[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 134 (Thursday, September 18, 2014)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5787-S5788]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. KAINE (for himself, Ms. Baldwin, and Mr. Portman):
  S. 2867. A bill to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide 
for the preparation of career and technical education teachers; to the 
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
  Mr. KAINE. Mr. President, school districts across the nation are 
facing serious shortages in high-quality career and technical 
education, CTE, teachers. When CTE teachers have real-world experience 
in a related industry before entering the classroom, students not only 
benefit from their hands-on knowledge, but also look to them as career 
role models. Through grant in the Higher Education and Opportunity Act 
of 2008, many teacher residency partnerships already exist between 
postsecondary institutions and local schools to train prospective 
educators, but none are CTE focused.
  This is why I am pleased to introduce with my colleagues, Senator 
Baldwin and Senator Portman, the Creating Quality Technical Educators 
Act, which would create a CTE teacher-training grant partnership to 
give aspiring CTE teachers the preparation necessary to mirror their 
success in the business world with that in the classroom. The Creating 
Technical Education Act will foster CTE teacher training partnerships 
between high-needs secondary schools and postsecondary institutions to 
create a 1-year residency initiative for prospective teachers and 
includes teacher mentorship for a minimum of 2 years.
  This bipartisan bill amends the Higher Education Act and would give 
aspiring CTE teachers the experience necessary to succeed in the 
classroom,

[[Page S5788]]

where students can benefit from their work experience and credibility. 
The Creating Quality Technical Educators Act would take a robust 
proactive approach to recruit and train high-quality CTE teachers. In 
addition to midcareer professionals in related technical fields, CTE 
teacher residencies would target candidates who are recent college 
graduates or veterans or currently licensed teachers with a desire to 
transition to a CTE focus.
  I am pleased we are beginning to see a renaissance of interest in 
career and technical education, but we have to recruit and train 
talented teachers to meet this rising demand for CTE. The Creating 
Quality Technical Educators Act will take an important step to ensure 
students in communities of all sizes have access to high-quality CTE 
teachers and career-training programs.
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