Vocational Education: 2-Year Colleges Improve Programs, Maintain Access
for Special Populations (Letter Report, 07/26/95, GAO/HEHS-95-163).

Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO compared student
participation and changes in vocational education programs between the
1991 and 1994 school years, focusing on: (1) the extent to which 2-year
colleges have enhanced the quality of vocational education programs; and
(2) special population groups' participation in vocational education
programs and access to support services.

GAO found that: (1) many 2-year colleges have enhanced their vocational
education programs to reflect many of the priorities in the Perkins Act
amendments; (2) these colleges have moved aggressively to increase their
use of performance measures, such as placement rates, program completion
rates, and results of licensing exams, in program assessments; (3)
nearly all colleges surveyed are developing tech-prep programs; (4) some
desired changes in vocational education are developing slowly, such as
integrating academic and vocational education; (5) the percentage of
special population students enrolled in 2-year colleges and their
participation in vocational education programs remained unchanged
between the 1991 and 1994 school years, despite the removal of the
set-aside requirement; and (6) most colleges maintained or increased the
availability of support services for special population students between
the 1991 and 1994 school years.

--------------------------- Indexing Terms -----------------------------

 REPORTNUM:  HEHS-95-163
     TITLE:  Vocational Education: 2-Year Colleges Improve Programs, 
             Maintain Access for Special Populations
      DATE:  07/26/95
   SUBJECT:  Vocational education
             Education or training
             Disadvantaged persons
             Education program evaluation
             Employment or training programs
             Data collection operations
             Comparative analysis
             College students
             Junior colleges
IDENTIFIER:  Dept. of Education Vocational Education Program
             
**************************************************************************
* This file contains an ASCII representation of the text of a GAO        *
* report.  Delineations within the text indicating chapter titles,       *
* headings, and bullets are preserved.  Major divisions and subdivisions *
* of the text, such as Chapters, Sections, and Appendixes, are           *
* identified by double and single lines.  The numbers on the right end   *
* of these lines indicate the position of each of the subsections in the *
* document outline.  These numbers do NOT correspond with the page       *
* numbers of the printed product.                                        *
*                                                                        *
* No attempt has been made to display graphic images, although figure    *
* captions are reproduced. Tables are included, but may not resemble     *
* those in the printed version.                                          *
*                                                                        *
* A printed copy of this report may be obtained from the GAO Document    *
* Distribution Facility by calling (202) 512-6000, by faxing your        *
* request to (301) 258-4066, or by writing to P.O. Box 6015,             *
* Gaithersburg, MD 20884-6015. We are unable to accept electronic orders *
* for printed documents at this time.                                    *
**************************************************************************


Cover
================================================================ COVER


Report to Congressional Committees

July 1995

VOCATIONAL EDUCATION - 2-YEAR
COLLEGES IMPROVE PROGRAMS,
MAINTAIN ACCESS FOR SPECIAL
POPULATIONS

GAO/HEHS-95-163

Postsecondary Vocational Education


Abbreviations
=============================================================== ABBREV

  NAVE - National Assessment of Vocational Education
  ABC - Test

Letter
=============================================================== LETTER


B-255079

July 26, 1995

The Honorable Nancy Landon Kassebaum
Chairman
The Honorable Edward M.  Kennedy
Ranking Minority Member
Committee on Labor and Human Resources
United States Senate

The Honorable William F.  Goodling
Chairman
The Honorable William L.  Clay
Ranking Minority Member
Committee on Economic and
  Educational Opportunities
House of Representatives

Over the past two decades, economic changes, especially improvements
in technology, have created new opportunities for skilled workers. 
Many of these emerging occupations do not require a 4-year college
degree, but do call for specialized high-tech skills.  In this
context, vocational education becomes an especially important tool
for ensuring that entry-level workers are prepared for the labor
market. 

The Carl D.  Perkins Vocational Education Act (P.L.  98-524) provides
federal support for vocational education at both the secondary (high
school) and postsecondary levels.  Two-year colleges offer several
vocational education programs in fields as diverse as automotive
technology, nursing, culinary arts, computer-assisted drafting, and
electronics technology.  Although Perkins funds (about $1.3 billion)
account for a relatively small proportion of total vocational
education spending, some experts in vocational education view the
provisions of the Perkins Act Amendments of 1990 (P.L.  101-392) as a
driving force in setting vocational education priorities for the
nation.  These amendments encouraged several types of vocational
education approaches that are designed to provide students with a
better understanding of how schoolwork relates to the work place. 
The amendments also removed a requirement that 57 percent of Perkins
funds be set aside for students from special populations, including
economically disadvantaged students, students with disabilities, and
students with limited English proficiency.\1 At the time of the
amendments, some policymakers expressed concern that removal of the
set-aside requirement would reduce access to vocational education for
special population students. 

