Ms. Hassan (for herself, Mr. Kaine, Mrs. Shaheen, and Mr. Reed) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
          Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
              To establish a career pathway grant program.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Gateway to Careers Act of 2018''.

SEC. 2. CAREER PATHWAYS GRANT PROGRAM.

    Title VIII of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1161a et 
seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

                ``PART BB--CAREER PATHWAY GRANT PROGRAM

``SEC. 899. CAREER PATHWAY GRANT PROGRAM.

    ``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) WIOA definitions.--The terms `area career and 
        technical education school', `career pathway', `individual with 
        a barrier to employment', `industry or sector partnership', 
        `integrated education and training', `local board', and 
        `recognized postsecondary credential' have the meanings given 
        such terms in section 3 of the Workforce Innovation and 
        Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102).
            ``(2) Career pathway partnership.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The term `career pathway 
                partnership' means a partnership--
                            ``(i) between an eligible institution, a 
                        workforce development partner described in 
                        subparagraph (B), and a secondary and adult 
                        education partner described in subparagraph 
                        (C);
                            ``(ii) evidenced by a formal agreement 
                        between partners; and
                            ``(iii) that is intended to support the 
                        development and implementation of a career 
                        pathway program.
                    ``(B) Workforce development partner.--A workforce 
                development partner described in subparagraph (A) means 
                one or more of the following:
                            ``(i) A local board.
                            ``(ii) An industry association or other 
                        representative of multiple employers in the 
                        target industry, including an industry or 
                        sector partnership.
                            ``(iii) A community-based organization with 
                        experience in providing employment, education, 
                        or support services relevant to the career 
                        pathway and student populations receiving 
                        services under the grant under this section.
                    ``(C) Secondary and adult education partner.--A 
                secondary and adult education partner described in 
                subparagraph (A) means one or more of the following:
                            ``(i) A local educational agency, as 
                        defined under section 8101 of the Elementary 
                        and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
                        7801).
                            ``(ii) An eligible provider, as defined 
                        under section 203 of the Workforce Innovation 
                        and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3272).
                            ``(iii) An eligible agency, as defined in 
                        section 3 of the Carl D. Perkins Career and 
                        Technical Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 
                        2302).
            ``(3) Eligible institution.--The term `eligible 
        institution' means--
                    ``(A) a public institution of higher education at 
                which the highest degree that is predominantly awarded 
                to students is an associate's degree, including 2-year 
                Tribal Colleges or Universities under section 316 of 
                the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1059c) and 
                public 2-year State institutions of higher education;
                    ``(B) an area career and technical education school 
                that provides education at the postsecondary level; or
                    ``(C) a consortium of entities described in 
                subparagraph (A) or (B).
            ``(4) Measurable skill gains.--The term `measurable skill 
        gains' has the meaning given the term in section 
        361.155(a)(1)(v) of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations (or 
        successor regulations).
    ``(b) Program Established.--The Secretary, in consultation with the 
Secretary of Labor, shall establish a career pathway grant program, 
through which the Secretary shall award grants, or a competitive basis, 
to eligible institutions in order to enable eligible institutions to 
carry out the activities described in subsection (e).
    ``(c) Application.--An eligible institution desiring to receive a 
grant under this section shall submit an application, at such time and 
in such manner as the Secretary may require, that includes the 
following information:
            ``(1) A description of the career pathway partnership, 
        including the roles and responsibilities of each partner.
            ``(2) A description of the career pathway program that will 
        be supported under the grant, including a description of the 
        occupations and industries that will be targeted and the 
        recognized postsecondary credentials to be awarded.
            ``(3) A description of how the career pathway program 
        supported under the grant is aligned and coordinated with other 
        employment, education, and support services offered in the 
        geographic area served under the grant, including services 
        provided under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 
        U.S.C. 3101 et seq.) and the Carl D. Perkins Career and 
        Technical Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2301 et seq.).
            ``(4) A description of the student populations that will be 
