[Senate Hearing 117-199]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


                                                    S. Hrg. 117-199

                     GETTING AMERICA READY TO WORK:
                         SUCCESSFUL ON THE JOB,
                  APPRENTICESHIP TRAINING PROGRAMS TO 
                      HELP WORKERS AND BUSINESSES
                           GET READY TO WORK

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

                                HEARING

                               BEFORE THE

            SUBCOMMITTEE ON EMPLOYMENT AND WORKPLACE SAFETY

                                 OF THE

                    COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, EDUCATION,
                          LABOR, AND PENSIONS

                          UNITED STATES SENATE

                    ONE HUNDRED SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS

                             FIRST SESSION

                                   ON

 EXAMINING SUCCESSFUL ON THE JOB, APPRENTICESHIP TRAINING PROGRAMS TO 
              HELP WORKERS AND BUSINESS GET READY TO WORK

                               __________

                           SEPTEMBER 22, 2021

                               __________

 Printed for the use of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and 
                                Pensions
                                
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                    U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE                    
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         COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, EDUCATION, LABOR, AND PENSIONS

                    PATTY MURRAY, Washington, Chair
BERNIE SANDERS (I), Vermont          RICHARD BURR, North Carolina, 
ROBERT P. CASEY, JR., Pennsylvania       Ranking Member
TAMMY BALDWIN, Wisconsin             RAND PAUL, M.D., Kentucky
CHRISTOPHER S. MURPHY, Connecticut   SUSAN M. COLLINS, Maine
TIM KAINE, Virginia                  BILL CASSIDY, M.D., Louisiana
MAGGIE HASSAN, New Hampshire         LISA MURKOWSKI, Alaska
TINA SMITH, Minnesota                MIKE BRAUN, Indiana
JACKY ROSEN, Nevada                  ROGER MARSHALL, M.D., Kansas
BEN RAY LUJAN, New Mexico            TIM SCOTT, South Carolina
JOHN HICKENLOOPER, Colorado          MITT ROMNEY, Utah
                                     TOMMY TUBERVILLE, Alabama
                                     JERRY MORAN, Kansas

                     Evan T. Schatz, Staff Director
               David P. Cleary, Republican Staff Director
                  John Righter, Deputy Staff Director
                                 ------                                

            SUBCOMMITTEE ON EMPLOYMENT AND WORKPLACE SAFETY

                 JOHN HICKENLOOPER, Colorado, Chairman
TAMMY BALDWIN, Wisconsin             MIKE BRAUN, Indiana
TINA SMITH, Minnesota                TOMMY TUBERVILLE, Alabama
JACKY ROSEN, Nevada                  RAND PAUL, M.D., Kentucky
BEN RAY LUJAN, New Mexico            TIM SCOTT, South Carolina
PATTY MURRAY, Washington (ex         MITT ROMNEY, Utah
    officio)                         RICHARD BURR, North Carolina (ex 
                                         officio)
                           
                           C O N T E N T S

                              ----------                              

                               STATEMENTS

                     WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2021

                                                                   Page

                           Committee Members

Hickenlooper, Hon. John, Chairman, Subcommittee on Employment and 
  Workplace Safety, Opening statement............................     1
Braun, Hon. Mike, Ranking Member, a U.S. Senator from the State 
  of Indiana, Opening statement..................................     3

                               Witnesses

Ginsburg, Noel, Founder and CEO, CareerWise, Denver, CO..........     5
    Prepared statement...........................................     7
Navarro, Naarai, Business Development Representative, Pinnacol 
  Insurance, Denver, CO..........................................    13
    Prepared statement...........................................    14
Curry, Leah, President, Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Indiana, 
  Inc., Princeton, IN............................................    16
    Prepared statement...........................................    17

                          ADDITIONAL MATERIAL

Statements, articles, publications, letters, etc.
Hickenlooper, Hon. John:
    Apprenticeship and Workforce Delegation Letter...............    44
Murray, Hon. Patty:
    Letter from the International Association of Sheet Metal, 
      Rail and Transportation Workers............................    45

 
                     GETTING AMERICA READY TO WORK:
                         SUCCESSFUL ON THE JOB,
                  APPRENTICESHIP TRAINING PROGRAMS TO
                      HELP WORKERS AND BUSINESSES
                           GET READY TO WORK

                              ----------                              


                     Wednesday, September 22, 2021

                                       U.S. Senate,
           Subcommittee on Employment and Workplace Safety,
       Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions,
                                                    Washington, DC.
    The Subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 10:04 a.m., in 
room 430, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. John 
Hickenlooper, Chairman of the Subcommittee presiding.
    Present: Senators Hickenlooper [presiding], Baldwin, Smith, 
Rosen, Kaine, Braun, Tuberville, Scott, and Romney.
    Also present: Senator Portman.

               OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR HICKENLOOPER

    The Chairman. The Senate Employment and Workplace Safety 
Subcommittee can come to order. Settle down out there. 
(Laughter.)
    Today, we are holding a hearing on getting America Ready to 
Work, looking at successful on-the-job apprenticeship training 
programs that have helped workers and businesses build a 
trained workforce and remain competitive in the global economy. 
I look forward to today's witness testimony and the discussion 
that follows.
    Ranking Member Braun and I each have an opening statement. 
Then, we will introduce the witnesses. After the witnesses give 
their testimony, Senators will have 5 minutes for a round of 
questions. I think we will have some Senators coming and going 
over the process of this. And, there are obviously who knows 
how many millions of people watching eventually on recorded 
video.
    While we are unable to have the hearing fully open, live 
video is available on our Committee website at help.senate.gov.
    Senator Braun and I have both invited Members outside the 
Subcommittee to participate in today's hearing. We look forward 
to them being a part of this conversation, as well, and 
building a bipartisan coalition to address some of the 
challenges we face in building tomorrow's workforce.
    As we consider investments in education and workforce, we 
need to keep in mind that not everyone is going to go to 
college. They do not need to go to college to be successful. 
Some people go to college at different times. Only 35 percent 
of young people in the United States ever complete a Bachelor's 
Degree or higher.
    Apprenticeships and other on-the-job training programs are 
powerful alternatives that help shift the conversation away 
from the traditional, narrow 4-year degree path and toward the 
skills needed to find successful careers in jobs that exist 
today.
    Right now, the three fastest growing jobs in America--wind 
turbine technicians, nurse practitioners, and solar panel 
installers--many of these jobs involve skills that can be 
gained through targeted skills training or on-the-job 
apprenticeship training programs. These are also the kinds of 
jobs and comfortable incomes, I guess, that can rebuild the 
American middle class.
    According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median 
base salary for a solar panel installer is about $47,000 a 
year. A wind turbine technician earns a median wage of over 
$56,000 a year.
    We need to make sure that we educate and train these 
workers on the specific and in-demand skills in a partnership 
with the employers in these fields.
    We need to make sure we have programs that provide skills 
training for careers that are available now, but also the 
careers of tomorrow--coders, to support information technology; 
project and marketing coordinators; claims representatives; 
workers that can build new, more sustainable and reliable power 
grid, just to name a few. These are all careers attainable with 
a combination of some classroom training and on-the-job 
apprenticeship programs.
    Out of necessity, employers, like Toyota, and 
intermediaries, like CareerWise, are creating training programs 
to build the workforce they need to keep their business and 
their partners globally competitive.
    Now, our first witness is going to be my friend, Noel 
Ginsburg, of I do not know how long, probably over 20, 25 years 
now. And he has learned over his 35 years of experience in 
manufacturing that workforce development has always been a 
limiting factor to economic growth.
    Noel has worked for decades to tackle the workforce and 
skills gap by, (A), personally supporting 42 low-income kids 
through the I Have a Dream Foundation; changing a drop-out rate 
of 90 percent to a graduation rate of 90 percent; founding the 
Colorado Advanced Manufacturing Alliance to engage 
manufacturers across the state in solving these systemic 
challenges; chairing the Denver Public Schools Career and 
College Readiness Council, as well as the Metro Denver Chamber 
of Commerce Board. He has served on the Colorado Workforce 
Development Council, the Colorado Opportunities Scholarship 
Initiative, and the Colorado Economic Development Council. I 
could go on. The list goes on beyond that.
    But also, more importantly, he came to me with this idea 
about apprenticeships and founded and has led, always as a 
volunteer, CareerWise. CareerWise is training apprenticeships 
and programs that are not typically associated with traditional 
apprenticeship programs and apprenticeship occupations.
    CareerWise has worked with over 200 employers across the 
Country from New York City to Denver, to Indiana, and to 
Washington, DC to build these apprenticeship programs in modern 
occupations ranging from software coding to automation design, 
to banking, to education, and on and on.
    The support CareerWise provides has made it possible for 
small businesses that make up the majority of our economy 
across many markets to provide equitable opportunities while 
improving their bottom lines.
    I look forward to discussing how CareerWise and Toyota are 
building modern, adaptable apprenticeship programs for the 
modern digital economy. I think we have some great examples of 
how apprenticeship and on-the-job training will work.
    Ms. Navarro just completed a registered apprenticeship 
program with Pinnacol Insurance in Denver and became a full-
time journey worker as a business development representative.
    Ms. Curry, who is the president of Toyota Motor 
Manufacturing in Indiana, will share how Toyota created the 4T 
Academy, which connects high school students with career 
opportunities in advanced manufacturing.
    I am eagerly looking forward to talking about how we, on 
this Committee, can support these types of programs and 
continue to build on their success.
    With that, I will turn it over to Ranking Member Braun for 
his opening statement.

                   OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR BRAUN

    Senator Braun. Thank you, Senator Hickenlooper.
    I have probably most recently come off the pavement of 
running a business. And, I can tell you, long before COVID, in 
a State like Indiana, I would travel, pledged to visit all 92 
of our counties every year that I am a U.S. Senator, and I 
learned so much. And workforce was the No. 1 issue, dwarfing 
even rural broadband and affordable housing.
    Every time I sit down with a business in Indiana, which has 
got a great climate, we keep wrestling, with this issue, and 
that gap is growing wider rather than kind of naturally 
shrinking. And you would hope that when those high-demand, 
high-wage jobs are out there that there would be an easier way 
to dovetail that basic education you get in high school to 
whatever you want to do next, including immediately getting 
into the workforce. NFIB, which--who represents a lot of the 
startups, the small businesses that turn into larger ones, say 
over half of their members grapple with that, even the ones 
down with just a few employees.
    We are currently looking at reauthorizing the Workforce 
Innovation and Opportunity Act. And, I will have to say that 
this topic is, maybe along with agriculture, one of the most 
bipartisan discussions I have seen here in the Senate. So, we 
have a lot of that going for us, as well.
    Some of my colleagues are eager to increase the scope and 
funding of job training and workforce development through 
reconciliation, a process we are going through currently. I 
must tell you, I think that to get the proper input from 
employers across the Country that we need to be careful there 
so that we get it right, and maybe this ought to be a topic 
that we do through regular order, and maybe like this. Discuss 
it, bring expert witnesses in, and check with where-the-rubber-
meets-the-road employers across the Country.
    One way to serve employers' needs is through Industry-
Recognized Apprentice Programs, IRAPs, which allow job creators 
to have input and a more active role in what you do. As the 
economy changes, IRAPs allow apprenticeship programs to be 
flexible and innovative.
    Today, you will hear from Leah Curry, President of Toyota 
Motor Manufacturing, Indiana based in Princeton, not far from 
where I live. They have done an excellent job with their 4T 
Academy. I think it is a model that companies across the 
Country should aspire to put in place.
    I will close with this. When you have the cost of a college 
education now eclipsing, in terms of increased rate of cost 
growth per year, that of healthcare, you have actually risen to 
a new level of kind of having a dubious category of what is 
probably for families, along with healthcare, the most 
important thing we need to get right.
    I served on the Education Committee back in our Indiana 
State Legislature and believe a lot of our issues go deeper in 
terms of your state boards of education, actually thinking they 
are doing things by a lip service, have generally disaggregated 
programs that do not hit the sweet spot and have issues of 
where you actually stigmatize the pathway. Like, I found in my 
own school districts in my home county and one that I served on 
where there was no discussion when kids are in middle school, 
especially when they get to high school, of what your options 
are.
    Parents are our main allies in this journey because they 
probably had one or two kids that pursued a 4-year degree. Half 
of them did not make it to the finish line. A third that did 
make it to the finish line got a degree with no market. That is 
sad with as much money as we spend on it.
    I think this is going to be collaborative, and I think 
businesses and parents are the main stakeholders. And higher 
education across the Country, which I think is the bailiwick of 
states, we can do a few things here. I am looking forward to 
them taking the bull by the horns and putting us in a better 
place. Thank you.

    The Chairman. Thank you very much, Ranking Member Braun.
    Now we can get to the witnesses' testimony. I am sure they 
are sick of us talking about them, but I will talk about them a 
little bit more.
    Noel Ginsburg, as I mentioned, is a manufacturing 
entrepreneur. He is the CEO of Intertech Plastics and Intertech 
Medical. He has been on a 30-year journey to create more 
opportunity for young people. I mentioned the Dreamers, 
Colorado I Have a Dream Foundation. Forty-two kids that he took 
them from almost no chance and gave 90 percent of them a great 
chance. He gave all of them a great chance.
    That journey has helped him create as Founder and CEO of 
our non-profit, CareerWise. And I think it really is one of the 
pioneering organizations in American youth apprenticeship. It 
is an industry-led, student-centered model that trains high 
school students and modern--trains high school students for 
modern economy-type jobs in advanced manufacturing, business 
opportunities, IT, finance, healthcare, down the list.
    On Monday, Mr. Ginsburg was selected to serve on the 
Department of Labor's National Advisory Committee on 
Apprenticeships, which I know he will do good service there, as 
well.
    Ms. Navarro, Naarai, it is a--I worked last night 
practicing to be able to pronounce a difficult name because 
with a name like Hickenlooper, well, you have a certain respect 
for the challenges of names. But, Naarai Navarro is a Business 
Development Representative with Pinnacol Insurance in Denver, 
Colorado. She recently completed the CareerWise program, which 
is registered with Pinnacol Insurance in Colorado. Ms. Navarro 
owns a community interpreter certification in Spanish, as well 
as a property casualty insurance certification.
    Because of her apprenticeship, she knows where she wants to 
take her career. Obviously, leaning toward additional training, 
possibly college, that her employer would no doubt help pay 
for.
    I also understand your sister, Alexa, has accomplished--has 
accompanied you here. Alexa, you can wave. Thank you for coming 
all the way out here. Thank you both for being here.
    We look forward to all of our witnesses.
    Go ahead, Ranking Member Braun, and introduce your witness.
    Senator Braun. Leah Curry is President of Toyota Motor 
Manufacturing, Indiana, which is based in Princeton, a 
community just basically an hour away from where I live.
    When they came into the marketplace many years ago, it was 
interesting, because I am from the lowest unemployment county 
in the state that has chronic issues of getting workforce 
right, and there was always that feeling we were having 
competition coming in for even a tight labor supply. I love 
that. It is a way you raise wages the old-fashioned way.
    She is responsible for all production and administrative 
functions at the facility that produces the Toyota Highlander, 
Sienna, and Sequoia. She started her career there in 1997 and 
has received national recognition as a leader in manufacturing 
and workforce training.
    She will tell us today about the innovative 4T Academy 
Program that Toyota began and is working in Princeton, Indiana. 
It involves all the local high schools and, to me, is a model 
that other companies need to look at across the Country.
    The Chairman. Great. So, with that, Noel, why don't you 
start with your testimony?