In response to a mandate in the amendments to examine the changes in
vocational educational programs and the participation of special
population students, we carried out two studies--one of secondary
schools and one of 2-year colleges.  An earlier report discussed
changes in vocational education at the high school level;\2 this
report completes the study of 2-year colleges.\3 We compared academic
year 1990-91,\4 before the amendments were in effect, with 1993-94,
after the amendments were in effect.  Specifically, we address the
following questions: 

  For vocational education programs, to what extent have colleges
     adopted approaches to enhance quality--such as (1) use of
     quality indicators for program assessment, (2) school-to-work
     transition activities, and (3) integration of academic and
     vocational learning? 

  For students in special population groups, what changes have taken
     place in (1) their participation in vocational-technical
     education programs and (2) the availability of support services? 

We collected information for this study through two surveys.  To
obtain information for 1990-91, and again for 1993-94, we mailed
questionnaires to a sample of 2-year public and private nonprofit
colleges.  For the colleges that responded to both surveys,\5 we
determined what changes had taken place (1) in vocational-technical
programs and (2) among students from special populations.  Although
we did not verify the self-reported data, to supplement our survey we
visited four 2-year colleges.  We did our work between November 1993
and April 1995 in accordance with generally accepted government
auditing standards.  (For further details on our scope and
methodology, see app.  I.)


--------------------
\1 In place of the set-aside requirement, the amendments directed
states to distribute Perkins funds so as to give priority to schools
or programs that serve higher concentrations of special population
students. 

\2 See Vocational Education:  Changes at High School Level After
Amendments to Perkins Act (GAO/HEHS-95-144, July 12, 1995). 

\3 We reported preliminary results of our studies in Vocational
Education:  Status in School Year 1990-91 and Early Signs of Change
at Secondary Level (GAO/HRD-93-71, July 16, 1993) and Vocational
Education:  Status in 2-Year Colleges in 1990-91 and Early Signs of
Change (GAO/HRD-93-89, Aug.  16, 1993). 

\4 In this report, all hyphenated years are school years. 

\5 About three-quarters of the institutions we sent questionnaires to
responded to both surveys.  We were unable to adjust sample weights
for nonresponse.  Consequently, our results may not be generalizable
to the universe of public and private nonprofit 2-year colleges and
institutes. 


   RESULTS IN BRIEF
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :1

As 2-year colleges have enhanced their vocational-technical programs,
their efforts have reflected many of the priorities outlined in the
Perkins amendments.  Colleges appear to have moved aggressively to
increase their use of performance measures--such as placement rates,
program completion rates, and results from state licensing exams--in
program assessments.  In addition, 3 years after the passage of the
Perkins amendments, nearly all colleges in our sample indicated that
they either offer or are developing tech-prep programs.  Other
desired changes, however, have been slower to develop.  Colleges
reported maintaining, but not accelerating, their efforts to
integrate academic and vocational education, such as incorporating
occupational concepts into academic curricula.  However, some
often-recommended approaches (such as academic and vocational faculty
teaching together in teams), while gaining acceptance, are still not
a standard part of vocational education programs. 

The removal of the set-aside requirement in the Perkins amendments
has not adversely affected enrollments of special population
students.  Special population students enrolled in 2-year colleges to
the same extent in fall 1990 and fall 1993, and participation by
special population students in vocational-technical programs remained
virtually unchanged over this period.  Furthermore, colleges reported
either increasing or maintaining the availability of support services
for special population students. 


   BACKGROUND
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :2

Vocational education prepares students for the labor market through
an organized sequence of courses that are directly related to
employment in jobs that do not require a bachelor's degree.  Because
jobs at every level require increased cognitive and technical skills,
vocational education programs face a continuing challenge to ensure
that students are fully prepared for an increasingly demanding labor
market. 

Vocational education programs are offered at both the high school and
the postsecondary school levels.  In 1989-90, enrollments in public
and private nonprofit 2-year colleges accounted for almost 70 percent
of all postsecondary vocational education enrollments.\6 In fall
1990, over 5 million students were enrolled in almost 1,200 public
and private nonprofit 2-year colleges. 

To strengthen vocational education programs, the Perkins amendments
encourage several approaches recommended by many education experts. 
For example, the amendments urge colleges to more closely integrate
academic and vocational instruction so that vocational education
students can develop a better appreciation of how academic learning
is related to job requirements.  Greater integration can be
accomplished in a number of ways.  For example, vocational education
students may be required to take academic courses as well as
vocational education courses, or academic and vocational faculty may
teach in teams. 