        served under the grant, including an analysis of any barriers 
        to postsecondary access and completion that such populations 
        face, and an analysis of how the services to be provided under 
        the grant will address those barriers.
            ``(5) A description of the activities and services to be 
        provided under this grant, consistent with the subsection (e).
            ``(6) A description of the performance outcomes that the 
        eligible institution plans to achieve, including a description 
        of how the eligible institution will evaluate and measure 
        student progress and measurable skill gains along a career 
        pathway.
            ``(7) Such other information as the Secretary may require.
    ``(d) Geographic Diversity; Priority.--The Secretary shall award 
grants under this part in a manner that--
            ``(1) supports geographic diversity among grantees; and
            ``(2) gives priority to partnerships that seek to serve 
        individuals with a barrier to employment or individuals with a 
        barrier to postsecondary education.
    ``(e) Use of Funds.--An eligible institution receiving a grant 
under this section shall use grant funds to carry out activities that 
support the development and implementation of career pathways programs, 
which shall include two or more of the following activities:
            ``(1) The planning and implementation of agreements between 
        the eligible institution and other partners in the career 
        pathway partnership to support seamless transitions between 
        elements of the career pathway program offered by different 
        partners, as appropriate.
            ``(2) The development and expansion of new or existing 
        programs at the eligible institution that utilize integrated 
        education and training strategies, and support multiple entry 
        and exit points for working learners, which may include--
                    ``(A) dual-enrollment approaches for secondary 
                students or disconnected youth seeking to transition 
                directly into a career pathway program; and
                    ``(B) strategies that help working students and 
                other nontraditional and adult student populations 
                access skills and recognized postsecondary credentials.
            ``(3) The provision of direct support services such as 
        childcare, transportation, mental health and substance use 
        disorder treatment, assistance in obtaining health insurance 
        coverage, and assistance in accessing the supplemental 
        nutrition assistance program established under the Food and 
        Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.), the special 
        supplemental nutrition program for women, infants, and children 
        established by section 17 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 
        (42 U.S.C. 1786), housing, and other benefits, as appropriate.
            ``(4) The provision of emergency grants to help students 
        facing financial hardships that may impact enrollment or 
        completion of an element of a career pathway program.
            ``(5) Offering career pathways navigation and case 
        management services.
            ``(6) The provision of professional development for faculty 
        and other staff at the eligible institution or at partner 
        organizations described under subparagraph (B) or (C) of 
        subsection (a)(3) on the development and implementation of 
        career pathways.
            ``(7) The acquisition of equipment necessary to support the 
        delivery of career pathway programs supported through a grant 
        under this section.
            ``(8) Any other activity identified by the eligible 
        institution or partners as necessary to support the development 
        or implementation of career pathway programs, as long as such 
        activity is clearly outlined in the grant application.
    ``(f) Duration of Award.--A grant under this section shall be for a 
period of not more than 4 years. An eligible institution may apply for 
subsequent grants after the completion of a grant period.
    ``(g) Reports.--Each eligible institution receiving a grant under 
this section shall submit a report to the Secretary, on an annual 
basis, describing--
            ``(1) the activities provided under the grant, including 
        activities carried out directly by the eligible institution and 
        activities carried out by partner organizations;
            ``(2) the students receiving services under the grant, 
        disaggregated by age, race or ethnicity, gender, and income; 
        and
            ``(3) outcomes for students receiving services under the 
        grant, including data relating to--
                    ``(A) employment of students upon enrollment in the 
                career pathway program, and in the second and fourth 
                quarters after completion;
                    ``(B) median earnings of students upon enrollment 
                in the career pathway program, and in the second 
                quarter after completion of the program or attainment 
                of a recognized postsecondary credential;
                    ``(C) the percentage of students receiving a high 
                school diploma or recognized equivalent;
                    ``(D) the percentage of students receiving a 
                recognized postsecondary credential;
                    ``(E) the percentage of students who achieve 
                measurable skill gains toward a recognized 
                postsecondary credential or employment; and
                    ``(F) the percentage of students receiving support 
                services, disaggregated by type of service.
    ``(h) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out the activities described in this section, 
such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2018 and for each 
subsequent fiscal year thereafter.''.
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