   STATEMENT OF NOEL GINSBURG, FOUNDER AND CEO, CAREERWISE, 
                           DENVER, CO

    Mr. Ginsburg. Thank you, Senator Hickenlooper, and thank 
you for being such an advocate both when you were a business 
owner, a mayor, a Governor, and now Senator.
    The challenges we have as a Country to address the issues, 
Senator Braun, that you spoke so deftly about is that there are 
multiple paths to opportunity in this Country. And, because of 
that, I left the business that I founded over 41 years ago 
because I believe that this model of apprenticeship that I am 
going to share can be transformational for our Country, for our 
businesses, and for our young people.
    When I think back to my history--as the Senator mentioned, 
I started my business 41 years ago. I was a junior in college 
at the time when I started that business. So, I really knew 
nothing about injection molding, so I knew the success from my 
business would be founded on the talent that I surrounded 
myself with.
    Over the ensuing years, when I could not find that talent, 
I assumed that the challenge was the schools. So, I went, 
knocked on the front door and spent the next 10 years learning 
that, in fact, there was a missing piece, and it was not as 
much what was happening in the classroom, but the role that 
industry played.
    It sent me on a journey that ultimately led to going to an 
institute in Zurich to learn about how other countries do this; 
where 70 percent of young people starting in high school begin 
an apprenticeship that leads to a job in a market-driven system 
that pays between 45 and $55,000 a year, starting; where you 
can start with an apprenticeship and end with a Ph.D.
    The second reason is what the Senator mentioned. The 
Dreamers that I spent 10 years with as a part of the I Have a 
Dream Foundation, we did turn a 90 percent dropout rate into a 
90 percent graduation rate. And once you have had that 
experience, you just cannot sit back and say that was enough. 
For me, it was if we can do that for 42, can we do that for a 
city, a state, or maybe even a Country?
    I believe, after 5 years in building this model that I will 
share with you now, that we actually have the opportunity to 
not just talk about the change or the role that business can 
play that is in our self-interest, but to partner with their 
education system in ways that will transform this Country an 
opportunity like for young people that you will hear about 
later on in this testimony.
    The way our model works. It starts either in the 11th or 
12th grade where students will spend 2 days a week in a 
business, 3 days a week in a classroom; second year, 3 days a 
week in a business, 2 days a week in a classroom; and the third 
year, depending on post-secondary options, either full or part 
time.
    These are registered apprenticeships where the students are 
being paid an apprenticeship wage. So, if you think about a 
student growing up in the inner city, the difference between 
staying in school or not may be whether or not they can put 
food on the table. But, in a registered apprenticeship program 
like CareerWise, you can do both, and it leads to a future 
career that is limitless for these young people because they 
have the potential to do anything.
    Apprenticeships are unique because they move at the speed 
of business. Schools cannot be expected to modify their 
curriculum in the tech industry, as an example, where code may 
change every year. So, this is a way to blend the learning that 
takes place in the classroom with the power of the learning 
that takes place in the workplace. Education belongs in both 
places.
    It is almost as if I am talking about a three-legged stool. 
The first is K-12. The second is higher ed. And, yes, we should 
make investments in those and continue to do that, but it is 
not the only answer. A two-legged stool will not stand up--and 
frankly, ours is not in this Country--but a three-legged stool 
can. And what is the difference? The difference is industry has 
a role to play in education, and in so doing, they are not just 
consumers of talent, but they are producers, as well, and that 
can be transformational for our young people and for our 
businesses.
    What makes this possible and why CareerWise is so critical 
is the role of intermediaries. This is not natural. Yes, we 
have great apprenticeships in the trades in this Country that 
have been led by the unions, but it is not the only place where 
apprenticeships belong. The secret place is in high school 
because there is a cliff that happens. Students are told there 
is only one path to prosperity in America. There are two, and 
apprenticeship is the option's multiplier. And if you add that 
third leg of the stool, you can change everything.
    I can tell you, in my own business, Kevin King, a young 
apprentice, young African-American man, he designed, 
engineered, built, and programmed automation cells that enabled 
us to bring product back from China. We are also paying for his 
engineering degree. Why? Because it is in our self-interest. 
So, the point about what I am sharing with you today is this is 
more than just a program. It is something that can change our 
Country.
    In the words of Jamie Dimon, the CEO and Chairman of 
JPMorgan Chase, who brought us to New York--soon after that, we 
went to Indiana and to Elkhart to have CareerWise Elkhart 
County--and he said something that was powerful. After visiting 
Pinnacol Insurance, he said, if each of us would do what 
Pinnacol does and take 5 percent of our workforce and make them 
youth apprentices, we would change this Country.
    That is the reason I left my business. That is the reason I 
spend 50 hours a week at CareerWise, because I think we can 
change this Country so that 10 years from now, we will not be 
talking about the same problems.
    Thank you.

    [The prepared statement of Mr. Ginsburg follows:]
                  prepared statement of noel ginsburg
                              Introduction
    Good morning. Thank you for inviting me to speak to you about youth 
apprenticeship today. My name is Noel Ginsburg. I am the founder and 
chairman of the Colorado manufacturing companies Intertech Plastics and 
Intertech Medical, as well as the founder and CEO of CareerWise.

    Youth apprenticeship has the power to change lives. CareerWise was 
founded in Colorado in 2017 to solve two pressing problems facing our 
country: first, the need to create more opportunities for young people 
to access dignified careers with upward mobility, and second, growing 
talent shortages at businesses around the country. In the 4-years since 
our founding, we've seen tremendous impact on both young people and the 
businesses that have been employing them.

    Though there is a history of apprenticeship in this country, youth 
apprenticeship is still in its nascent stage. It will require 
significant investment at all levels in order to realize its true 
potential. I'm here today to share with you our model, the impact that 
it has had, and some recommendations for how we can continue to 
multiply post-secondary options and paths to high-growth, high-pay 
careers, and at the same time create new, diverse talent pipelines to 
keep America competitive on the world stage.
                        Description of the Model
    CareerWise works as the intermediary between education and 
employers to create opportunities for modern youth apprenticeship. 
Modern youth apprenticeship is a strategy for building a more inclusive 
economy by creating affordable, reliable, and equitable pathways 
directly from high school to good jobs. It is an evidence-based 
education and workforce strategy whose success has been proven in 
countries around the world. Our model is based on the Swiss system of 
youth apprenticeship, in which up to 70 percent of students participate 
in an apprenticeship that can lead to a dignified career. CareerWise's 
U.S.-based model has attracted interest from more than 30 states around 
the country, and since launching in Colorado, already has expanded to 
Washington DC, New York, Indiana and Michigan, with several more 
communities in the pipeline.

    The way the CareerWise model works is that it combines paid, 
structured, on-the-job training with related classroom learning. In the 
United States, this model has been tested and proven in the skilled 
trades. However, our modern youth apprenticeship formally starts in 
11th or 12th grade, with some communities providing services even 
earlier. By engaging young people while they are still connected to 
their schools, modern youth apprenticeship is markedly different. Youth 
apprenticeship has the potential to act as a preventative strategy in 
addressing the massive attrition that we see out of our education 
system. Right now, data shows that out of every 100 students who start 
high school, less than a third will end up with a college degree. Add 
in the high cost of student debt, and it's clear that the system is not 
working for the vast majority of students.

    At the same time, businesses across the country currently are 
facing a massive labor and talent shortage. This is true in the 
traditional trades such as construction, but we're also seeing it in 
fields like IT, education, and financial services. Employers report 
spending tens of thousands of dollars and months of time to train 
workers to fulfill their needs. Even the workers hired from prestigious 
schools--graduates with the baseline theoretical knowledge in their 
fields--take a significant degree of time and investment to be trained 
in the practical execution of the job.

    Youth apprenticeship allows students to ``learn while they earn,'' 
and help support their families while gaining practical skills. 
Apprenticeship is different from internship. While interns often are 
only in their roles for a short amount of time, performing low-value 
tasks, apprentices train alongside seasoned professionals doing 
meaningful valuable work over multiple years. The result is a worker 
that is ready to step directly into positions of need for business. In 
the CareerWise model, those positions are all high-growth, high-wage 
roles that offer a path to the middle class for workers while helping 
keep businesses competitive.

    CareerWise also is an ``options multiplier.'' The occupations in a 
CareerWise apprenticeship and the integration of higher education 
coursework are intended to ensure that there are no dead ends. By 
making investments in workforce opportunities like apprenticeship 
alongside investments in education, we can connect the systems to 
create cohesive pathways for young people. Apprenticeship can take a 
young person from the workplace to a Ph.D., or from the classroom to a 
corner office. Modern youth apprenticeship allows us to learn from our 
past mistakes in the binary thinking that pitted college against 
career. It is a sustainable double-bottom line initiative--it corrects 
both the inequitable tracking of traditional vocational education, and 
the exclusivity and expense of the ``college-for-all'' movement. 
Instead, modern youth apprenticeship formally connects work and 
education to meet the needs of both students and employers.

    For this reason, CareerWise is a model that can work for all 
students. We have added an ``Equity First'' component to our model to 
correct for the inequitable racial outcomes that many workforce 
programs often see. Our Equity First strategy is designed to provide 
additional interventions and supports to students of color, students 
from low-income households, and their supervisors, in order to achieve 
equitable outcomes in accessing, succeeding in, and realizing upward 
mobility through youth apprenticeship. Though just in its pilot phase, 
we already are seeing increased interest from business, as well as 
improved outcomes across the lifecycle of the program for these 
students.
                             Impact So Far
    In the 4-years of CareerWise's work, we've directly impacted nearly 
a thousand students at over 200 businesses around the country. You will 
hear from one of those young people from Colorado, Naarai Navarro, 
later today. I also wanted to highlight the story of an apprentice from 
Indiana named Graham Neer.

    Graham began his registered youth apprenticeship in 2019 with Kem 
Krest, a company based in Elkhart, Indiana, that manages and markets 
customer-branded parts, chemicals and accessories on behalf of OEMs. 
Graham quickly became an integral part of the Kem Krest logistics team, 
playing a key role in purchasing, procurement, sourcing and metrics, 
and project coordination. His team at Kem Krest even jokes that he is 
the ``Dougie Houser of procurement.'' One of Graham's most impressive 
efforts was helping Kem Krest pivot to focusing on PPE production when 
COVID hit.

    Graham and his family report that his apprenticeship has 
transformed him. His mom Megan was impressed when Graham seamlessly 
picked up an incoming call from a Fortune 500 executive during a recent 
car ride. She has recognized tremendous improvement in the sense of 
maturity in her son. Graham also believes that he has built a stronger 
resume right now as a high school senior with apprenticeship 
experience, than that of a lot of seniors in college. Due to his 
apprenticeship, Graham is now headed to Indiana University with a clear 
focus and a professional network to back him up.

    This is a common story from our apprentices. We've graduated two 
full cohorts of apprentices at this point. In the pilot cohort that 
graduated in 2020, over two-thirds had positive outcomes. Of the 
completed apprentices, more than 85 percent reported learning valuable 
hard and soft skills on the jobs. More than 90 percent reported a 
growth in their professional network that would be helpful in their 
future careers. Nearly all completing respondents believed they would 
either earn a full or partial degree by enrolling in a CW 
apprenticeship. On average, apprentices were rated as 91 percent as 
effective as a full-time worker, despite still being teenagers. Even 
during the COVID-19 pandemic, though it was extremely disruptive in 
many ways, we actually saw that in a lot of cases, having an 
apprenticeship allowed students to stay engaged in school and play 
meaningful roles in supporting their families, sometimes as the sole 
income earner.
                         Policy Recommendations
    We've seen the impact of youth apprenticeship on individual 
students and companies, but what's most transformational is the impact 
that youth apprenticeship can have on our Country. It can assist in 
rebuilding our economy, growing the middle class, and helping America 
maintain its position as the most innovative workforce in the world. 
Youth apprenticeship should be a critical strategy for including youth 
in the economic recovery. In the short term, implementing high-quality 
Modern Youth Apprenticeship programs will allow young people to head 
off the disconnection and disengagement that already is taking hold in 
the wake of economic and public health crises. It will allow them to 
access immediate employment and transferable learning that can keep 
them on the path toward upward mobility.

    However, there are still steps to take to help our youth 
apprenticeship opportunities mature and become more accessible. With 
that in mind, I would like to respectfully make the following policy 
recommendations:

          Establish a National Modern Youth Apprenticeship 
        Program to equip youth with paid work experience, industry 
        recognized credentials, postsecondary credits, and pathways to 
        high-quality careers in key future-ready fields such as IT, 
        renewable energy, business operations advanced manufacturing, 
        healthcare, and education.

                Y  Establish a definition of ``Youth Apprenticeship'' 
                that is universally recognized through the U.S. 
                Department of Labor (DOL) Registered Apprenticeship 
                system.

                Y  Enlist and appoint industry leadership to develop 
                pathways, curriculum, and credentials that are 
                consistent and aligned nationally to ensure that 
                credentials are accessible and portable for 
                apprentices.

                Y  Issue interagency guidelines to develop evidenced 
                based, high-quality youth apprenticeship pathways.

                Y  Issue clear guidance on the use of Federal K-12, 
                higher education and workforce funds to support high 
                quality youth apprenticeship program development and 
                implementation at the state and local level.

                Y  Establish clear outcome metrics using common 
                definitions to ensure program quality for youth 
                apprentices.

          Pass the National Apprenticeship Act and consider 
        making technical updates to the Act to streamline and expand 
        the opportunities provided through youth apprenticeship.

                Y  Recognize the critical role of intermediaries in 
                implementation of high-quality, replicable programs.

                Y  Fund direct wraparound supports for students through 
                intermediaries in order to encourage youth to persist 
                and successfully complete registered apprenticeship 
                programs.

                Y  Reduce administrative burden for the registered 
                apprenticeship system for employers, state agencies, 
                and the DOL Office of Apprenticeship.

                Y  Streamline youth apprenticeship program 
                administrative reporting requirements to encourage 
                business adoption.

                Y  Support state funding for registered youth 
                apprenticeship and formalize the accrual of 
                postsecondary education credit and credentialing.

                Y  Fund career exploration and guidance beginning in 
                middle school to ensure youth apprentices are selecting 
                opportunities that meet their interests and aptitudes.

                Y  Incentivize higher education institutions to award 
                credit for on-the-job learning and related instruction 
                activities.

                Y  Use incentive funds to increase the participation of 
                small-and medium-size companies to establish registered 
                youth apprenticeship programs.

          Provide funding for innovation in youth 
        apprenticeship in the National Apprenticeship Act.

                Y  Promote further innovation in the National 
                Apprenticeship Act by establishing a youth 
                apprenticeship innovation fund (a new Sec. 113 in H.R. 
                447) to demonstrate innovative strategies or replicate 
                evidence-based strategies that engage intermediaries to 
                strengthen the transition from high school to post-
                secondary education and work in growing 21st century 
                industries, giving priority to young people who are 
                low-income, of color, and/or young women, and providing 
                incentives to industry associations to encourage--and 
                to small and medium-size employers to establish--youth 
                apprenticeship.

          Enhance interagency efforts to scale youth 
        apprenticeship.

                Y  Encourage the Departments of Labor and Education, in 
                coordination with the Department of Commerce, to create 
                an electronic tool kit for states and local areas 
                seeking to accelerate and scale youth apprenticeships.

                Y  Invest in institutions of higher education, with a 
                focus on community and technical colleges, to ensure 
                credit-bearing postsecondary coursework and credential 
                attainment is provided at no cost for students employed 
                in registered youth apprenticeships.

                Y  Develop and clarify the use of a national 
                apprenticeship tax credit for employer training costs 
                for youth apprentices.