The amendments also encourage approaches designed to smooth the
transition from school to the work place.  For example, Perkins
funding in 1993-94 included $104 million for tech-prep programs,
which link high school vocational education programs to postsecondary
institutions in a coordinated program (2 years in high school and 2
years in college) leading to an associate degree or certificate. 


--------------------
\6 The other vocational education students are enrolled in
proprietary schools or 4-year colleges.  See National Assessment of
Vocational Education, Participation in and Quality of Vocational
Education, Final Report to Congress, Vol.  II, U.S.  Dept.  of
Education (July 1994), p.  41. 


   EFFORTS TO IMPROVE PROGRAM
   QUALITY SHOW PROGRESS, BUT USE
   OF SOME RECOMMENDED APPROACHES
   IS LAGGING
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :3

The Perkins amendments direct college recipients to enhance the
quality of vocational education by adopting certain approaches--such
as assessing program quality, developing tech-prep programs, and
integrating academic and vocational instruction.  The amendments
suggest that strategies like tech-prep will smooth the transition
from school to work for many young adults who do not pursue a 4-year
college degree.  We found most colleges were moving aggressively to
adopt some of these approaches to enhance program quality, especially
the development of tech-prep programs.  However, colleges have been
slower to implement other changes; for example, efforts to promote
integration of academic and vocational learning have remained at
their 1990-91 level. 


      2-YEAR COLLEGES INCREASE USE
      OF QUALITY MEASURES TO
      ASSESS VOCATIONAL EDUCATION
      PROGRAMS
---------------------------------------------------------- Letter :3.1

Between 1990-91 and 1993-94, 2-year colleges reported moving
aggressively to use quality measures in their program assessments. 
By 1993-94, over 90 percent of the colleges we surveyed reported
using placement rates and program completion rates in their
assessments (see fig.  1).  An increasing proportion of colleges
reported using a number of other performance measures such as program
retention rates (from 71 to 83 percent) and the results of state
licensing exams (from 78 to 84 percent).  Furthermore, almost 4 out
of 5 colleges reported using in their assessments measures of
employer satisfaction with those who had completed their vocational
education programs.  The Perkins amendments encourage the use of
quality measures in program assessments, but one college we visited
told us that its assessment program would have existed even without
the Perkins amendments because of state requirements. 

   Figure 1:  Reported Use of
   Selected Quality Indicators in
   Program Assessments, 1990-91
   and 1993-94

   (See figure in printed
   edition.)


      TECH-PREP PROGRAMS ALMOST
      UNIVERSALLY ADOPTED SINCE
      PERKINS AMENDMENTS
---------------------------------------------------------- Letter :3.2

The 2-year colleges in our sample have overwhelmingly adopted
tech-prep programs.  By the 1993-94 school year, over 95 percent of
these colleges either offered or were developing tech-prep programs,
compared with about 40 percent in 1990-91.  Roughly 80 percent of the
colleges offer formal 2+2 type programs in conjunction with high
schools.  Under this type of arrangement, the high school and college
agree on a coordinated vocational education program (2 years in high
school and 2 years in college) where students can earn postsecondary
credit for some courses taken while in high school.  Furthermore,
almost 3 out of 5 colleges include a work-based component, such as
co-ops, internships, and apprenticeships, in their tech-prep
programs.  Administrators at one 2-year college told us that their
tech-prep program predated the Perkins amendments, because the state
viewed tech-prep as a solution to the increasing dissatisfaction of
local employers with the quality of local workers. 


      2-YEAR COLLEGES SLOW TO
      STRENGTHEN INTEGRATION OF
      ACADEMIC AND VOCATIONAL
      INSTRUCTION
---------------------------------------------------------- Letter :3.3

For the most part, 2-year colleges neither increased nor decreased
their efforts to integrate academic and vocational instruction.  Most
colleges reported that they require vocational education students to
take certain academic courses.  But, in both 1990-91 and 1993-94,
only a minority of colleges incorporated academic instruction into
vocational curricula, designed special academic classes for
vocational students, or incorporated occupational concepts into
academic curricula.  The use of one recommended approach--team
teaching by academic and vocational faculty--more than doubled
between 1990-91 and 1993-94.  However, by 1993-94, fewer than one in
five colleges reported using this approach to a very great or great
extent.  Two of the colleges we visited reported that vocational
education students were required to take academic courses in math and
English, but that other efforts to integrate academic and vocational
instruction have been limited. 


   REMOVAL OF SET-ASIDE
   REQUIREMENTS DOES NOT APPEAR TO
   HAVE HURT SPECIAL POPULATION
   STUDENTS
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :4

The removal of the set-aside requirements in the Perkins amendments
raised concern among Members of Congress.  However, this change
appears to have had no adverse impact on special population students. 
Neither the level of enrollments by special population students nor
the availability of support services has decreased since fall 1990. 


