[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 76 (Thursday, June 3, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1021-E1022]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 INTRODUCTION OF THE VOCATIONAL AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION FOR THE FUTURE 
                                  ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. MICHAEL N. CASTLE

                              of delaware

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, June 3, 2004

  Mr. CASTLE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this bill, which I am 
offering to ensure the continued success of vocational and technical 
education programs into the future. The bill, the Vocational and 
Technical Education for the Future Act, includes a number of positive 
reforms that will help strengthen vocational and technical education 
programs and improve opportunities for students.
  Vocational and technical education, authorized under the Carl D. 
Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act and known as the Perkins 
program, aims to prepare youth and adults for the future by building 
their academic and technical skills and ensuring they are equipped to 
proceed with postsecondary education or pursue other avenues. This 
program represents one of the largest federal investments in our 
Nation's high schools and is a key component of our secondary and 
postsecondary education systems.
  According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 66 percent 
of all public secondary schools have one or more vocational and 
technical education programs with approximately 96 percent of high 
school students taking at least one vocational and technical course 
during their secondary studies. Vocational and technical education is 
an important postsecondary option as well. Over 2,600 postsecondary 
sub-baccalaureate institutions, such as community colleges, technical 
institutes, skill centers, and other public and private colleges, also 
offer vocational and technical education.
  Reforms made to the Perkins Act in 1998 increased the focus on 
ensuring that participating students at both the secondary and 
postsecondary levels acquired academic and technical skills, as well as 
completed their respective programs and transitioned into successful 
employment or further education. Some progress has been made as states 
have created an initial performance accountability system and the focus 
on academic performance among students participating in vocational and 
technical education courses has been strengthened.
  Today, I am offering the Vocational and Technical Education for the 
Future Act to build on the 1998 reforms, and ensure vocational and 
technical education continues to prepare students for whatever they 
choose to pursue upon graduation. Should a student choose to proceed 
with postsecondary education, enter the military, or pursue other 
opportunities, the goal of the Perkins program must be to prepare 
students with the right combination of academic and technical skills so 
that they may succeed in whatever path they choose.
  The bill I am offering includes a number of reforms designed to 
enhance achievement and accountability, streamline programs so that 
states may better utilize federal dollars, and provide a model sequence 
of courses that will enhance vocational and technical education 
programs and partnerships.
  The bill include important steps to increase accountability, and 
emphasizes continued improvement in student achievement. The bill 
establishes separate performance indicators for secondary and 
postsecondary students, improving on current law by recognizing the 
need for distinct measures to be applied to differing students. The 
bill also requires states to make continued and substantial improvement 
in the academic and vocational and technical achievement of students, 
and establishes incentive grants for states exceeding their own high 
standards.

  To increase accountability and achievement at the local level, the 
bill requires local programs to establish local adjusted levels of 
performance similar to current statewide performance level 
expectations. The Vocational and Technical Education for the Future Act 
also establishes local improvement plans and permits states to apply 
sanctions for local recipients that, after receiving technical 
assistance, fail to show improvement or continually do not meet local 
adjusted levels of performance.
  To better streamline and target federal funding, the bill combines 
funding for the TechPrep and Perkins state grant programs into one 
program funding stream, and incorporates the activities of Tech-Prep 
into the basic grant program. This consolidation will increase 
flexibility for states, streamline funding, and ensure current 
activities continue to exist while the program as a whole is updated to 
meet the challenges of the future.
  The Vocational and Technical Education for the Future Act includes an 
important new element that will build upon efforts to coordinate 
secondary and postsecondary vocational and technical education. The 
bill requires states to develop model sequences of courses for 
vocational and technical programs to be used as an option at the local 
level. These model sequences of courses will incorporate both secondary 
and postsecondary elements, include rigorous and challenging academic 
and vocational and technical content in a coordinated, nonduplicative 
progression of courses, and lead to a degree or credential.
  Technology and economic competition are combining in ways that are 
changing the nature of work and are redefining the American workplace. 
The need for higher literacy, numeracy, communication, and 
interpersonal skills in the workplace has grown over the past decade 
and will continue to be an important factor in the workplace in the 
future. The skills needed to be successful in postsecondary education 
are similar to the skills that are required by employers. The need for 
a strong academic and technical background makes it imperative that the 
current vocational and technical education system adapt in order to 
provide the knowledge and skills needed to succeed.
  The bill I am offering today seeks to meet the challenges of a 
changing economy and

[[Page E1022]]

workplace by building upon the current successes of vocational and 
technical education. Our challenge is to ensure that all vocational and 
technical education students have access to programs that are 
sufficiently rigorous in both their academic and technical content, as 
well as provide clear connections with the education and training 
beyond high school that most Americans need for continued workplace 
success. I believe this bill fulfills those high standards, and I am 
pleased to be offering it today.

                          ____________________