          Formalize the apprenticeship ecosystem and align 
        Federal agencies to ensure that apprenticeship is viewed as a 
        cohesive pathway for students.

                Y  Enhance alignment between our educational system and 
                workforce systems to better address employer skills 
                needs and pathways for youth apprentices.

                Y  Provide apprentices with access to Federal student 
                financial aid resources, including Pell grants.

                Y  Provide guidance to states to allow Registered Youth 
                Apprenticeship activities like on-the-job training to 
                contribute to high school graduation requirements and 
                accumulate higher education credit.

    Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you today. I appreciate 
your support for youth apprenticeship, and I look forward to a world in 
which access to a dignified career and a dignified life is available to 
every American.
                 addendum to testimony of noel ginsburg
                               Memorandum
    TO: Senate HELP Committee

    FROM: CareerWise USA (Noel Ginsburg, Founder and CEO)

    DATE: April 9, 2021

    RE: Request for Workforce Development Policy Ideas
                               Who We Are
    CareerWise is a nonprofit intermediary based in Colorado focused on 
building a national network of high-quality, high-impact registered 
youth apprenticeship programs for 21st century industries. We currently 
operate programs in Colorado, New York City, Indiana, and Washington 
DC. Additionally, leaders from 32 different states around the country 
have travelled to Colorado to learn about the CareerWise model. We are 
also providing consulting services to seven additional communities from 
Birmingham, Alabama to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

    CareerWise registered youth apprenticeships are designed by 
industry for current high school students, bridging the gap between 
high school and post-secondary with a ``13th year.'' Graduates either 
transition to full time employment or continue working for their 
apprenticeship employer while pursuing post-secondary education. In 
some cases, graduates have leveraged the insight gained through the 
apprenticeship to choose a program of study more closely aligned to 
their career goals and increased understanding of occupations in their 
chosen field.

    In short, CareerWise is an ``options-multiplier'' model of youth 
apprenticeship that reaches and serves a diverse student population 
(35-43 percent young women and 50-90 percent young people of color, 
depending on the geography) and broad array of industries and 
occupations, to help employers meet their need for skilled workers, 
while also diversifying their workforce.
               Key Components of our Evidence-Based Model
    CareerWise has created an industry-driven model in coordination 
with the education and workforce systems. It is based upon lessons 
learned in working with more than 200 employers--ranging from Fortune 
100 enterprises, like JPMorgan Chase's corporate headquarters, to 
small, advanced manufacturing businesses in northern Indiana, and it 
targets the highest-demand industries in our economy, including 
healthcare, technology, finance, business services, creative services, 
and insurance.

    CareerWise works as an intermediary with employers to define the 
program's training components and coordinates with both secondary and 
post-secondary institutions to identify relevant classroom-based 
learning. CareerWise demands that youth apprenticeships offer the 
employer a measurable return on investment through active 
participation, while carefully guarding the value and benefit for the 
apprentices by requiring employers to support credit-bearing, debt-free 
training that results in a portable, valuable credential.

    Apprentices engage in a 3-year program. The first cohort of 
apprentices graduated in 2020 and was rated by employers as 74 percent 
productive as a full-time adult in the occupation in which they 
apprenticed. In addition, 80 percent of CareerWise apprentices report 
high levels of satisfaction with and value in their experience.

    The benefits of a youth apprenticeship model linked closely to the 
educational system have been demonstrated extensively abroad, notably 
in Switzerland, which provides the evidence-based model in which 
CareerWise is grounded. The scale of the Swiss effort is 
extraordinary--70 percent of Swiss students and 40 percent of Swiss 
companies participate in youth apprenticeship. Swiss employers who hire 
youth apprentices realize, on average, a 10 percent return on the 
investment they make in their apprentices; and return on investment 
grows when they convert those apprentices into full-time employees.

    We believe that by passing the National Apprenticeship Act and 
reauthorizing WIOA with guidance that reflects the lessons learned by 
CareerWise, Congress can create the scale and replication of high-
quality modern youth apprenticeship, like the CareerWise model, to 
drastically expand opportunity and mobility in our country. Bringing 
industry into a leadership role for youth apprenticeship will 
strengthen America's economy by meeting modern workforce needs with a 
large, diverse, and easily accessible talent pool that is right under 
our noses--our high schools.
                            Recommendations
    To realize that ambitious goal, CareerWise recommends that Congress 
promote further innovation in the National Apprenticeship Act by 
establishing a youth apprenticeship innovation fund (a new Sec. 113) to 
demonstrate innovative strategies or replicate evidence-based 
strategies that engage intermediaries to strengthen the transition from 
high school to post-secondary education and work in growing 21st 
century industries, give priority to young people who are low-income, 
of color, and/or young women, and provide incentives to industry 
associations to encourage, and to small-and medium-size employers to 
establish, youth apprenticeships. We look forward to the opportunity to 
explore with you in more detail the possibility of a youth 
apprenticeship innovation fund.

    Based upon our experience in tailoring youth apprenticeship to 
address local circumstances, CareerWise also makes six additional 
recommendations:

        (1) Emphasize the diversity of modern and growing industries 
        and programs represented by the National Advisory Committee on 
        Apprenticeships.

                a. Refine and reorder Sec.112(a)(2)(B(i) to read: `` . 
                . . 21st century industry employers or industry 
                associations that participate in an apprenticeship 
                program (at least 1 of which represents a women, 
                minority, or veteran-owned business), including 
                representatives of in-demand industry sector employers 
                representing non-traditional apprenticeship industries, 
                non-traditional or high-skill, high-wage occupations, 
                as applicable.''

                b. Insert in Sec. 112(a)(2)(B)(iii)(III) line 24, 
                ``including a youth apprenticeship program'' between 
                ``program'' and ``under.''

        (2) Recognize the critical role of intermediaries in 
        implementation of high-quality, replicable programs.

                a. Sec. 201(d)(1) line 4, insert ``qualified 
                intermediary and'' between ``with'' and ``two''; in 
                line 23, delete ``or'' and insert ``and'' after 
                ``services:''; in line 24, delete ``I.''

        (3) Reduce administrative burden for the registered 
        apprenticeship system for employers, State Agencies, and the 
        Office of Apprenticeship.

    a. Revise Sec.113(c)(4) line 16, Insert: `` . . . nationally 
recognized program by the Office of Apprenticeship or'' between ``a'' 
and ``program.''

        (4) Support state funding for registered youth apprenticeship 
        and formalize the accrual of post-secondary education credit 
        and credentialing.

                a. Delete Sec. 113(f)(1)B)(ii)(1), lines 12-18. In line 
                19, renumber (II) to (1); in line 1 (page 79) renumber 
                (III) to (II); Insert a new (III) to read: 331/3 shall 
                be allotted on the basis of the relative number of 
                disadvantaged youth in each State, compared to the 
                total number of disadvantaged youth in all States.

                b. Delete ``and'' in line 19 (page 139) and ``,'' in 
                line 23; insert ``; and'' after ``program''; insert a 
                new Sec. 201(f)(D((iii) to read: ``an existing 
                partnership with a higher education institution such as 
                a community college to facilitate post-secondary 
                transfers and the acquisition of college credit.''

                c. Insert a new Sec. 132(e)(1)(F) to read: ``an 
                assessment of the impact of youth apprenticeship 
                programs on the attainment of college credentials and 
                longer term employment prospects of young people, 
                primarily those of low-income, of color, and young 
                women.''

        (5) Reduce administrative burden on youth apprenticeship 
        programs and encourage youth to persist and successfully 
        complete a registered apprenticeship program.

                a. Insert a new Sec. 122.(d)(2) Line 16 (page 97) to 
                read: ``The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act is 
                amended as follows: Notwithstanding Sec. 129.(a)(1)(C) 
                and Sec. 129.(a)(3) and (a)(4), youth enrolled in 
                registered youth apprenticeship programs are eligible 
                to participate in activities carried out under Chapter 
                2 Youth Workforce Investment Activities.''; Change 
                current Sec. 122(d)(2) to (3) and renumber accordingly.

        (6) Use incentive funds to increase the participation of small-
        and medium-size companies to establish registered youth 
        apprenticeship programs.

                a. Insert a new Sec. 202(b)(1)(D)(2)(iv) after line 22 
                (page 155) to read: ``providing $5,000 per apprentice 
                for small-and mid-size companies establishing 
                registered youth apprenticeships to offset the costs of 
                training supervisors, create and use competency-based 
                training in the workplace, set up administrative tools 
                for required reporting, and provide data to 
                intermediary(ies) for continuous improvement of the 
                registered youth apprenticeship model.''

                b. Insert a new Sec. 202(b)(1)(D)(2)(v) to read: 
                ``providing per-apprentice incentive payments of 
                $200.00 to industry associations and chambers of 
                commerce (up to a maximum of $500,000) that (I) gain 
                member companies' agreement to hire youth apprentices 
                into formal registered apprenticeship; and (II) 
                establish a ``skills taskforce'' to provide guidance on 
                an ongoing basis to local K-16 institutions about what 
                skills are required to enter and succeed in workplace 
                training such as registered youth apprenticeship.''
                                 ______
                                 
    The Chairman. Thank you, Noel. I appreciate that.
    Ms. Navarro.

       STATEMENT OF NAARAI NAVARRO, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT 
         REPRESENTATIVE, PINNACOL INSURANCE, DENVER, CO

    Ms. Navarro. Good morning, everyone. Thank you for my 
invitation to speak today.
    My name is Naarai, and I completed my registered 
apprenticeship with Pinnacol Insurance in Denver, Colorado and 
became a full-time journey worker as a Business Development 
Representative at Pinnacol.
    Before my apprenticeship, I did not know what path I was 
going to be in. I would probably pick something random and 
would have gotten stuck in something that is not fulfilling. 
That is what a lot of people my age do. They do not feel like 
they have options. But, because of my apprenticeship, I feel 
like I do have options. Because of my apprenticeship, I have 
experience, confidence, a career path, and the ability to 
provide for myself.
    Today, I would like to tell you how my apprenticeship has 
impacted my life and my family's life.
    I grew up in Denver, Colorado with my mom, dad, three 
brothers, and one sister. My parents primarily spoke Spanish. 
Growing up, I heard from a lot of adults that work experience 
was essential to finding a promising career later. I was not 
the type of person that wanted to go to college before I knew 
what I was passionate about. I tried to figure out what I 
wanted to do before spending a lot of money on college.
    When I was in high school, I did not know what I wanted to 
do for a career. School felt like I was learning things without 
a context or a connection to reality, so I tried several other 
ways to be in the--to not be in the school setting, such as a 
welding class and an internship.
    Then, my high school coordinator, Suzy, suggested that I do 
an apprenticeship. I need to say a big thank you to her because 
I would not have tried an apprenticeship, and I would not be 
here today if not for her. On top of that, I would like to 
thank Pinnacol and all the amazing people that helped train me 
and shape me to be the person I am today.
    I did my apprenticeship at Pinnacol Insurance, an insurance 
company in Denver. When I began my apprenticeship in my first 
semester of my senior year, I spent half of my days in high 
school classes and the other half at work. I was attracted to 
the apprenticeship at Pinnacol because of the different career 
pathways that were open. I started on the marketing team and 
the claims team, supporting each team for a year. In addition, 
at Pinnacol, about 5 percent of the workforce are youth 
apprentices, so I had lots of other young people to learn with.
    Through my apprenticeship and my training, I learned a lot 
of skills. Time management is a big one. When I was in high 
school, there were not repercussions if I showed up late or did 
not meet a deadline. However, at work, I needed to meet 
deadlines. I had to learn how to manage my time wisely, prepare 
before meetings, and ensure my assignments were done on time. 
From this, my teachers commented that they noticed I had become 
more mature and more responsible at school.
    I have also become much more confident about public 
speaking. Without my apprenticeship training, I definitely 
would not be here speaking with you today. Overall, I like 
meeting new teams and learning new things.
    In the beginning, it was very stressful for me when I was 
going through training and learning lots of new things. But 
then, as I grasped those things, I feel accomplished, and I do 
not--and I know that I am ready for more and more.
    As with my job, learning is an ongoing skill, knowing that 
I am expert in those skills, and I can talk to my supervisors 
about much more work and to keep gaining experience.
    One of my most proudest moments at my apprenticeship was 
when two other apprentices and I managed an entire claims 
queue. We were the only ones in charge. We scheduled our 
meetings and reached out to our supervisors when we needed it. 
Through this work, I saw that we were trusted just like the 
adults around us.
    When I started my apprenticeship, my parents were hesitant 
because they wanted me to go to college. But, when I told them 
my plan and we went through the pros and cons, they were on--
they got onboard, and I promised them that I would get hired 
full time. And recently, I was hired into a full-time role at 
Pinnacol, and I am so proud of myself.
    I am also leaning toward going to college now that I know 
what I want to do with my career. My company will help pay for 
my tuition so that I will not have debt. I have earned a 
community interpreter certification in Spanish, as well as a 
property casualty insurance certification, and I am aiming 
toward a Bachelor's Degree.
    Because of my apprenticeship, I moved out of my parents' 
house and got my own place. Previous internships and jobs I was 
employed through set a wage with no opportunity of promotion, 
no hope of a real career, or a better future. My apprenticeship 
has been very different and allowed me to become a fully 
trained, full-time employee, who can provide for myself.
    I want this Committee to know that my apprenticeship has 
changed my life. Having the opportunity to work and be trained 
while still in high school has given me the confidence and 
professionalism to succeed in whatever I want to do. It has 
been a wonderful experience, and I hope that more businesses 
hire high school apprentices so that other students can have 
the same opportunity that I had.
    Thank you so much for listening.

    [The prepared statement of Ms. Navarro follows:]
                  prepared statement of naarai navarro
    Good morning everyone. Thank you for the invitation to speak today. 
My name is Naarai Navarro, and I recently completed my registered 
apprenticeship with Pinnacol Assurance in Denver, Colorado, and became 
a full-time journey-worker as a Business Development Representative at 
Pinnacol.

    Before my apprenticeship, I didn't know what my path was going to 
be. I probably would have just picked something, and gotten stuck in 
something that isn't fulfilling. That's what a lot of people my age do. 
They don't feel like they have options. But because of my 
apprenticeship, I do feel like I have options. Because of my 
apprenticeship, I have experience, confidence, a career path and the 
ability to provide for myself. Today, I'd like to tell you how my 
apprenticeship has impacted my life and my family's life.

    I grew up in Denver, Colorado, with my mom, dad, three brothers and 
one sister. My parents primarily spoke Spanish.

    Growing up, I heard from a lot of adults that work experience was 
very important to finding a good career later on. I wasn't the type of 
person that wanted to go to college before I knew what I needed from my 
education--I wanted to figure out what I wanted to do before spending a 
lot of money on college.

    When I was in high school, I didn't know what I wanted to do for a 
career. School felt like I was learning things without any context and 
without any connection to reality. I tried several other ways to not be 
in the school setting, such as a welding class and an internship. Then 
my high school coordinator, Suzy, suggested that I do an 
apprenticeship. I need to say a big thank you to her because if not for 
her I wouldn't have tried to do the apprenticeship and I wouldn't be 
here today.

    I did my apprenticeship at Pinnacol Assurance, an insurance company 
in Denver. When I began my apprenticeship, I spent half my days in my 
high school classes and half my days at work. I was attracted to the 
apprenticeship at Pinnacol because of the different career pathways 
that were open--I started on the marketing team and spent a year with 
them, and then did a year with the claims team. At Pinnacol, about 5 
percent of the workforce are youth apprentices, so I had lots of other 
young people to learn with.