      PARTICIPATION IN
      POSTSECONDARY VOCATIONAL
      EDUCATION BY SPECIAL
      POPULATION STUDENTS
      MAINTAINED
---------------------------------------------------------- Letter :4.1

Participation in vocational education programs by special population
students remained virtually unchanged between 1990-91 and 1993-94
(see fig.  2).  For example, almost 30 percent of vocational
education enrollments were economically disadvantaged students in
both 1990-91 and 1993-94.  Similarly, participation by students with
disabilities and students with limited English proficiency remained
at their 1990-91 levels (about 6 percent and 3 percent,
respectively).  The number of special population students increased
slightly, keeping pace with the increase in overall postsecondary
vocational education enrollments.  (For more information about
participation by special population students in postsecondary
vocational education programs, see app.  II.)

   Figure 2:  Participation in
   Postsecondary Vocational
   Education by Special Population
   Students, 1990-91 and 1993-94

   (See figure in printed
   edition.)


      AVAILABILITY OF SUPPORT
      SERVICES FOR SPECIAL
      POPULATION STUDENTS LITTLE
      CHANGED BY PERKINS
      AMENDMENTS
---------------------------------------------------------- Letter :4.2

Two-year colleges continued to provide most support services to
special population students at the same levels after the 1990 Perkins
amendments (see fig.  3).  Almost all 2-year colleges reported
offering remediation of basic skills (98 percent), tutoring (96
percent), and liaison with social services agencies (97 percent) to
their students.  The proportion of colleges offering support services
specifically for the disabled significantly increased between 1990-91
and 1993-94.  For example, the proportion providing an interpreter
for the hearing-impaired increased from 74 percent to 82 percent, and
the proportion providing a reader for the vision-impaired increased
from 73 percent to 84 percent.  Some disabled students we talked with
at selected colleges said they were satisfied with the availability
of support services.  (For more information on the availability of
support services, see app.  II.)

   Figure 3:  Availability of
   Selected Support Services,
   1990-91 and 1993-94

   (See figure in printed
   edition.)


   AGENCY COMMENTS
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :5

The Department provided comments on a draft of this report. 
Department officials stated that this is a very good report and
agreed with its contents and conclusions.  More importantly, based on
the information the report provides, in the coming years the
Department plans to concentrate on improving the integration of
academic and vocational education through its technical assistance
efforts and its grant to the National Center for Research in
Vocational Education.  (The Department's letter is in app.  IV.)


---------------------------------------------------------- Letter :5.1


Please call me on (202) 512-7014 if you or your staff have any
questions.  The major contributors to this report are listed in
appendix V. 

Linda G.  Morra
Director, Education and
  Employment Issues


SCOPE AND METHODOLOGY
=========================================================== Appendix I

The 1990 amendments to the Perkins Act require that we study the
effects of the amendments on access to and participation in
vocational education for certain special populations--students with
disabilities, disadvantaged students, and students with limited
English proficiency.  In our analysis we compared the baseline
academic year of 1990-91 (before the amendments took effect) with the
1993-94 academic year (after the amendments took effect). 

We addressed the following two questions: 

  With respect to vocational education programs, to what extent have
     colleges adopted approaches to enhance quality, such as (1) use
     of performance measures in program assessments, (2)
     school-to-work transition activities, and (3) the integration of
     academic and vocational instruction? 

  With respect to special population students, what changes have
     taken place (1) in their participation in vocational education
     programs and (2) in the availability of support services? 


   AVERAGE DIFFERENCES ACROSS
   COLLEGES USED TO MEASURE
   CHANGES
--------------------------------------------------------- Appendix I:1

To address our objectives, we created a panel database from two
surveys initially administered to a representative set of public and
private nonprofit 2-year colleges and institutes.  We developed a
questionnaire to obtain data on vocational program improvements,
enrollment estimates, program assessments, and funding.  We received
detailed information on the 1990-91 baseline year during the first
phase of our work and comparative information for 1993-94 during the
second phase.  For each of the two phases, we mailed the
questionnaire (with limited revisions for the second phase) to a
random sample of 577 public and private nonprofit 2-year colleges and
institutes.  We selected the sample from a universe of 1,126
institutions we compiled primarily by merging unduplicated membership
listings from the American Association of Community and Junior
Colleges and the American Technical Education Association.\1

We did not include in our universe providers of adult education
courses not associated with 2-year colleges or technical institutes
such as for-profit proprietary schools. 