    Through my apprenticeship and my training, I've learned a lot of 
skills. Time management is a big one--when I was in high school, there 
weren't really repercussions if you showed up late or didn't meet a 
deadline. At work, I need to meet a deadline, so I know how to get up 
and prepare before meetings and make sure my assignments get done. From 
this, my teachers commented that they noticed that I became much more 
mature and responsible at school.

    I've also become much more confident about public speaking. Without 
my apprenticeship training, I definitely wouldn't be here and speaking 
with you today. Overall, I really like meeting new teams and learning 
new things. In the beginning, it's always stressful for me when I'm 
going through training and learning lots of new things. But then as I 
grasp those things, I feel really accomplished and I know I'm ready for 
more and more. And then we go through training again, and then my 
supervisors at Pinnacol say they know I'm ready for more work and that 
I'm an expert, and it feels really rewarding.

    One of my proudest moments at my apprenticeship was when two other 
apprentices and I managed a full claims queue. We were the only ones in 
charge--we scheduled our own meetings and reached out to our 
supervisors when needed. Through this work, I really saw that we were 
trusted--just like the adults around us.

    When I started my apprenticeship, my parents were hesitant because 
they wanted me to go to college. When I told them my plan and we went 
through the pros and cons, they started to get on board, and I promised 
them that I would get hired full-time, and recently I was hired into a 
full-time role . . . and they were so proud of me.

    I'm also leaning toward going to college now that I know what I 
want to do with my career. My company will help pay for my tuition, so 
I won't have any debt. I've already earned a community interpreter 
certification in Spanish, as well as a property casualty insurance 
certification and I'm aiming toward a bachelor's degree.

    Because of my apprenticeship, I've been able to move out of my 
parents' house and get my own place and my own space. I might be able 
to get a new car soon. Other internships and jobs I had before this 
were all at a set wage with no opportunity for promotion, no hope of a 
real career or a better future. My apprenticeship has been very 
different, and allowed me to become a fully trained, full-time employee 
with the ability to provide for myself.

    I want this Committee to know that my apprenticeship has changed my 
life. Having the opportunity to work and be trained while still in high 
school has given me the confidence and professionalism to be successful 
in whatever I want to do. It's been a wonderful experience, and I hope 
that more businesses hire high school apprentices so that other 
students can have the same opportunity that I have had. Thank you.
                                 ______
                                 
    The Chairman. Thank you so much, Ms. Navarro. Thank you for 
coming. That was very well done.
    Ms. Curry.

STATEMENT OF LEAH CURRY, PRESIDENT TOYOTA MOTOR MANUFACTURING, 
                  INDIANA, INC., PRINCETON, IN

    Ms. Curry. Good morning, Chairman Hickenlooper and Senator 
Braun and the Subcommittee. My name is Leah Curry, and I am 
President of Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Indiana, where we 
produce some of the most technologically advanced vehicles on 
the road today. I want to thank this Subcommittee for 
conducting this hearing. Workforce development is an extremely 
important topic for Toyota, and one I care deeply about since I 
have been in the industry for 41 years.
    I am pleased to see many Senators on the Subcommittee 
represent states where Toyota has significant operations, as 
well as workforce development partnerships. Over the years, 
Toyota has invested more than $29 billion in the United States. 
In fact, in June 2020, we completed our 5-year pledge to invest 
$13 billion in our U.S. operations 1 year earlier than 
anticipated.
    In April, my Indiana plant announced a new $803 million 
investment that will create additional 1,400 jobs to build all 
new electrified Toyota and Lexus vehicles. With 10 
manufacturing facilities overall, nearly 1,500 dealerships, and 
180,000 people working across the United States, the workforce 
pipeline is of paramount importance to Toyota.
    My passion for workforce development is directly connected 
to my own experience as a young woman trying to find her way 
academically and professionally. Initially, I thought I wanted 
to be a chemist. Unfortunately, conducting chemical analyses in 
labs was not for me. Instead, when lab equipment failed, I 
learned that I liked troubleshooting equipment rather than 
doing the analysis, and that really excited me.
    I returned to school for industrial electronics. Through an 
internship, I was able to learn theory at school and apply it 
immediately on the job, a learning style that suited me 
perfectly. Despite often being the only woman in the room, I 
was not deterred. I persevered and I turned my passion for 
machines into a rewarding manufacturing career.
    As I reflect on those experiences, a few things come to 
mind that are fundamental to how Toyota approaches workforce 
development.
    First, exposure early in life matters. I came across 
industrial electronic by chance after already embarking on a 
serious course of study. If I was exposed to the STEM programs 
before college, I would have landed on my pathway much sooner.
    Since 2010, Toyota has provided 30.5 million to 184 K 
through 12 schools in Indiana and across the Country to 
implement Project Lead the Way programs that provide students 
with STEM education.
    Additionally, in the area close to my plant, we have teamed 
up with four local high schools to create the 4T Academy, which 
is designed to connect upper level students with career 
opportunities in advanced manufacturing. These efforts have 
significantly increased the visibility of manufacturing career 
pathways in our region.
    Second, combining classroom learning with on-the-job 
experiences is by far the most powerful way to learn. In states 
where Toyota operates manufacturing plants, we have 
collaborated with community colleges to develop the highly 
successful Advanced Manufacturing Technician, or AMT program. 
Our AMT students attend school 2 days a week, and they learn on 
the job site 3 days. They acquire technical knowledge, 
professional behaviors, and the distinct manufacturing core 
skills through a focus coop experience.
    In Indiana, I partner with Vincennes University. 
Nationally, about 400 employers pull talent from 32 chapters in 
12 states, and which is known collectively as the Federation of 
Advanced Manufacturing Education, or FAME USA. FAME USA is now 
led by the Manufacturing Institute, of which I am on the board, 
and it is quickly becoming America's premiere homegrown 
manufacturing education tech network. Over 1,300 students have 
graduated since 2010, with more than 500 since 2020, despite 
the pandemic.
    Last, I cannot overstate the importance of intentionality 
around bringing underrepresented people into STEM careers. 
Toyota is collaborating with the National Alliance for 
Partnerships in Equity to provide tools to help educators 
increase participation and persistence of women and 
underrepresented student groups in education paths to prepare 
them for advanced manufacturing careers.
    As the full Committee considers next steps, I want to offer 
two policy suggestions.
    First, because exposure early matters, I want to emphasize 
the importance of considering workforce development policies in 
conjunction with education policies. If the education policies 
are not flexible enough to allow students to explore various 
pathways, students may ultimately bypass even the best 
workforce development opportunities.
    Second, I urge the Committee to prioritize reauthorization. 
In doing so, the Committee should continue to legislate change 
that further increase private sector participation in the 
workforce system. The FAME USA system proves that employers 
want to and can drive workforce development to new heights.
    I appreciate this opportunity to testify before you, and I 
look forward to expanding on these comments in Q and A. Thank 
you.
    [The prepared statement of Ms. Curry follows:]
                    prepared statement of leah curry
    Good Morning, Chairman Hickenlooper, Ranking Member Braun, and 
Members of the Subcommittee.

    My name is Leah Curry and I am President of Toyota Motor 
Manufacturing, Indiana (TMMI), where we produce some of the most 
technologically advanced vehicles on the road today--the Highlander, 
Highlander Hybrid, Sequoia, and the all-hybrid Sienna minivan.

    I want to thank the Subcommittee for conducting this hearing and 
giving me an opportunity to testify virtually. Workforce development is 
an extremely important topic for Toyota and all manufacturers in the 
United States. It is also one I care deeply about and try to impact 
daily.
                     Toyota in the U.S. and Indiana
    I am pleased to see many Senators on this Subcommittee represent 
states where Toyota has significant operations, as well as workforce 
development partnerships. In fact, we have workforce development 
partnerships in all states represented on this Committee minus two. In 
Colorado, in the Chairman's state, we have one program at Cherry Creek 
Innovation Campus in Centennial and our manufacturing program has been 
replicated at Pueblo Community College in Pueblo. Toyota has been a 
part of the cultural fabric in the U.S. for more than 60 years and our 
economic impact can be felt across the entire Nation.

    Over the years, we have invested more than $29 billion in the U.S. 
In June 2020, we completed our 5-year pledge to invest $13 billion in 
our U.S. operations 1 year earlier than anticipated. In April, my 
Indiana plant announced a new $803 million investment that will create 
an additional 1,400 jobs to build all-new, electrified Toyota and Lexus 
vehicles. It is the third major expansion at my plant in the past 4 
years. With ten manufacturing facilities, nearly 1,500 dealerships and 
180,000 people working across the United States, you can understand why 
the workforce pipeline is of paramount importance to Toyota.
                           Workforce Training
    My passion for workforce development is directly connected to my 
own experience as a young woman trying to find her way both 
academically and professionally. Initially, I thought I wanted to be a 
chemist. Unfortunately, conducting chemical analysis in labs wasn't for 
me. Instead, when lab equipment failed, I learned that troubleshooting 
machines really excited me. So, I returned to school for industrial 
electronics. I started a long-term internship that allowed me to learn 
theory at school and apply it immediately on the job. That learning 
style suited me perfectly. Despite often being the only woman in the 
room, I was not deterred. I persevered and turned my passion for 
machines into an incredible manufacturing career.

    As I reflect on those experiences, a few themes come to mind that 
are fundamental to how Toyota approaches workforce development.

    First, exposure early in life matters. I came across the idea of 
pursuing technology as a career by chance after already embarking on a 
serious course of post-secondary studies. If I was exposed to technical 
or STEM programs before college, I would have landed on my pathway much 
sooner. Since 2010, Toyota has provided $3.5 million to 184 K-12 
schools in Indiana and across the country to implement Project Lead the 
Way programs that provide students with more STEM education and career 
pathways. Additionally, in the Princeton area, close to my plant, we 
have teamed up with four local high schools to create the 4T Academy, 
which is designed to connect upper-level students with career 
opportunities in advanced manufacturing. This effort has significantly 
increased the visibility of manufacturing career pathways in our 
region.

    Second, combining classroom learning with on-the-job experiences is 
a powerful way to learn, particularly in manufacturing. In states where 
Toyota operates manufacturing plants, Toyota has collaborated with 
local community colleges to develop the highly successful advance 
manufacturing technician (or AMT) program. AMT students attend school 2 
days a week and learn on the job site of their sponsoring company 3 
days a week. They acquire technical knowledge, professional behaviors, 
and distinct manufacturing core skills through a focused co-op 
experience. Locally, in Indiana, I partner with Vincennes University. 
Nationally about 400 employers pool talent from 32 chapters in 12 
states in what is known collectively as the Federation of Advanced 
Manufacturing Education or FAME USA. FAME USA is now led by the 
Manufacturing Institute, and it is quickly becoming America's premier 
home-grown manufacturing education network. Over 1,300 students have 
graduated since 2010, with more than 500 graduating since 2020 despite 
the pandemic.

    Last, we cannot overstate the importance of intentionality around 
bringing historically underrepresented people into STEM careers. Toyota 
is collaborating with the National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity 
(NAPE) on it's ``Make the Future'' program, which provides tools to 
help educators, counselors, administrators, and recruiters increase the 
participation and persistence of women and other historically 
underrepresented student groups in education paths that prepare them 
for advanced manufacturing careers.
                         Policy Recommendations
    As the full Committee considers next steps, I want to offer two 
policy suggestions.

    First, because exposure early matters, I want to emphasize the 
importance of considering workforce development policies in conjunction 
with education policies. If education policies are not flexible enough 
to allow students to explore various pathways, students may ultimately 
bypass even the best workforce development opportunities.

    Second, I urge the Committee to prioritize the reauthorization of 
the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). In doing so, the 
Committee should continue to allow for greater private sector 
participation in the workforce system. The FAME USA system proves that 
employers want to and can drive workforce development to new heights.

    I very much appreciate this opportunity today to testify before 
you. I am happy to answer any questions you have.
                              Appendix #1
                                FAME USA
    The Advanced Manufacturing Technician (AMT) program, created and 
established by Toyota Motor North America back in 2010, and the 
Federation for Advanced Manufacturing Education (FAME) USA employer 
collaborative, stewarded by The Manufacturing Institute, is America's 
premier advanced manufacturing education program and network. It 
produces global-best, entry-level, multiskilled maintenance technicians 
through a concentrated co-op program of study that culminates in 
associate degree and an assured ticket to a career in advanced 
manufacturing.

    The AMT curriculum is delineated by three fundamental components: a 
Technical Core, Manufacturing Core Exercises (MCEs), and Professional 
Behaviors.

    The Technical Core includes many of the most in-demand skills 
sought by all manufacturers: electrical, fluid power, mechanics, and 
fabrication. Combined, they form the foundation of the global-best 
multi-skilled technician able to operate in an advanced manufacturing 
setting.

    Students also develop a deep appreciation for manufacturing 
cultures, including ``lean manufacturing'' practices, that fully equip 
the AMT graduate to produce bottom-line company improvements. The MCEs 
include Safety Culture, 5S/Visual Workplace Organization, Lean 
Manufacturing for Maintenance, Problem Solving, and Machine 
Reliability. Each topic is introduced sequentially and reinforced 
consistently after introduction. Additionally, these exercises are 
paired with real-world experience to increase engagement and skills 
retention.

    The daily reinforcement of professional behaviors and actions hone 
a student's ability to stand apart in today's workforce. This component 
complements both the technical core and MCEs and these behaviors are 
introduced, reinforced, and practiced daily to ensure the AMT gains the 
professional wherewithal to be successful in any environment.

    New cohorts start each Fall semester and pursue a five-semester 
schedule composed of 3 days of learning at work paired with 2 days in a 
shop-floor emulation (known as the ``Advanced Manufacturing Center'' 
(AMC)) at the college campus. This schedule of paid work alternating 
with academic preparation enables students to earn a paycheck that can 
defray tuition and fees as they complete an associate degree while 
growing personal and professional skills that will greatly accelerate 
their manufacturing career.

    A K-12 career pathway is supported by local chapters to build 
awareness of STEM and manufacturing careers early, while emphasizing 
recruitment from underrepresented populations. Additionally, AMT 
students earn an associate degree that opens options to related 
bachelor's programs thus creating a career pipeline from kindergarten 
through post-secondary and into a fulfilling lifetime career.

    There are currently 32 FAME Chapters nationally across 12 states. 
States with an active FAME chapter include Alabama, Colorado, Florida, 
Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Tennessee, Texas, 
Virginia, and West Virginia. These chapters collectively have produced 
more than 1,300 graduates for the nearly 400 manufacturing companies 
that currently make up the FAME USA network.

    The FAME USA network or employer collaborative is unparalleled in 
workforce development networks in the United States. With nearly 400 
employers pooling talent from the network, there is a wide range of 
types of manufacturing companies, of all sizes, from various regions of 
the country involved. FAME employers are integral and active 
participants at the local chapter level in establishing and sustaining 
the initiative in their community. They are in regular and constant 
contact with their education partner, in all cases a community college, 
to ensure the most up-to-date methods and skills are being addressed. 
Employers want to be a part of this network where they can learn from 
each other and dramatically improve their talent pipeline in two short 
years. The network operates on the pull-system, ensuring employer need 
only commit to sponsoring students they eventually will need to hire. 
For participating community colleges, a robust network ensures the 
consistent need for the program and consistent feedback from the 
employer community to remain relevant to the needs of the local 
marketplace.

    Companies currently involved in the FAME USA network include, but 
are not limited to, Toyota, Honda, Hyundai, Koller Craft, Prince Metal 
Stampings, Eastman, TapeCraft, Krono Spam, Trane Technologies, Steel 
City Solar, Vestas, Hudson Technologies, Everglades, Micopulse, Steel 
Dynamics, Hershey, 3M, Xerox, Flour, Buffalo Trace, SpanOn, UGN, 
Adient, Stanley Black & Decker, Delta, Conagra, Gerdau, HEB, 
Caterpillar, Pepsico, and KraftHeinz.

    FAME USA is managed and supported by The Manufacturing Institute. 
To learn more or become a part of the network, visit FAME-USA.com.

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                              Appendix #3
                     Toyota's 4T Academy Fact Sheet
    Mission:

    Provide students with an innovative learning experience that 
couples a high-tech curriculum with hands-on learning, while preparing 
them for a successful and rewarding career.

    The Goal:

    To help connect upper-level students at four high schools in the 
surrounding counties with career opportunities in advanced 
manufacturing. By collaborating with local schools, we are providing 
greater visibility to students about real career pathways in the 
region.

    Curriculum:

    The 4T curriculum includes classes on manufacturing, engineering, 
computer science, precision machining, Industrial automation & 
robotics, industrial maintenance and environmental sustainability. The 
high school-based advanced manufacturing curriculum is also dual 
credited by Ivy Tech & Vincennes University-Jasper. And as a part of 
the 4T program, students will also participate in hand-on job training 
at Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indiana.

    4T 1st Year success:

    2020-2021 (Launch of 4T)

        21 Graduating Seniors

                7 Hired into Production Positions

                3 Enrolled in the Advanced Manufacturing Technician 
                associate degree program

                9 Pursuing secondary education

                1 Military

                1 Undecided

    Partners:

    Toyota Motor Manufacturing of Indiana

    4 Area High Schools:

                Princeton Community High School (Gibson County)

                Wood Memorial High School (Gibson County)

                South Gibson High School (Gibson County)

                Southridge High School (Dubois County)

                *New high school coming on board in Fall of 2022 (not 
                yet released to the public)

    Ivy Tech

    Vincennes University-Jasper

    Toyota Grant:

    $1 million was given to the 4T Academy over 4 years to help the 
establishment, growth and sustainment of the program.
                              Appendix #4
                      Make the FutureTM
    Toyota's most recent association with the National Alliance for 
Partnerships in Equity Education Foundation (NAPE) began in 2016 when 
Toyota's KY FAME team was given the Teamwork award at NAPE's National 
Summit for Educational Equity. Since then, NAPE has been advising the 
FAME program on the strategies to increase the diversity and inclusion 
of their Advanced Manufacturing Technician (AMT) program.

    In 2017 NAPE was awarded a grant from the Toyota USA Foundation to 
formalize these practices. As part of the Make the FutureTM 
Initiative (MTF), NAPE curated the best practices for increasing the 
participation and retention of women and women of color in STEM and CTE 
education leading to careers in advanced manufacturing. Make the 
FutureTM Phase I included a literature search, resulting in 
NAPE's Make the FutureTM Nine Best Practices--Equitable 
Recruiting Strategies. This can be found at the webpage: napequity.org/
special-programs/make-the-future. This resource is a synopsis of 
programs and practices that excel in attracting females to STEM 
careers. In addition, a website was created which contains downloadable 
promotional materials; a YouTube Channel of curated videos; a series of 
webinars on the nine best practices; a recruitment planning guide; a 
social media toolkit and a student facing social media campaign, called 
WoManufacturing. The WoManufacturing campaign shares rich, compelling 
stories of female Hispanic students in the San Antonio AMT program 
which were captured in a series of recruiting videos.

    How the San Antonio, TX and Vincennes, Indiana sites were 
successful in recruiting female students are the subjects of Make the 
FutureTM, Phase II Case Studies. The case studies will 
highlight lessons learned at each site, and validate the nine best 
practices from the literature review developed in MTF Phase I. The case 
studies will be used to inform the field about best practices, and they 
will be utilized during the Phase II, Stage II Program Improvement 
Process for EquityTM (PIPE) implementation with teams from 
two FAME chapters this coming school year.

    NAPE's Program Improvement Process for EquityTM (PIPE) 
has been successfully implemented with school districts across the 
country to close gender gaps in CTE career pathways leading to 
nontraditional career fields. PIPE engages teams of educators, industry 
leaders, community members, and other stakeholders to: use data to 
conduct a performance and participation gap analysis; learn about the 
research literature on root causes for these gaps; conduct action 
research to identify the root causes in play at their institution; 
select and implement an aligned intervention that directly addresses 
the identified root causes; and measure and evaluate their success. 
This iterative process is being applied to the specific context of 
manufacturing, with the intent to increase the enrollment, 
matriculation, graduation, and transition to and competitive employment 
of women and women of color in advanced manufacturing pathways.

    Contact Information:

    Project Director: Kathleen Fitzpatrick,

    NAPE Senior Program Manager.