We received responses to both questionnaires from 425 institutions,
for a response rate of 74 percent.  Since we did not know the
characteristics of the nonresponding institutions, we were unable to
adjust sample weights for nonresponse.  Therefore, our analysis is
based on the responses of the 425 institutions that responded to both
questionnaires, and the results may not be generalizable to the
universe of public and private nonprofit 2-year colleges and
institutes.\2 Furthermore, many institutions did not respond to all
items in the questionnaire.  Unless otherwise noted, our results for
an item are based on the responses of those institutions that
responded to the item in both questionnaires. 

The advantage to using the panel approach is that small changes in
the variables of interest are more easily identified than if separate
studies were made using two independent samples.\3 The major
disadvantage is that some of those surveyed will not respond to both
questionnaires, leading to a lower overall response rate.  By
comparing the data for just those schools that responded to both
questionnaires, we were able to focus on differences that occurred
between the two surveys uncontaminated by changes in the composition
of the sample.  We did not verify the information sent to us by the
colleges. 


--------------------
\1 The Department of Education confirmed that our approach of using
the membership listings would provide a sufficiently complete and
current universe of 2-year postsecondary institutions.  To identify
any additional colleges that were not members of the two primary
organizations, we reviewed a commercially available guide to 2-year
colleges and lists of selected vocational education conference
attendees. 

\2 If the nonrespondents are similar to the respondents, then our
sample is representative of the universe of nonprofit 2-year colleges
and institutes. 

\3 See Gilbert A.  Churchill, Marketing Research Methodological
Foundations, 5th Edition (Chicago:  Dryden Press, 1991), p.  152. 


   SITE VISITS SUPPLEMENTED THE
   QUESTIONNAIRE DATA
--------------------------------------------------------- Appendix I:2

To supplement the information obtained from our questionnaires, we
visited four colleges during the second phase:  Bessemer State
Technical College, Alabama; Del Mar College, Texas; Oakland Community
College, Michigan; and the Community College of Rhode Island.  At the
colleges, we interviewed administrators, faculty, staff, and students
with disabilities; and representatives of business and industry as
well as economic development agencies. 


SUPPLEMENTARY ANALYSIS
========================================================== Appendix II

This appendix contains supplementary tables and more detailed
information about changes in student participation, the availability
of support services, and quality measures and standards between the
1990-91 and 1993-94 school years.  The data presented in the
following sections compare changes only for those colleges and
institutes that responded to both our questionnaires.  As a result
the numbers and percentages reported may differ from those in our
1993 interim report, which reported on all colleges and institutes
that responded to our first questionnaire. 


   POSTSECONDARY COLLEGES AND
   INSTITUTIONS
-------------------------------------------------------- Appendix II:1

Most of the institutions in our sample described themselves as
community colleges or public technical colleges or institutes (see
table II.1).  On average, these institutions enrolled 4,812 students
in fall 1990 and 4,887 students in fall 1993.  In each academic year,
over half of the students were enrolled in vocational education
programs (55 percent in fall 1990 and 54 percent in fall 1993).  The
average Perkins basic grant received was $175,135 in the 1990-91
academic year and $224,022 in 1993-94.  For both the 1990-91 and
1993-94 academic years, the 2-year colleges and institutes in our
sample offered an average of 27 vocational-technical programs in
fields as diverse as automotive technology, nursing, culinary arts,
computer-assisted drafting, and electronics technology. 



                          Table II.1
           
               Types of Institutions in Sample

Type of institution                               Percentage
----------------------------------------  ------------------
Community college                                       62.5
Public technical college or institute                   18.4
Public junior college                                    5.2
Private junior college                                   7.8
Private technical college                                0.2
Private nonprofit institute                              5.0
Other                                                    0.9
------------------------------------------------------------

   COLLEGES' EFFORTS TO IMPROVE
   VOCATIONAL-TECHNICAL PROGRAMS
-------------------------------------------------------- Appendix II:2

We found that many colleges were making new efforts to improve the
quality of their vocational education programs.  Dramatic changes
were reported in the self-assessment process, where significantly
more colleges were gathering and using more information for assessing
their vocational-technical programs.  There was a sizable jump in the
proportion of colleges offering tech-prep programs.  In addition,
colleges maintained their focus on integrating academic and
vocational education, and on creating or strengthening linkages to
the business community. 


      ADDITIONAL DATA FOR
      ASSESSING PROGRAM QUALITY
------------------------------------------------------ Appendix II:2.1

Between 1990-91 and 1993-94, more colleges used quality measures in
self-assessments.  The proportion of colleges using various quality
measures increased between the times of our two surveys (see table
II.2).  These increases were statistically significant in most cases. 
By 1993, over 80 percent of the colleges in our sample reported using
student placement rates, student completion or graduation rates,
retention rates, state licensing exam results, and student
satisfaction in their self-assessments. 