    Principle Investigator: Mimi lufkin,

    CEO Emerita.
                                 ______
                                 
    The Chairman. Thank you so much, Ms. Curry. Thank you for 
all that you are doing for workforce.
    Now I will ask a few questions. Then, I will turn it over 
to Senator Braun, and then we will just rotate back and forth 
and interrogate you by a--with a broad cross-section of U.S. 
Senators.
    Let's start with Mr. Ginsburg. Give me just a--and you have 
said this already, but why is it that you think that 
intermediaries are so important for small-and medium-sized 
businesses that are trying to develop an apprenticeship 
program? Why do we need intermediaries?
    Mr. Ginsburg. Thank you, Senator. That is an important 
question because, I can tell you as a business owner myself, we 
struggled to create an adult apprenticeship program for years. 
And, it is because, as a small business, we did not have the 
resources or the knowledge of what a registered model would 
look like, and we did not, frankly, know how to tap the talent 
of those who were interested.
    Why an intermediary is so important today is that in the 
U.S. context, currently, businesses--few businesses are like 
Toyota or Pinnacol Insurance that actually understand the roles 
that they can play. But, if you are a small business, having an 
intermediary that connects the schools, the students, educates 
the parents about the opportunities, and links and educates the 
businesses, as well as how an apprenticeship operates, 
particularly a registered apprenticeship program, which is so 
essential to ensure currency for a young person. Once they 
graduate, to move, if they do, to another business, with a 
registered apprenticeship, what the training looked like. You 
know that it is high quality. An intermediary enables all of 
that to take place.
    At the same time, for a large company, even they do not 
always have the resources, particularly around youth, how to 
bring a young person into the workplace, because this is not an 
internship. They are actually providing productive, valuable 
work. That is why during the pandemic, 68 percent of our 
students kept working as apprentices because they were 
essential workers. An intermediary makes that possible.
    The Chairman. Thank you. Thank you, Noel, and I 
appreciate--I meant to say at the beginning, make sure you all 
try to be concise, but you were naturally concise, so I 
appreciate that.
    Ms. Curry, I want to ask you a little bit more about how 
you partner with local high schools in this--in the 4T Academy. 
Specifically, how you could build this partnership when so many 
educators are convinced that college has to be the next step. I 
mean, how are you able to break down that stigma that you must 
go to college to be successful? That is a mantra that many kids 
hear all the time in school.
    Ms. Curry. Well, thank you, Senator. You know, the key is 
really getting awareness to the students and the parents like 
you discussed earlier, and also to the teachers. Now, showing 
them, bringing them in and showing them what the careers in 
manufacturing are like and what types of skills we actually 
build in the careers.
    Our 4T Academy, with our local high schools, we started 
with three. We are going to four. We are going to five next 
year. It has been a perfect marriage with a lot of the students 
who you--like we heard today, were not--are not sure about what 
they want to do, and this marries the perception of what 
careers in manufacturing are. They are high-skilled. They are 
high-paying. They have great benefits. They build on the 
skills.
    Like it was spoken earlier, you can go on to get your 
degree, so the pathways can go--you can go into Advanced 
Manufacturing Technician program. You can go into Engineering. 
You can go into Accounting and Finance, Marketing, because we 
help pay for those schools while they are working here.
    I think the key is that the parents are understanding and 
the students are understanding how exciting these careers are, 
and that by learning as you are going to school and working on 
the job site----
    I have seen the faces of these students and their eyes are 
sparkling because they are just--they feel like, hey, I have 
got--I see what I want to do, and I have not seen this before. 
I have not been able to work in an industry that shows me how 
they are going to teach me skills in order to be self-
sufficient and add value and have purpose in their life.
    The Chairman. Absolutely.
    Ms. Curry. It is extremely important to continue that. 
Sorry, I am going long.
    The Chairman. No, that is Okay. I love the description of 
the expressions. We have that expression in front of us. I 
wanted to get a question to Ms. Navarro.
    You give credit to your high school coordinator. How can 
other kids--how do we get the word out to other kids of how 
attractive and beneficial this program is?
    Ms. Navarro. For me, is we had presentations at school 
multiple times on apprenticeships, but there is not always 
schools that have a representative there.
    How I advise other students from other schools that they 
might not have that person there at their school is going to 
look for the resources. I say there are students that are shy; 
there are students that are timid. Then they do not want to go 
because they just--they feel intimidated because of the person 
that they are going to talk to. But, like, I tell my brother, I 
was like, push onto it. Go do it. No matter what, you will find 
the resources.
    I know a lot of times, I go to schools and I talk to them, 
and I feel like having a person that has done it helps a lot, 
definitely. I talked to a lot of apprentices when I was going 
on to the apprenticeship. I was talking to apprentices that 
were planning to get hired at that point because they were 
already 2 years into their apprenticeship and I was 1 year. And 
I was like, oh, my God, this is not going to work out. What if 
it bombs? Like, I am not doing school. I am going to be doing 
this job. What am I going to do?
    Then, after I saw it all tied together, now I just want to 
be a representative, and I want to go to schools and talk to 
students. Like, just do it. Who cares? Like, you are not going 
to lose anything.
    The Chairman. Thank you. I love that.
    All right. Senator Braun.
    Senator Braun. Thank you, Senator. First question will be 
for Ms. Curry. Up to five high schools it sounds like here 
soon. And what did you find when the first high school came 
onboard? Were you getting buy-in from the guidance counselors? 
Were they into this idea of doing CTE training as opposed to 
the 4-year degree?
    Ms. Curry. I think most of the guidance counselors now 
understand that, getting a skill--if you can teach a skill, no 
one can take your skill away from you. You have that skill for 
life and you can build on it.
    As we were collaborating with them and showed them the 
types of training we would give them as the students came here, 
they were quick to get onboard. And one of the main things was 
how we had to teach--was that we want a broad, diverse 
workforce, and we want to go make this awareness to all the 
students and let's not pigeonhole certain students into this 
program. Let's make it available for everyone. So, once we were 
able to come together on really how we wanted to market the 
program, it has been very, very successful.
    Senator Braun. How did parents react?
    Ms. Curry. The parents--we actually had an open house. The 
parents came. I spoke to the parents, and they were very 
interested in the program. They know about Toyota, but, some of 
them have not been in the plant. They have not seen the high 
tech robotics and feel--that we have running the program--all 
the tooling. And, they were amazed. Because we took them, we 
gave them a tour, and they were amazed at the types of careers 
that their student, their kids could have, and how we were 
going to be partnering with them to teach them those skills.
    I think, letting them be a part of it, let them in, feel 
it, touch it, see it, hear it, it really helped them understand 
what this type of program is about.
    Senator Braun. Thank you.
    Mr. Ginsburg, we were talking earlier about state boards of 
education, the philosophy that you can only be successful 
getting a 4-year degree, maybe a 2-year degree. How much do you 
think the issue of what you are trying to do, what Toyota is 
doing, what Ms. Navarro figured out on her own to maybe do, how 
much is higher ed an issue from the top down in terms of policy 
to the guidance counselors in high school? And, has it come 
along as much as you have seen things move in your own world?
    Toyota looks like they are moving the dynamic by being 
there in the community, giving opportunity to get in that 
direction. How big a deal is higher ed that still believes 
mostly in 4-year degrees and still, I think, stigmatizes the 
pathways that we are trying to talk about?
    Mr. Ginsburg. Well, certainly you are talking about a 
challenge that is both cultural in our society at large, as 
well as in the education system itself. At the K-12 level, what 
I will tell you is they change quickly. What they want is what 
is in the best interest of their students. What they do not 
always understand is the value of this type of learning and the 
career path that it enables.
    At the higher ed level, they are actually an important part 
of this system, but it is not always aligned to what employers 
need. Meaning, you do your general ed first, and then you get 
to, what you are specifically interested in.
    Industry, and I think Purdue University in Indiana is a 
leader on this, they are changing. They are enabling companies 
to send their employees to get specific training. Maybe not a 
degree, but recognizing that a credential or a certification is 
equally valuable. I think that needs to grow in our higher ed 
system. It does not move fast, but frankly, I think 
apprenticeship can help support and facilitate more students 
taking the benefit of post-secondary, but doing it in a way 
that is career-aligned, where they are informed about what they 
want to do with their future and then are trained to do that.
    Senator Braun. Thank you.
    Ms. Navarro, it sounds like you put two and two together 
fairly quickly to get you to where you are here today, choosing 
to get into the workplace. Your particular high school, you 
said that they did have information. How long had they been 
doing it? And, was that something recently that they did to 
make you aware of other options, other than maybe going into 
the military or 2-or 4-year degree, or did you have to do most 
of this on your own?
    Ms. Navarro. For my school, the resources were displayed 
out, but we were the pioneers. Me and two other apprentices 
were the first ones to get hired at my school as apprentices 
for John F. Kennedy High School. Before that, there was 
apprenticeships that existed, but they existed with other 
schools that were community colleges. But, that was like going 
to school and learning there instead of--it was not working at 
all.
    Most of those resources were also with CareerWise. They 
would come to our schools and do boot camps. There was a big 
boot camp where they did a bunch of sections where all the 
workplaces that were hiring that year were there, and that is 
where I met Pinnacol. I gave them my resume, and I was like, 
hey, I want to apply. This place sounds amazing. I already 
submitted my application. And luckily, that place hired me 
because that is the only place I applied to. So, luckily, they 
hired me.
    But, for the most part, there is a lot of students I have 
heard had to do it on their own, but for me, I did have a lot 
of resources. Like I said, Suzy was a big resource to me. She 
helped me, guided me through everything, took me to my 
internship, took me to--if I needed to do a drug test, she took 
me there. So, my school had a lot of resources of like taking 
all the students into a little school bus, going off together 
during lunchtime, to go do all the things that we needed to do 
to get hired.
    Senator Braun. Thank you.
    The Chairman. Great. And Senator Portman, I understand you 
have a conflict here, so I was going to switch and give you 
priority to ask a few questions.
    Senator Portman. Well, thank you, Chairman Hickenlooper and 
Ranking Member Braun and all my colleagues here on this 
Committee. I always wanted to be on the HELP Committee, and 
here I am at the dais. This is unbelievable. Thank you.
    (Laughter.)
    Senator Portman. Listen, I am here with friends, and the 
two of you in particular being employers in your previous 
incarnations, and I know everybody on this panel has a passion 
for this.
    This training issue is huge. Senator Kaine and I have been 
trying, so far unsuccessfully, although we came very close in 
the so-called--in this Frontier Act, to get a program in place 
that many of you are very familiar with. And I know Senator 
Braun, Senator Baldwin, and others have worked with us closely 
on this, but to get people to the point where they can get 
these short-term certificates and have the Federal Government 
help them.
    We spend so much money as a Federal Government on higher 
ed. And I am not against that, but my gosh, shouldn't we be 
spending some money on actually training people up for the jobs 
that are right there and available now? Where they are not 
going to have a big debt, where they are going to be able to go 
right into, buying a house and buying a car and being able to 
get this economy moving. So, that is what this is about.
    Our economy post-COVID-19--or, we are still in this COVID-
19 pandemic, but in this time period, needs this more than 
ever. I mean, I cannot tell you an employer that I have talked 
to in my home State of Ohio, and I know the same is true in all 
of your states, who has not talked about it.
    We had a conference call this morning with the oil and gas 
industry in Ohio. And what did I hear about, No. 1 issue? 
Workforce, No. 1 issue. And it is truck drivers. It is 
technicians on the well sides. It is for the disposal wells to 
have some way to just find people to do the work. So, this is a 
critical issue for our long-term economic health.
    Right now, more important than ever, I do think it is about 
the entire economy. So, I am not suggesting it is all about 
middle skills jobs, which is what economists call these jobs 
that do not require a college degree but do require some 
advanced-level training. That has been the real problem in our 
economy the last several years.
    It is about everything right now. Let's be honest. It is 
hospitality. It is, executives. It is, so-called white-collar 
jobs. But, still, the biggest concern, I think, is among these 
middle skill jobs. And this morning, just while I have been 
here, I have gotten to hear some really exciting news about 
what is going on with your high schools and career and 
technical education programs.
    Senator Kaine, who you will hear from in a moment, and I 
are co-chairs, along with Tammy Baldwin, and probably all of 
you are on it, the CTE caucus here in the Senate. We have a 
caucus to promote career and technical education. We have 
passed some legislation to get the Federal Government funding 
increased and to provide more standards for CTE and improve 
CTE.
    That is all good, but in my view, it is not going to solve 
the problem because career and technical cannot provide the 
level of training that most of the employers need to be able to 
fill these so-called middle-income jobs. And, these are jobs, 
like welders and machinists in factories.
    One of the people on the call this morning was a 
manufacturer who provides something for the oil and gas 
industry and he cannot find welders, which is not a surprise, 
I'm sure, to anybody on this panel. It is medical technicians 
in hospitals; it is truck drivers; it is logistics experts; it 
is coders; it is people who can help program these computers 
that are now running every factory in America in most of our 
lives. So, those are the middle-skill jobs.
    Our idea is really very simple, is to provide this Pell 
Grant funding not just for a 4-year or 2-year degree, but also 
provide it for these relatively shorter term training programs 
that gives someone an industry-recognized certificate at the 
end of the process. And the success of these programs is 
unbelievable, and we have heard about some of this today again. 
But, if you can see the light at the end of the tunnel, which 
is, after 10, 12 weeks you can actually get a degree that will 
give you a job, you are much more likely to stick around.
    Unfortunately, with Pell at our--at a higher ed level--and 
we have had this discussion in this Committee--most of the 
students do not get a degree. Most of the students do not get a 
degree. Now, again, I am for Pell at higher ed. I think we can 
improve the program, but--that is good, but shouldn't we also 
permit it for this other purpose where these students are 
pretty much all going to get that certificate? And when they 
get that certificate, get a job?
    We have all, had the situation where if someone does get 
that degree in college, by the way, and then they do not have a 
job at the end because they have not developed a skill that is 
actually needed in the economy. So, it is connecting that, and 
no better way to do it than CTE and this shorter term skills 
programs that Senator Kaine and I have been promoting.
    The Jobs Act now has 39 co-sponsors, including Ranking 
Member Braun. I am grateful that HELP has agreed to some of the 
bipartisan changes to improve the bill along the way and allow 
it to advance to the Senate floor. Again, we almost got it 
done. It was in the manager's amendment for the so-called third 
Frontier Bill, or the Endless Frontier Bill. And I would urge 
Members to take a look at it. If you can help us with it, that 
would be great. And my hope is that we will find a vehicle here 
this year to be able to move it forward.
    I thank the witnesses for being here today, all of you, and 
what you are doing in your home states and encouraging more 
young people to step up and take advantage of these programs, 
the CTE programs and the short-term training programs.
    Every community college in our states is now focused more 
and more on this. It is the No. 1 priority of the community 
colleges around America, I am told, is to get this Jobs Act 
done because they are all doing these short-term training 
programs, as are the technical schools. And I think it is the 
best way to begin to fill this jobs gap that we see.
    Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
    The Chairman. Thank you, Senator.
    Now, Senator Smith.
    Senator Smith. Well, thank you so much, Chair Hickenlooper 
and Ranking Member Braun, and to our panelists today for this, 
your excellent testimony and this great hearing. And thank you, 
Senator Portman, for joining us. I am waiting eagerly for 
Senator Kaine to come, as well.
    Listen, I constantly hear the stories that you all are 
telling when I am back in Minnesota about people who are 
interested in pursuing well-paying, high-skill jobs and careers 
that are not dependent on a 4-year degree. Folks like Ms. 
Navarro, who are ready to hit the ground running, you want to 
go out and work and do things. And, people who also want to 
pursue a real diverse range of opportunities, as Senator 
Portman was saying, from truck drivers and welders to 
technology and healthcare and logistics. And, of course, 
employers are saying exactly the same thing, that they need 
these workers. And, so, that is why this hearing is so 
important and why it is so important that we make investments 
in this, in these kinds of opportunities for people.
    I want to hone in on the--first on the question of 
registered apprenticeships, and, Mr. Ginsburg, this is a 
question that I will just direct to you. I introduced a bill 
called the 21st Century Workforce Partnerships Act, which would 
help better prepare students for high-skill, in-demand jobs, 
and one of the elements of the bill is that it prioritizes 
partnerships between schools and employers that have registered 
apprenticeship programs. So, they are employer customized, on-
the-job training, of course, with pay. These registered 
apprenticeships seem, to me, really sort of the gold standard 
for workforce training. And, of course, the return on 
investment is fantastic. Workers who are in these programs are 
seeing average wages of, I understand, $60,000 a year, which is 
really terrific.
    Mr. Ginsburg, could you just speak to us about your 
experience and how the registered apprenticeships programs are 
beneficial not only to your workers, but also to your business?
    Mr. Ginsburg. Thank you for the question, Senator. In fact, 
the registered system I think is critical as we move 
particularly youth apprenticeship forward, and the reason why 
is, it is a quality frame that guides the apprenticeship. It is 
advised by industry, so the standards are what industry 
contributes.
    Senator Smith. Right.
    Mr. Ginsburg. What they train to. And if you are a small 
company that--like mine, it is valuable because it is a guide. 
If you are a company like JPMorgan Chase or Accenture that are 
having apprentices now moving into the hundreds, for them, they 
do business in all 50 states. With the registered 
apprenticeship, the value of that is they know that those 
competencies that they helped contribute to create are the same 
for all of their branches throughout the Country. That is a 
powerful tool to scaling this.
    At the same time--and there is something that Senator 
Portman said that resonates with me--this is a complex model. 
As an intermediary, managing all the various moving elements, 
including the registration program, which we support with our 
employers throughout the Country, so they can register. If we 
do not resource workforce differently than we have in the past, 
if the resources are the same, the outcomes will be the same.
    I think the next few weeks here, you guys have an 
incredibly hard job, but I will tell you that an investment in 
workforce to move this forward, I believe will move the Country 
forward. So, registration is the key component. At the same 
time, without the resources for intermediaries, for chambers, 
for associations that will help bring businesses in and then 
basically hand hold until they----
    Senator Smith. Right.
    Mr. Ginsburg [continuing]. Learn the system, we will not be 
making any difference, and 10 years from now we will be having 
a hearing----
    Senator Smith. Yep.
    Mr. Ginsburg [continuing]. Talking about the problems we 
have.
    Senator Smith. We have to do this differently. And I think 
that what you are describing and how registered apprenticeships 
can work is really a great example of that.
    Another thing that I think we have to do differently is to 
get into schools, into high schools, sooner. And, so, Ms. 
Navarro, I would love to have a chance to talk with you a 
little bit about this in my few seconds left. I have been 
working on legislation with Senator Graham, actually, that 
would pull in after-school providers to help connect young 
people with employers, very similar to the kind of experience 
that you had. Provide on-the-job training and internships and 
career exploration, and then moving into registered 
apprenticeships and other kinds of actual--like what you did.
    Could you just talk a little bit about how old you were 
when you got connected into this and what difference you think 
it would make if you had that exposure even earlier in your 
educational career?
    Ms. Navarro. Great question. So, I started actually my 
sophomore year summer. I started two internships my summer of 
sophomore and junior year--one with Excel Energy and one with 
Emily Griffith Technical College. These kind of lead me into 
going into the workforce and going into working instead of 
going to college because I really enjoyed my experience.
    But, it was 6 weeks, and I was also doing work that was not 
very much enjoyable. It was work that they probably left off 
for the intern that was going to be there in the summer.
    That kind of guided me into, Okay, what can I do that will 
be longer? And then I started looking into, well, there is 
internships that I can do during the semester, but those are 8 
weeks, and it is the same thing again. It will not be that 
valuable to me.
    Then, I started looking into the apprenticeship, and with 
the apprenticeship, I saw it was 3 years. And with Pinnacol, 
there is a lot of benefits that is also included with the 
apprenticeship, which is certifications that you can get. You 
get the registered apprenticeship, and you also get connected 
with a lot of people there, new connections that can also help 
you for your career. And on top of that, I also--you also get a 
coach. The coach helps you, helps guide you through those 3 
years, and you meet with them every week and you talk to them 
about any problems you have in anything like that.
    With Pinnacol, they created such a great structure that 
helped me be like, Okay, I can talk to my coach about this. She 
is going to help me with college classes. She is going to help 
me with--I can just talk to her about life, or anything, and 
then I can talk to my supervisors about training that is not 
going well.
    Then, with Pinnacol, they did the 6-month training that 
went with time management, how to do a hand-shake, how to dress 
professionally, dress for the day. I did not know how to dress 
for the day with my internship. And, now, you look at me. I am 
here. I know how to----
    Senator Smith. You know what to do.
    Ms. Navarro [continuing]. Shake a hand. I know what to do 
now. Public speaking and everything. So, with all of those 
resources, and with now being 19 years old, here, talking in 
front of the Senate, is definitely a big impact of what--now I 
want to--I want students to be doing that now. In Colorado, I 
want to see all my high----
    My little brother, he is 14 years old. I told him, you have 
to do an apprenticeship. He is like, I cannot wait until I am a 
sophomore and I can start my apprenticeship--my internships, 
then go into an apprenticeship, and be exactly like how you are 
right now.
    Senator Smith. Ms. Navarro, I think you are good organizer.
    (Laughter.)
    Senator Smith. I really appreciate your feedback.
    Thank you, Mr. Chair, for letting us go a little long. 
Thank you very much.
    The Chairman. Thank you, Senator.
    Senator Tuberville.
    Senator Tuberville. Thank you, Senator Hickenlooper and 
Senator Braun for having this. This is much needed. If we had 
one of these hearings every week for the next 10 years, it 
probably would not be enough.
    I spent 40 years in education. I am here today because of 
education. I ran for the U.S. Senate for the State of Alabama 
because the last 20 years, I have seen our education going in 
the wrong direction. Now, we have got the best education system 
in the world. We could be much better. For some reason, we will 
not change. We will not do the things that we need to do to 
make it better for the kids that are coming up.
    We are different than the kids nowadays. We were different. 
We had different goals. We had different opportunities. Now we 
have cyber. We have computer science. We have all those things 
going along with it and----
    But, the main thing that we need to do, in my perspective 
of watching over 40 years, is what Ms. Curry said a little 
earlier. We have to expose people to something that they want 
to do. Because when I got up every day after I graduated from 
college and I went to work coaching and teaching, I loved every 
minute of it. I enjoyed it, and I think I did a pretty good job 
at it because I liked it. And that is what we have to do with 
these kids nowadays.
    Ms. Navarro hit it right on the head talking about, just 
seeing the smile on her face of she is excited about doing 
something. So, we have to do something about education.
    When I ran, I talked to groups all across the State of 
Alabama--homebuilders, road builders, bridge builders. Coach, 
we cannot find people to work. Well, you better start educating 
your own because our education system does not educate people 
anymore. We indoctrinate. We bring them in and we--we do not 
teach the things they need to teach to use their hands. Folks, 
we better start teaching people to use their hands instead of 
just their brains. We have to do that.
    That is what you are talking about today with 
apprenticeships and coming in and learning a skill and having a 
great life, because you can have a great life, and you can also 
have fun doing it. So, I would--I am here today because that is 
so----
    I want to thank you, Ms. Curry. We have a community 
college, Lawson State Community College, in Alabama that has 
one of your partnerships. How does this partnership really 
work? How do you get involved with a community college?
    Ms. Curry. Thank you, Senator. We have actually five FAME 
partnerships in your state. And, the coalition, which is the 
Federation of Advanced Manufacturing, they--we pull together 
small, medium, and large businesses. We actually market to all 
the businesses with the school system, and we look at the 
curriculum of the school system and we help change that 
curriculum to meet the business needs.
    We have over 400 companies, small, medium, and large, with 
32 different community colleges that are involved in our 
Advanced Manufacturing Technician program. And, it is, like I 
said, ran by Manufacturing Institute now. It is nationalized. 
It is--it works very well because we also teach the teacher, 
and we also bring them into our businesses and let them see 
what is needed.
    To get that partnership, the Manufacturing Institute is the 
conduit to help bring more chapters in. And we actually, since 
the pandemic--in 2021, we have already initiated nine more 
chapters. So, it is definitely something that is out there. It 
is very easy to get ahold of on the Manufacturing Institute's 
website, and anyone can be a partner, and we can help them with 
these types of chapters.
    Senator Tuberville. Thank you.
    Mr. Ginsburg, I know CareerWise has a tech assistance 
contract with Birmingham Promise Initiative in Alabama. 
Programs like this one, what are apprentices paid?
    Mr. Ginsburg. It differs, but certainly, obviously, at the 
minimum wage. But, what we are seeing is around 15, $16 even 
before the pandemic because companies saw the value and wanted 
to make the investment.
    What is more important, though, is they are graduating from 
their apprenticeship earning 45 to $55,000. So, it is an 
apprenticeship wage. In a registered model, you have to 
increase that wage as the competency increases. So, this is a 
path not just to the middle class, but actually beyond.
    Senator Tuberville. I can remember graduating from college 
back in 1976. My parents spent a lot of money for that 
scholarship back then. It was a lot of money for what we spent. 
My first contract teaching school and coaching was $8,500 a 
year. We have come a long way. You are talking 50, 55,000 for 
apprenticeship, and we are fortunate to have jobs like this 
where people can train on the job.
    How many hours a week do they usually work?
    Mr. Ginsburg. It ranges from in their first year, 16 hours 
a week in the business; second year, 3 days a week; and then it 
can go to full or part time, depending on post-secondary 
options.
    Senator Tuberville. What is your percentage of success? 
Success rate, people staying in your programs.
    Mr. Ginsburg. Obviously, we are nascent. We just--we have 
now graduated two cohorts of apprentices of--nearly 1,000 
apprentices are in the program currently, nationally. Over 200 
businesses, ranging from small businesses, like the companies 
in Goshen and in Indiana, as well as large companies like 
JPMorgan Chase in New York. What we are seeing in those two 
full cohorts is that the equity promise of apprenticeship is 
rising, meaning that it is breaking that cement ceiling that I 
believe exists above students that may not come from the same 
opportunity or the right zip code, and they are gaining jobs 
that pay middle-class wages early on.
    I will tell you the percentages are in the 30, 40 percent, 
but we are early on. Of those that graduate and matriculate, 
another 20, 30 percent will continue on with post-secondary 
education, which we view as a win simply because they have 
already spent 2 years in the practical learning that takes 
place in the workplace that then is married to the theoretical.
    What is also important is the companies reporting that an 
apprentice is 91 percent as efficient, productive, as a regular 
employee. Think about that. A high school student trained 
through an apprenticeship, coming out of that apprenticeship is 
already 91 percent as effective. The students themselves are 
finding almost 100 percent, saying because of their 
apprenticeship. Like Ms. Navarro, she has the opportunity to 
get a credential and move on to post-secondary education. 
Almost all of our apprentices are seeing that. This is a path 
of opportunity, a path of options.
    Senator Tuberville. Yes. And one thing I would like to say 
about it is, it gives them an opportunity to continue their 
education and really enjoy it. Probably our panel up here does 
not really understand some of our education. If you look at the 
direction that we are headed in public schools, as we speak 
today, half the kids cannot read over the sixth grade reading 
level. And apprenticeships will teach them and encourage them 
to continue to learn to read, to learn to write, and do all 
those things. So, I think that is another very important aspect 
of this point.
    Mr. Ginsburg. Senator, you are right on. You are hitting 
the nail on the head. What we are seeing with our apprentices 
that are not reading at grade level, sometimes many grade 
levels below, is once they start an apprenticeship and they can 
see where that math is important, that reading is important, 
how you write an email or professional letter, they come up to 
grade level faster than they would in the classroom. So, you 
are 100 percent right.
    You are also right, the students, when they find their 
passion, like you did, like I was fortunate to do, it 
accelerates their life and the potential that they have as a 
young person and a contributing member of our Country, of our 
society.
    Senator Tuberville. Thank you. Sorry for going over, Mr. 
Chairman.
    The Chairman. No, that is Okay. That was a great last 
question and answer. I would not have missed it for the world.
    Senator Baldwin.
    Senator Baldwin. Thank you so much. I really appreciate our 
having this hearing and our witnesses today. Thank you so much 
for your participation.
    I wanted to make a couple of observations before asking my 
questions. Obviously, this hearing focuses on apprenticeship 
opportunities, and a lot of discussion about talking to young 
people early about how they might progress in their careers and 
what opportunities exist. I wanted to just say that I, too, am 
hearing from so many of my employers in Wisconsin. We are a 
state, by the way, that is a big manufacturing state. The 
Ranking Member and I compete.
    Senator Braun. Second to Indiana.
    Senator Baldwin. Second? We go back and forth between first 
and second with regard to the population in our states that are 
involved in making things, in manufacturing. And, so, we are 
kind of competitive about those things.
    But, I want to just suggest that not only are we hearing 
today about workforce shortages, but we have some ambitious 
plans on a bipartisan basis to pass the Endless Frontiers Act 
and deal with supply chain issues and bring manufacturing for 
critical supply chain issues--items back to the U.S.
    We have a bipartisan infrastructure bill that we hope to 
advance that would really scale up our interest in, say, 
getting rid of, in drinking water, lead laterals. And we are 
going to need a lot more pipefitters and plumbers in order to 
get rid of all of our lead laterals in 8 years versus in our 
state, at current pace, it would take 70 years to do it.
    We need a lot more people, and so my questions are going to 
be a couple of things. One is, what obstacles exist to what you 
are doing now, Mr. Ginsburg and Ms. Curry, and how do we scale 
up the type of activities that you are engaged in to deal with 
the workforce shortage issue?
    Then I just also wanted to note that there is another 
population aside from young people who are coming up, and that 
is people who have been displaced from the workforce for a 
while. And that can be for any number of reasons--caregiving 
for a loved one, incarceration. It can be, their job going away 
during the pandemic and they have not returned. And for those 
individuals, I think there is a call for other types of 
programs.
    What I have always been supportive of is having some 
scalable transitional job program that allows us to help folks 
who have been out of the workforce for a while to identify the 
barriers to their employment. We are going to be having to work 
on all fronts, assuming that we get our bipartisan bills across 
the finish line to create a lot more new jobs.
    Let me ask Mr. Ginsburg and Ms. Curry, what obstacles do 
you see other businesses having to do with the type of 
partnership work that you are talking about, especially small-
and medium-size businesses? And, how do we scale up 
dramatically?
    Mr. Ginsburg. Thank you for the question, Senator. It is 
obviously the most important question, is this just a nice 
program or can it change our Country?
    Senator Baldwin. Yes.
    Mr. Ginsburg. Coming from manufacturing, what I learned 
early on is you go to the root of the problem and solve it 
there as opposed to in the warehouse. Right now, where that 
starts is in our K-12 system. What Ms. Navarro shared with you 
is the counseling that she got that was not just go to college, 
but look at your options.
    Part of that is the work that, as intermediaries, we do 
with our schools to train them; how we work with employers to 
help speak a language and train them in a language that is not 
familiar. Yes, it is if you are in the trades, but these are 
modern skills and opportunities, and businesses just do not 
know how to train necessarily, particularly small- and mid-
size.
    Having intermediaries that can help train the businesses, 
the supervisors, the coaches; walk them through the registered 
apprenticeship model. In time, they will become self-
sufficient. This is not a quick fix, but it is 
transformational.
    What I would tell you to scale, frankly, is to invest in 
industries to build the competency set so they are training to 
the contemporary needs of business today, that those are 
updated. Whether it is intermediaries like CareerWise or 
chambers or associations that will train and recruit businesses 
to do this. In the end, they will do it, and it will scale 
because it is in their self-interest.
    In my company, we are more profitable today. We won 
Processor of the Year in the Country, in large part because of 
our apprenticeship program. But, it takes resources. If we 
continue to invest simply in our K-12 and higher ed system, 
without at the same time--I am not suggesting not funding. We 
need to invest in our education system. But, if we do not fund 
differently in our workforce system, then there will be no 
change.
    The infrastructure that we need in this Country, whether it 
is digital, whether it is energy, whether it is in the trades, 
whether it is banking, finance, insurance, it will take an 
investment to change our workforce. And, in so doing that, 
higher ed will change, K-12 will become independent, but there 
is a need for resources to make that happen to scale.
    The fact is, if other countries can do this, we can do it 
better.
    The Chairman. Ms. Curry, did you want to add something to 
that?
    Ms. Curry. Yes, sure. Our FAME program, we were able to 
scale that up by bringing in small, medium, and large 
businesses and showing that there is a pathway and then there 
is a curriculum and then there is an actual standardized work 
on how to do this type of program. And, that is why 
Manufacturing Institute was able to take this on and 
nationalize the program.
    One of the other obstacles I think that students face, and 
I am very vocal about this, is the requirements of, in the CTE, 
sometimes these requirements change and they change year by 
year. And, so, many times, a student may get stuck in one 
pathway and they cannot diversify the actual classes that they 
want to take.
    I think that we need to make it a very--much more flexible 
programs within the high schools in that the students can pick 
different pathways and they are not shoehorned into that 
pathway if they want to change.
    Working with our educators and working with the colleges to 
make sure that these are recommended and actual certified 
programs that are recognized, and that the students are awarded 
for these types of pathways in order to get their careers 
started is key. So, I really feel like, we have been able to 
show that we can scale this program that we have and, it is 
really--for me, I think it is the benchmark right now in our 
industry for how to make a scalable program and take it 
national.
    The Chairman. Great. Thank you very much.
    Senator Romney.
    Senator Romney. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you to 
each of you for your expertise and your willingness to testify 
today.
    My State of Utah is, as you may not know, is the fastest 
growing state in the Nation, according to the Census Bureau 
with the information they came out with. Our unemployment rate 
right now is just over 2 percent, and one of the reasons for 
that is that we have a very well-trained, highly educated, 
highly motivated workforce. And businesses that are looking for 
people they can hire in a good economic environment, with good 
taxes and regulations, they find our state very attractive.
    One of the other reasons that we have such an effectively 
trained workforce is that we have a very ample apprenticeship 
program. A notable example of that is between, for instance, 
say, a company called Stadler Rail--they make railcars for 
transit purposes--and Salt Lake Community College. And under 
their program, students are trained for 3 years. This coming 
May, the Stadler apprenticeship program will graduate their 
first cohort of 15 students with Associate Degrees--no cost to 
the students, of course--during which they will have gained 
transferable skills and prospect for high-paying employment 
down the road.
    Stadler was the beneficiary of the Trump administration's 
Industry Recognized Apprenticeship Program, the so-called IRAP 
Program, which aimed to expand private industry participation 
in workforce training by promoting apprenticeships. I raise 
that today because the current Administration has apparently 
plans to eliminate this program, or to sideline it, and I would 
note that programs such as this, I think, are essential to help 
encourage more apprenticeship programs.
    Let me start with you, Ms. Curry, which is, do you have any 
idea why the Administration would be trying to end this 
apprenticeship-promoting program? There are some who suggested 
it may be as a result of unions that do not like these 
apprenticeship programs, and I am interested in your experience 
with union enterprises. How do the unions feel about your 
apprenticeship programs at Toyota?
    Ms. Curry. Well, I personally do not know how our--the 
unions feel about our program, but we work with our skilled 
trades unions all the time. They are here onsite doing many, 
many of our installations for our equipment.
    For me, I think the main thing is that it must be industry-
led, and it must be in collaboration with small, medium, and 
large businesses, and with the community colleges. If we--the 
fast pace of technology right now, we are working on artificial 
intelligence. We are working on HoloLens for Microsoft to 
actually train our team members offline.
    There are so many different types of technologies that are 
moving forward so quickly that it is key for the programs to be 
industry-led so that we can help scale up not only the 
students, but we can scale up the teachers, the professors, and 
we can bring them in and show them how these technologies are 
applied. So, I feel like whatever program you pick, it must be 
industry-led to be successful.
    Senator Romney. Thank you. Mr. Ginsburg, any comment on 
that front? I agree with Ms. Curry, which is that linking 
individuals in their education to a specific company with real 
application in mind makes the education more effective and 
creates better opportunities down the road for the student.
    Mr. Ginsburg. Clearly, that is essential. And the goals of 
the IRAP, I believe, in the beginning and now are important. 
How do you streamline the system? How do you make it more 
responsive to industry? How do you improve the quality?
    At the same time, what I will say, if there is anything 
that I observed over the last few years is there was some 
confusion about the two, a registered and an IRAP. And, so, at 
the end of the day, the objectives of what was set forth I 
think can be achieved in either. But, to the point, the 
learning that takes place in a business, along with what 
happens in the classroom, changes young people's lives and 
improves our economy.
    I will share that I have a love for Utah because I love to 
ski, but we also work with a company of Zions Bank, Vectra, 
that has apprenticeships moving today. Actually, Ms. Navarro's 
brother works for Vectra as an apprentice, and they are wanting 
to expand both to their home market in Utah. Vail Resorts, who 
is obviously involved with many of your resorts, same thing. 
They are registering their apprenticeships.
    Whatever we do, like anything in business, it has to 
continue to improve. And, certainly within the current 
registered system, there is room for improvement. We should 
stay focused on that. And whatever model we use, we make sure 
it responds to business, because if it is not industry-led, it 
is not scalable.
    Senator Romney. Thank you. Mr. Chairman.
    The Chairman. Thank you, Senator.
    Senator Kaine, you have been waiting patiently.
    Senator Kaine. Well, thank you to the Chairman and Ranking 
Member for calling this important hearing, and for my 
colleagues, and what a great panel of witnesses.
    I am so excited about the opportunity in this 
infrastructure bill, and I am very excited about the 
reconciliation bill we are working on because I view them as 
very complementary. The needs for investments in infrastructure 
in our Country are massive, and yet the projects do not build 
themselves and we need to have the workforce that can carry out 
this ambitious infrastructure investment. And yet, there are 
challenges right now getting people into, whether it is 
infrastructure or construction or manufacturing, there are 
challenges.
    Just a story, a recent story from Virginia. I was traveling 
in the Appalachian Region of Virginia about 3 weeks ago. Now, 
this is the part of Virginia that tends to be the hardest hit 
economically. Our state is doing pretty well economically right 
now. Employment is coming back. But, Appalachia has a set of 
persistent challenges.
    One of the most notable employers in Appalachia is Volvo 
Trucks in Pulaski. They make--if you see an over-the-road truck 
in the United States with a Volvo plate on it, it is made in 
Pulaski, Virginia in Appalachia.
    The plant director at the Volvo plant in Pulaski said to 
me, I could hire hundreds more people right now. I want to hire 
hundreds more people right now, but I can't. I can't. I can't. 
I can advertise everywhere. I can do creative things. I can 
offer incentives, but I cannot get people to come and apply for 
these jobs.
    I was kind of digging into him, what is the challenge? Mr. 
Ginsburg, you used a phrase, you said--you are in 
manufacturing. You want to solve it in the manufacturing 
process, not in the warehouse. And you said, so, that means 
this problem, we have to solve it in the school system. And I 
think there is a real need. And particularly, in a part of 
the--my Commonwealth, and certainly part of the Country, where 
we need good jobs for people.
    There is a need to get to our guidance counselors and into 
the schools really earlier than high school. We really need to 
start doing it early in middle school as students are starting 
to think about career paths, and to explain the options that 
are available to people to make really good livings doing 
really cool things.
    Most young people, they do not know much about the 
workplace. They know what their parents do. They know what 
teachers do because they are with teachers every day. But, they 
may not know what the spectrum of opportunities are, and yet we 
expect them as high schoolers to start picking classes that 
will equip them for a future when we have not really given them 
the spectrum of what is available.
    I hope part of what we might do is really go into the 
schools earlier in the students' lives and help them with 
career plans and expose to them the breadth of opportunities 
that are available.
    I come from a manufacturing household. My dad ran an 
ironworking and welding shop. And I know Senator Portman raised 
the Jobs Act. This is a bill that now has 39 sponsors. It is 
very, very bipartisan. Both the Chairman and the Ranking Member 
of this Subcommittee are co-sponsors of the bill. And it would 
basically say, if college is important enough to warrant giving 
a student a Pell Grant if they income qualify, why shouldn't 
high-quality career and technical education be similarly valued 
so that students and families who want to pursue those 
opportunities should be able to get a Pell Grant, too?
    We make Pell Grants flexible. We enable students who are 
pursuing college programs part time to use Pell Grants. That is 
good. We have recently done something that I am really excited 
about, we have allowed the reintroduction of Pell Grants to 
folks who are in prison who are pursuing college degrees. 
Because we want them, when they are released, to be able to get 
good jobs and be productive.
    But, we do not allow Pell Grants to students who are in 
high-quality career and technical education programs if those 
programs are not the length of a traditional college semester. 
Most high-quality career and technical education courses might 
be 8 weeks long, but they are 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, 40 
hours a week, 320 hours, where the traditional college course 
might be, 3 days a week for an hour and a half over a 14-week 
semester. The classroom hours in a high-quality career and tech 
program are dramatically more intensive than in programs for 
which we currently allow Pell Grants.
    This has been estimated to add just about, a tiny fraction. 
If we were to expand Pell Grants to high-quality career and 
technical education, it would just add a tiny, tiny little 
fraction, in the single-digit percent, to the Pell Grant 
budget. I appreciate my colleagues for their support on this.
    I have one question for Ms. Curry.
    Ms. Curry, at Toyota--one of the national skills coalitions 
continues to talk about the fact that a lot of our workers do 
not have foundational digital skills when they come into the 
workforce, and that is particularly acute, and there is 
inequities among folks in minority communities.
    What does Toyota do in training to really, accelerate the 
digital proficiency of new workers in your training programs?
    Ms. Curry. Our program is very all-inclusive of the 
different types of skill sets that you need, whether it is 
showing up to work on time. You know, we actually work with the 
colleges to make sure we look at the attendance, the soft skill 
side, is--working in a team, being able to problem solve. And 
then, obviously, with math and English classes, the wide range 
of skills that you need to be successful.
    We offer mentors, and we also offer people to help them if 
they are struggling in a class. And, by doing this, I think 
that we can--we make sure that they are successful, because we 
give them tutors. We watch their grades. We have the 
interaction with them. They are here onsite 3 days--they go to 
school 3 days a week; they are here 2 days a week. And--oh, and 
we are truly a partner with the college and the professor to 
make sure that student is successful.
    We do holistically look at the skill sets that is needed to 
help you communicate, understand the requirements, 
responsibilities that the job requires. We work with them on 
their heart, their head, and their hands to make sure that they 
can apply all these things to be successful in that pathway.
    We recruit from an inclusive environment, and we utilize 
our own members to go out into the school systems and show them 
that, hey, someone that looks like me is doing this job, I can 
do it. So, if you can see it, you can do it.
    Senator Kaine. Excellent. Thanks, Ms. Curry. Thank you, Mr. 
Chairman.
    The Chairman. Thank you, Senator.
    Senator Rosen.
    Senator Rosen. Well, thank you, Chairman Hickenlooper, of 
course, Ranking Member Braun. This is a terrific hearing. It 
could not be more timely. And, I appreciate all the efforts 
that when you think about the whole person, you work on their 
heart, their head, and their hands. That is a great--a great 
way to think about our workforce. Not just numbers--people. 
They are our families. They are our communities and our 
friends. So, it is a really timely topic.
    But, I want to build on what Senator Kaine really was 
talking about. And we are going to talk about maybe some of 
those math skills or the hard skills, the things in school, 
that I do think we have to get in a little bit earlier and show 
kids earlier, in junior high, even, the kind of jobs that are 
there. And even for retraining. That is a whole different 
issue.
    But, I want to talk about cybersecurity and advanced 
manufacturing apprenticeships. These are some of the fastest 
growing sectors of our workforce, and of course, they are job 
creators in Nevada. And, so, far too often, our employers--you 
know this--you struggle to fill the open positions because, as 
everyone is saying, workers lack the technical skills or the 
credentials needed to be successful in these kinds of jobs.
    It is why over the past few years I have introduced 
bipartisan bills to create registered apprenticeship programs 
in cybersecurity and advanced manufacturing that actually lead 
to credentials, and hopefully partnering with businesses across 
this Country. So, my bills increase those collaborations. They 
increase the partnership between small business, community 
college and state college, local workforce boards, agencies to 
target skills development from the communities where we need to 
find this growth.
    Mr. Ginsburg, please, can you discuss why it is so 
important that registered apprenticeships lead to measurable 
skills outcomes and recognized credentials so wherever folks 
go, these skills are transportable along with them, 
particularly in cybersecurity and our advanced manufacturing 
industries?
    Mr. Ginsburg. I think what we learned at CareerWise with 
our partners--in New York, specifically, because they are all 
Fortune 100 companies that do business in at least half the 
states in this Country, if not every state in the Country--they 
want one model that they can rely on throughout the Country. 
What a registered apprenticeship program does, it gives them 
that validation, that currency. So, it works for the company, 
and it works for the young person. Because if Ms. Navarro went 
to another state----
    Senator Rosen. Right.
    Mr. Ginsburg [continuing]. To another insurance company, 
they could see, because of her registered apprenticeship, what 
she knows, her competencies, and it gives her credibility more 
than just a resume.
    Senator Rosen. That is right.
    Mr. Ginsburg. It is powerful. And there is something else 
that you said that is important. Career exposure early on in a 
student's career is important. If you walk into many, even 
elementary schools, you will see banners for colleges, not 
banners for career.
    Senator Rosen. That is right.
    Mr. Ginsburg. Ultimately, we need both. It is not an 
either-or. But, if all we tell a young person is to be 
successful in this Country is to get a 4-year degree and only a 
third of them actually do--and with that, there is very little 
equity. Apprenticeship, registered apprenticeship, helps build 
equity into our system, and starting with youth, and that is 
why youth apprenticeship can be so transformational. You get a 
student and a young person when their brain is still 
developing.
    Senator Rosen. Right.
    Mr. Ginsburg. Through that, we are shaping them, training 
them in a way that will lead to a long-term future for them. 
So, yes, registration is key.
    Senator Rosen. I could not agree with you more. Even going 
down to elementary school, exciting the kids. I have gone into 
classrooms with robotics programs and they are building little 
robots to do something. Then, they created a website to welcome 
me and another one with questions. They had these pods in the 
room. These are third graders, like 8, 9. Third, fourth 
graders, 8, 9 years old. It was amazing, and they were having 
so much fun and they were gaining these skills.
    Trying to say, if you like to hike, you like the forest, 
you like the city, there are jobs. If you go into biology, you 
could be a forest ranger. Whatever those things are. And, I 
think when you excite kids and show them a path, you are 
exactly right.
    I want to talk about the impact, though, with tourism and 
hospitality. We have a lot of people who are going to be 
displaced across this Country, not just in Nevada that relies 
heavily on tourism, but across this Country that are displaced. 
And we need to do the same thing to retrain our workers whose 
jobs may either change or may not--may come back in a different 
form or fashion, or may not come back at all.
    We did give robust relief through the CARES Act and the 
American Rescue Plan to support keeping people on the payroll 
during the pandemic, but we do need to focus on the retraining 
and reskilling.
    Do you want to speak about some of the--as we go from 
elementary school, but those folks in mid-career or might be 
adults already, have a family, how do we get them into better 
jobs?
    Mr. Ginsburg. Well, what you are talking about is the need 
for a system, and youth apprenticeship is essentially a 
professional education and training system, or a dual education 
system in the context of what we learned from our European 
friends in Switzerland. And, what that means is that throughout 
a person's lifetime, they should be able to retrain, get credit 
for prior learning.
    Why is that important? All of the work that apprenticeship 
starts at the foundation can last a lifetime in terms of the 
workforce system that is created.
    In Colorado, we have created--the Governor has created an 
Office of Professional Education and Training Innovation with 
the intent of linking our workforce systems in a way that 
supports the worker at any time in their life, and a core 
element of that, as an example, is credit for prior learning. 
If you are 45 and have been displaced, and someone says, well, 
go back to school and get a new skill, well, first of all, they 
have to start at the beginning. Why don't we give credit for 
prior learning?
    Senator Rosen. Right.
    Mr. Ginsburg. That is a tool that makes university more 
affordable. It recognizes the learning that takes place in the 
workplace, which many times is as important as what takes place 
in the classroom, and gives people a start into a new career.
    We need a more permeable system in this Country, and we 
need a workforce system that we invest in. And, it is part of 
the infrastructure that I think you are talking about. It is 
human infrastructure. The real value is not the machines in my 
factory; it is the people. We have to invest in them at all 
times in their life.
    I wish I could be more specific. Obviously, my focus is on 
youth because it is a foundational element. But, you are right. 
We need a workforce system that is more permeable, that serves 
people throughout their lifetime.
    Senator Rosen. I think you are exactly right. Thank you for 
being here. Investing in people is always a good investment.
    Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
    The Chairman. I can say an Amen to that.
    Thank you guys. I know Senator Braun is trying to get back 
here, so I will briefly stall because I also know that he can--
you can get tied up on the Senate floor.
    I have a letter here from Governor Jared Polis, the 
Governor of Colorado, to our entire delegation, describing 
CareerWise and the importance of these programs and why we need 
to make sure, as the U.S. Senate, that we find the resources 
and the funding to make sure that we not only continue them, 
but can expand them.
    Without objection, I would like to submit for the hearing 
record this letter from Governor Polis to the Colorado 
delegation.

    (The information referred to can be found on pageXX]As I 
said, it asks for a shared vision between the Federal 
delegation and the state government; and urges support for 
robust workforce funding; for reauthorization of the National 
Apprenticeship Act; and also asks the Senate to support high-
quality apprenticeship models, such as we have seen today in 
both cases; that allow youths and adults to earn while they 
learn versus stopping work to upscale or receive additional 
training.
    I want to thank each of you. I know how busy you are, and 
all three of you, you are so impressive in different ways. And 
I think it really is a pleasure that you could all join us, and 
I could not appreciate your time more.
    I guess I do not see Senator--is he close? Okay. Well, 
then, we are going to let you off the hook.
    We will conclude our hearing today. Obviously, I would like 
to thank my colleague, Senator Braun, our Ranking Member, for 
helping us organize this.
    I want to especially thank our witnesses--Mr. Ginsburg, Ms. 
Navarro, Ms. Curry. You guys are doing the real work. You are 
changing the way this Country thinks about skills and learning 
in such a way that--and this is something we have talked about, 
Senator Braun and I have, trying to make sure that we have an 
arc that covers a person's entire lifetime and allows people to 
have a life that is continually enriched by additional skills 
and additional learning.
    Any Senators who have additional questions to ask--and I 
think Senator Braun does. He is going to be--he is going to 
punish me, I am sure, for closing this out. But, he can submit 
those questions to the record within 6 days, on September 30th 
at 5 p.m. And, the hearing record will also remain open until 
then for Members who wish to submit additional materials for 
the record.
    With that, the Committee stands adjourned. Thank you all.