                          Table II.2
           
               Use of Quality Measures in Self-
                          Assessment

                     (Numbers in percent)

Quality measure                            1990-91   1993-94
----------------------------------------  --------  --------
Placement rates                               77.2    90.0\a
Program completion or graduation rates        83.8    93.2\a
Program retention rates                       70.8    83.4\a
Starting salary of program completers         50.8      52.5
Increase in wages over 1 year                  4.9       8.0
Length of time to gain employment after       18.8    26.8\a
 program completion
Pretest-posttest of occupational              20.2    32.8\a
 competency gains
Pretest-posttest for academic competency      29.9    48.3\a
 gains
Percent of vocational-technical students      36.7    51.7\a
 going to 4-year institution
Results of state licensing exams              77.7    84.3\a
Employer satisfaction with those who          67.4    77.5\a
 complete program
Student satisfaction with education           78.2    86.7\a
------------------------------------------------------------
\a The difference between fall 1990 and fall 1993 is statistically
significant at the 0.05 level. 


      TECH-PREP PROGRAMS OFFERED
------------------------------------------------------ Appendix II:2.2

Before the Perkins amendments, about 40 percent of the colleges in
our sample reported offering tech-prep programs.  By 1993-94, over 95
percent of these colleges either offered or were developing tech-prep
programs.  Most of the colleges in our sample (over 70 percent) offer
tech-prep programs that involve formal agreements with high schools,
give college credit for certain courses taken in high school, offer
applied academic courses as well as integrating academic and
vocational courses, and involve high school courses (see table II.3). 
However, fewer colleges (about 60 percent) offer tech-prep programs
that have a work-based component. 



                          Table II.3
           
           Percentage of Colleges Offering Certain
            Characteristics of Tech-Prep Programs,
                           1993-94

Characteristic                                    Percentage
----------------------------------------  ------------------
Formal 2+2 (2 years in high school and 2                79.0
 years in college) arrangement with high
 school
Postsecondary credit given for courses                  80.4
 completed in high school
Curriculum includes applied academic                    78.8
 courses
Tech-prep courses integrate academic and                79.4
 vocational instruction
Tech-prep involves high-tech courses                    73.5
Work-based component, such as                           59.6
 apprenticeships, co-ops, and
 internships
------------------------------------------------------------

      INTEGRATING VOCATIONAL AND
      ACADEMIC INSTRUCTION
------------------------------------------------------ Appendix II:2.3

The colleges we surveyed generally maintained--but did not
increase--their efforts to integrate academic and vocational
instruction.  For the most part, there were no significant changes in
colleges' efforts to formally blend academic and vocational
instruction.  We observed significant increases, however, in the use
of one integration technique--academic and vocational faculty
teaching in teams.  The proportion of colleges that reported using
this method to a very great or great extent more than doubled (from
6.4 percent to 16.3 percent).  In both 1990-91 and 1993-94, the major
method used to integrate vocational and academic instruction was
teaching vocational-technical students academic skills in required
academic courses--about three-quarters of the colleges reported using
this method to a very great or great extent (see table II.4). 



                          Table II.4
           
               Percentage of Colleges Reporting
             Integrating Academic and Vocational-
            Technical Education to a Very Great or
                         Great Extent

Category                                   1990-91   1993-94
----------------------------------------  --------  --------
Academic skills were taught in required       85.8      77.9
 academic classes
Academic curriculum formally                  31.7      33.1
 incorporates occupational concepts
Academic skills instruction was formally      38.4      40.5
 incorporated into vocational-technical
 class curriculum
Special academic classes were designed        30.0      30.3
 specifically for vocational-technical
 programs
Academic and vocational faculty taught         6.4    16.3\a
 in teams
------------------------------------------------------------
\a The difference between fall 1990 and fall 1993 is statistically
significant at the 0.05 level. 


      TIES TO AREA BUSINESSES AND
      THE LOCAL COMMUNITY
------------------------------------------------------ Appendix II:2.4

The colleges in our sample maintained strong ties with area
businesses and the local community (see table II.5).  For example,
nearly all colleges (95 percent in the 1993-94 school year) sought
help from organizations in the local community to help develop or
modify the curriculum.  Over 80 percent of the colleges reported that
industry people taught at their college and advised students on the
skills needed in the work place, local organizations donated supplies
and equipment, local businesses provided work-based positions, and
local organizations and businesses assessed the quality of their
vocational-technical programs. 