                          ADDITIONAL MATERIAL

                                       Jared Polis,
                                         Governor Colorado.
                                                September 21, 2021,
Hon. Michael Bennet,
261 Russell Senate Building,
Washington, DC.
Hon. John Hickenlooper,
SR-B85 Russell Senate Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Representative Diana DeGette,
2111 Rayburn House Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Representative Ed Perlmutter,
1226 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC.
Representative Doug Lamborn,
2371 Rayburn House Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Representative Ken Buck,
2455 Rayburn House Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Representative Jason Crow,
1229 Longworth House Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Representative Joe Neguse,
1419 Longworth House Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Representative Lauren Boebert,
1609 Longworth House Office Building,
Washington, DC.

    Dear Colorado Congressional Delegation Members:

    Thank you for your leadership and continued partnership in putting 
Colorado on the path to economic recovery as a result of the impacts of 
the COVID-19 pandemic. As Congress debates investments in economic 
recovery and growth, I want to reiterate the importance these 
investments will have not only for our state and Nation's recovery, but 
also in planning strategically for the future. While Colorado is 
appreciative of the most recent aid provided by the American Rescue 
Plan Act, there exists the continued need for a shared vision between 
the Federal Delegation and State government on Colorado's just and 
equitable transition to workforce revitalization to strengthen our 
economy, create well-paying, local jobs, and improve the health and 
well-being of our communities as our state and Nation emerge from the 
pandemic.

    In Colorado, we are focusing on earn and learn models, such as 
apprenticeship, to support faster recovery efforts. Colorado partners 
are implementing a high-quality apprenticeship system with more than 
6,000 apprentices and an average wage of $29 per hour for Colorado 
apprentices. Before the pandemic, employers were struggling to find the 
skilled talent they needed. The pandemic has exacerbated the severe 
skills gap and apprenticeship is an innovative strategy to address our 
skills gaps.

    On Wednesday, September 22, 2021, the Senate HELP Subcommittee on 
Employment and Workplace Safety, chaired by Senator Hickenlooper, will 
discuss apprenticeship and how to support scaling this strategy across 
our country. Colorado's efforts regarding youth apprenticeship will be 
highlighted during the hearing testimony, which thanks to the 
leadership of then-Governor Hickenlooper in this area and continued 
under my administration focuses on the expansion of apprenticeship in 
industries, such as banking, finance, information technology and 
healthcare. Modern apprenticeship is a strategy for building a more 
inclusive economy by creating affordable, reliable, and equitable 
pathways directly from high school to good jobs. It is an evidence-
based education and workforce strategy whose success has been proven in 
countries around the world.

    I strongly urge you to support robust workforce funding in 
reconciliation and reauthorization of the National Apprenticeship Act 
in the Senate for Federal support of high quality apprenticeship models 
that allow youth and adults to earn-and-learn versus stopping out of 
work to upskill or reskill, and allow businesses to meet their talent 
needs.

    If Congress fails to act in the near term, economic opportunity 
will continue to be stunted by the lack of skilled workers for people 
to access dignified careers with upward mobility and meet the growing 
talent shortages for businesses across the country.

    Thank you again for your continued leadership and consideration. I 
look forward to continuing our partnership as we plan cohesively for 
the future of our state. My team and I stand ready to continue 
collaboration and secure additional relief for all Coloradans as we 
emerge from this challenging time.

            Sincerely,
                                               Jared Polis,
                                                  Governor,
                                         State of Colorado.
                                 ______
                                 
International Association of Sheet Metal, Rail and 
                            Transportation Workers,
                         1750 New York Avenue NW Suite 600,
                                            Washington, DC.
                                                September 22, 2021,
Hon. Patty Murray, Chair,
Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions,
428 Dirksen Senate Office Building,
Washington, DC.

    Dear Chair Murray:

    On behalf of our thousands of union members, the International 
Association of Sheet Metal, Air Rail and Transportation Workers 
(SMART), urges the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) 
Committee to support the expansion of Registered Apprenticeship 
Programs and invest in pipelines into these programs by swiftly passing 
the National Apprenticeship Act of 2021 (H.R. 447).

    SMART is one of North America's most dynamic and diverse unions. 
Our members produce and provide the vital services that move products 
to market, passengers to their destinations and ensure the quality of 
the air we breathe. With the Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning 
Contractors' National Association (SMACNA), SMART jointly sponsors the 
International Training Institute (ITI). The ITI operates 150 registered 
apprenticeship training centers across the U.S. and Canada serving over 
14,000 apprentices. The ITI supports registered apprenticeship and 
advanced career training for union workers in the sheet metal industry.

    Registered apprenticeship programs are the `gold standard' for our 
Nation's workforce. These programs provide participants with state-of-
the art training that results in valuable skills and credentials that 
help them secure employment and opportunities for advancement in a 
rewarding career. These programs are unique in that students ``earn-
while-they-learn.'' Students earn wages from their employers during 
training while receiving college credit toward their degree. These 
programs provide on-the-job learning and job-related classroom 
training, setting students up for success. This model of training and 
skills development helps meet industry demand, reduces unemployment 
rates across the country and actively promotes diversity and inclusion 
in the workplace.

    A skilled and trained workforce is essential to helping rebuild our 
crumbling infrastructure and recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. 
Congress should increase support for registered apprenticeship programs 
to help grow the U.S. economy and its trained workforce. While the 
registered apprenticeship model is a proven success, the law has not 
been meaningfully updated since it was enacted 83 years ago. H.R. 447--
the National Apprenticeship Act of 2021 provides an opportunity to 
modernize this important law. In February, the House passed this law, 
and we urge the Senate to follow.

    H.R. 447 invests more than $3.5 billion over 5 years in expanding 
opportunities and access to registered apprenticeships, pre-
apprenticeships and youth-apprenticeships in the U.S. It would codify 
and streamline existing standards that are vital to support 
apprentices, and would, for the first time, include youth 
apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship programs. The House Education and 
Labor Committee estimates the bill would result in the creation of 
nearly 1 million new registered apprenticeship opportunities and yield 
$10.6 billion in net benefits to U.S. taxpayers.

    We urge the Senate HELP Committee to increase support for the 
registered apprenticeship model by passing H.R. 447 as approved by the 
House. Taking this step will build a highly skilled, trained and 
productive workforce, help the U.S. recover from the COVID-19 pandemic 
and revitalize our economy.

            Sincerely,
                                               Mike Harris,
                                     Program Administrator,
                          International Training Institute.
                                 ______
                                 
    [Whereupon, the hearing was adjourned at 11:41 a.m.]

                                   [all]