                          Table II.5
           
                Percentage of Contributions by
            Organizations, Business, Agencies, and
           Groups to Vocational-Technical Education

Category                                   1990-91   1993-94
----------------------------------------  --------  --------
Faculty worked at local industry for          63.2      62.4
 their professional development
Industry people taught in the                 82.0      86.0
 institution
Helped develop/modify curriculum              93.1      95.0
Advised students on skills needed in          85.0      89.6
 work place
Donated money to a vocational-technical       60.3      63.0
 program
Donated material, supplies, or equipment      88.4      85.7
 to a vocational-technical program
Provided work-study/cooperative               87.2      87.4
 education/apprenticeship positions
Made facilities available to other than       62.6      61.8
 cooperative education students
Evaluated students for competency             45.5      49.0
 attainment
Helped develop competency standards           66.5      71.4
Assessed vocational-technical program         85.2      86.0
 quality
------------------------------------------------------------

   PARTICIPATION BY SPECIAL
   POPULATIONS IN VOCATIONAL
   EDUCATION PROGRAMS
-------------------------------------------------------- Appendix II:3

We found no significant changes in overall enrollments of special
population students between 1990-91 and 1993-94 (see table II.6). 
The average number of disabled students and students receiving Pell
grants (disadvantaged students) increased between 1990-91 and 1993-94
in the colleges we surveyed.  This increase in numbers also
represents a slight relative increase in enrollment by these two
special populations.  Enrollments by students with limited English
proficiency decreased in both absolute and relative terms (from 3.8
percent of total enrollments to 2.8 percent). 



                          Table II.6
           
                Average Enrollments of Special
            Population Students in 2-Year Colleges
                        and Institutes

                (Percentage of student body in
                         parentheses)

                                              Fall      Fall
Category                                      1990      1993
----------------------------------------  --------  --------
Students with disabilities                     179       226
                                             (5.2)     (5.8)
Students receiving Pell grants                 759       838
                                            (25.3)    (25.5)
Students with limited English                  339       219
 proficiency                                 (3.8)     (2.8)
------------------------------------------------------------
Note:  The difference between fall 1990 and fall 1993 is not
statistically significant at the 0.05 level. 

Enrollments by students from special populations in
vocational-technical programs increased both in absolute numbers and
as a percentage of the vocational education student body between
1990-91 and 1993-94 (see table II.7).  However, none of the changes
were statistically significant. 



                          Table II.7
           
                Average Enrollments of Special
              Population Students in Vocational-
            Technical Programs at 2-Year Colleges
                        and Institutes

             (Percentage of vocational education
                 student body in parentheses)

                                              Fall      Fall
Category                                      1990      1993
----------------------------------------  --------  --------
Students with disabilities                      96       105
                                             (6.0)     (6.7)
Students receiving Pell grants                 407       423
                                            (28.2)    (29.4)
Students with limited English                   88        92
 proficiency                                 (3.7)     (3.4)
------------------------------------------------------------
Note:  The difference between fall 1990 and fall 1993 is not
statistically significant at the 0.05 level. 


   AVAILABILITY OF SERVICES FOR
   SPECIAL POPULATION STUDENTS
-------------------------------------------------------- Appendix II:4

In general, 2-year colleges continued to provide support services to
special population students at the same levels in 1993-94 as they did
in 1990-91 (see table II.8).  We did find statistically significant
increases in services directed toward the disabled, such as services
for the hearing- and vision-impaired, and special equipment for the
disabled.  The colleges and institutes in our sample offered a wide
variety of support services for special population students in both
the 1990-91 and 1993-94 school years.  Virtually all institutions
offered testing and assessment, remediation services, and tutoring
services.  The services cited as least available were personal care
attendants (available at less than 30 percent of the colleges) and
transportation services for students with disabilities (available at
less than 40 percent of the colleges). 



                          Table II.8
           
             Availability of Support Services for
                 Special Population Students

             (Percentage of colleges with service
                          available)

Type of service                            1990-91   1993-94
----------------------------------------  --------  --------
Curriculum/course modification for            83.7      85.6
 students with disabilities
Testing/assessment                            97.6      98.4
Remediation of basic academic skills          97.9      98.2
Instructional aides                           85.8      89.3
Tutoring                                      96.8      96.0
English-as-second-language courses            66.7      67.5
Interpreter service for the hearing-          74.0    81.8\a
 impaired
Reader for vision-impaired                    73.2    84.0\a
Personal care attendant                       28.5      29.4
Special/modified equipment to                 79.7    88.8\a
 accommodate disabilities
Removal of physical barriers                  93.2    96.7\a
Transportation services for students          38.9      39.2
 with disabilities
Liaison with social service agencies          96.0      97.3
Day care for children of students             62.7      63.7
------------------------------------------------------------
\a The difference between 1990-91 and 1993-94 is statistically
significant at the 0.05 level. 

For the most part, the availability of job placement services did not
change between 1990-91 and 1993-94.  There were statistically
significant increases in the availability of career assessment,
career exploration, and mock job interviewing services.  Special
population students have access to a wide range of job placement
services at the colleges in our sample (see table II.9).  Nearly all
colleges offered career counseling, career assessment services,
career exploration services, listings of job openings, and resume
preparation services.  Very few colleges offered transportation to
interviews for special population students or job support groups
(less than 20 percent). 



                          Table II.9
           
            Availability of Job Placement Services
               for Special Population Students

             (Percentage of colleges with service
                          available)

Type of service                            1990-91   1993-94
----------------------------------------  --------  --------
Career counseling                             97.9      99.2
Career assessment                             93.4    97.1\a
Career exploration                            93.4    97.9\a
Mock job interviewing                         80.1    87.9\a
Job list or bank                              92.6      94.4
Job development                               67.3      69.7
Job coaching                                  53.5      55.4
Job mentoring                                 38.1      42.2
Job support groups                            28.3      28.0
Interview scheduling                          70.2      72.9
Transportation to interviews                  16.8      14.6
Preparation of resumes                        91.5      95.0
------------------------------------------------------------
\a The difference between 1990-91 and 1993-94 is statistically
significant at the 0.05 level. 


   MANY COLLEGES REPORT THAT
   PERKINS AMENDMENTS HAVE
   POSITIVE IMPACT
-------------------------------------------------------- Appendix II:5

Over 45 percent of the 2-year colleges in our sample reported that
the Perkins amendments improved their ability to increase services
and enhance program quality (see table II.10).  For example, many
colleges stated that the Perkins amendments helped them increase
their ability to purchase state-of-the-art equipment (47 percent),
extend services to special population students (60 percent), increase
access to vocational-technical programs by special population
students (49 percent), offer tutoring and remediation for
vocational-technical students (48 percent), improve the quality of
vocational-technical programs (49 percent), and develop tech-prep
programs (60 percent).  Although over 40 percent of the colleges said
that the amendments increased their ability to spend Perkins funds
where they are most needed, two-thirds of the colleges stated that
the amendments increased the amount of record keeping required by the
state to meet Perkins requirements. 



                         Table II.10
           
               Percentage of Colleges Reporting
            Increasing or Decreasing the Following
            Activities as a Result of the Perkins
                          Amendments

Category                                  Increase  Decrease
----------------------------------------  --------  --------
Your institution's ability to purchase        46.8      21.9
 state-of-the-art equipment
Your institution's ability to spend           42.9      28.2
 Perkins funds where needed most
Your institution's ability to plan            38.9      21.9
 vocational programs and use Perkins
 funds
The equity with which Perkins funding is      29.4      25.1
 allocated among institutions
The amount of record keeping required by      66.5       8.9
 state to meet Perkins requirements
The extent of services your institution       59.9      12.0
 offers vocational-technical students in
 special populations
The extent of services your institution       43.8      17.4
 offers vocational-technical students in
 general
The access special population students        48.7      11.6
 have to vocational-technical programs
Tutoring and remediation for vocational-      48.0      12.4
 technical students in general
Quality of vocational-technical programs      49.2      13.1
Your institution's program improvement        54.5      13.9
 efforts
Technical education standards that            31.9      11.1
 students must achieve
Academic education standards that             26.3      11.3
 students must achieve
Use of applied curricula in vocational-       35.4      11.1
 technical courses
Use of integration of academic and            40.8      11.1
 vocational-technical courses
Application of measures and standards to      49.3       9.7
 evaluate the effectiveness of programs
Development of tech-prep programs             59.8       8.6
Professional development opportunities        44.4      12.5
 for instructors and administrators
------------------------------------------------------------



(See figure in printed edition.)Appendix III
AGGREGATED RESPONSES TO SURVEY OF
POSTSECONDARY INSTITUTIONS
========================================================== Appendix II



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)




(See figure in printed edition.)Appendix IV
COMMENTS FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF
EDUCATION
========================================================== Appendix II


GAO CONTACTS AND STAFF
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
=========================================================== Appendix V

GAO CONTACTS

Henry E.  Felder, Assistant Director, (202) 512-7005
Thomas L.  Hungerford, Senior Economist, (202) 512-7028

STAFF ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Sarah Glavin, Senior Economist, commented on earlier drafts and
assisted with data analysis.  Joan K.  Vogel, Social Science Analyst,
and Leonard J.  Hamilton, Social Science Analyst, were responsible
for computer programming and data analysis.  Richard A.  McGeary,
Senior Evaluator, provided direction to the project at its earlier
stages. 

