California Senate Bill SB747 Amended / Bill

 BILL NUMBER: SB 747AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 13, 2009 INTRODUCED BY Senator Romero  (   Coauthor:   Senator   Hancock   )  FEBRUARY 27, 2009  An act relating to career technical education.   An a   ct to add and repeal Section 8157 of the Education Code, relating to career technical education.  LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SB 747, as amended, Romero. Career technical education: aerospace.  pilot preapprentice aerospace machining program.  Existing law establishes the Health Science and Medical Technology Project, administered by the State Department of Education to provide competitive grant funds to California public schools to enhance existing or establish new health-related career pathway programs. This bill would state  the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation to   findings and declarations of the Legislature regarding California's aerospace workforce and trends in California's high schools. This bill would  create a pilot  program for career technical education or preapprenticeship curriculum that consists of coursework in aerospace machining technology and maintenance with mathematics and science applications curriculum   preapprentice aerospace machining program, implemented by the California Community Colleges system, to provide career technical education to high school pupils in the form of machining and related curriculum that can be applied to various manufacturing industries in California, including, but not limited to, aerospace manufacturing  , as specified.  The program would be funded by a combination of public and private fu   nds that would be deposited into the Machinist Investment Fund, which would be created by this bill. Grants would be competitively awarded to community colleges based upon specified criteria, including their ability to address the existing local and regional industry manufacturing needs, while providing meaningful career technical education opportunities for at-risk youth. This bill would require the California Community Colleges system to develop preapprenticeship curriculum in   aerospace technology, and machining technology generally. This bill would provide that its provisions would remain in effect until January 1, 2015.  Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no   yes  . State-mandated local program: no. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:  SECTION 1.   The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the following:   (a) Despite the departure of several companies since the military base closures of the early 1990s, the aerospace industry remains a vital component of California's economy, representing at least 370,000 jobs statewide and a minimum of thirty-two billion dollars ($32,000,000,000) annually in gross domestic product.   (b) There will be a dearth of skilled machinists and technicians to work in the aerospace industry as the baby boomers begin to retire over the next decade.   (c) The aerospace industry is currently addressing its labor needs by luring skilled labor away from competing companies.  (d) The highly skilled labor sought by the aerospace industry is represented by a finite, aging pool of employees who, under current conditions, will not be readily replaced by younger workers.   (e) The continued growth of the aerospace industry is pivotal to California's future prosperity.   (f) Unless the Legislature acts to address labor workforce needs in this sector, the aerospace industry will continue to leave California or import a far greater proportion of foreign labor, in either case, causing significant damage to the state's economy.   (g) California's high schools are struggling with a dropout rate of 21 percent.   (h) A significant factor in California's dropout rate is the existence of curriculum that does not engage pupils with some immediate, real-world application.   (i) Pupils who drop out of high school are often unable to find suitable entry-level employment and have little chance of continuing on to higher education, and there is a strong chance that they will ultimately join California's prison population, given the statistic that at least two-thirds of the current inmate population does not possess a high school diploma.   (j) The dropout rate is likely to hold, and possibly worsen, unless the state acts to provide hands-on high school curriculum with cross-over mathematics and science applications, that also provides an avenue to both higher education in related disciplines, and to skilled, high-wage employment.   SEC. 2.   Section 8157 is added to the   Education Code   , to read:   8157. (a) There is hereby established a pilot preapprentice aerospace machining program that shall provide career technical education to high school pupils in the form of machining and related curriculum that can be applied to various manufacturing industries in California, including, but not limited to, aerospace manufacturing. (b) The program shall be funded by a combination of public and private funds, specifically federal funds made available to the states as part of the 2009 stimulus package, as well as private nonprofit and private corporate funds. All funds appropriated for the purposes of this program shall be deposited into the Machinist Investment Fund, which is hereby created. (c) Community colleges, in partnership with local, workforce investment boards, employers, and high schools, shall apply for grants that shall be competitively awarded based upon a number of criteria, including, but not limited to: (1) Likelihood of meeting the objectives of the program, specifically, ability to address the existing local and regional industry manufacturing needs, while providing meaningful career technical education opportunities for at-risk youth that are likely to lead to employment after participation and to position pupils for admission to additional higher education in a related field. (2) Whether the adopted preapprenticeship curriculum in aerospace technology, and machining technology generally, conforms to the curriculum developed by the California Community Colleges system pursuant to subdivision (c). (3) Inclusion of an aggressive outreach plan demonstrating the degree to which the pupils targeted to receive instruction may be considered at risk, based upon factors such as prior academic achievement, socioeconomic background, and school disciplinary record. Special weight shall be given to the specific media employed to reach the target pupil population. (d) The program shall be implemented by the California Community Colleges system which shall develop preapprenticeship curriculum in aerospace technology, and machining technology generally. It shall also identify the appropriate community college campuses for implementation of the program based upon criteria which shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following: (1) The proximity to aerospace and other manufacturers with machining labor needs. (2) The ability of the community college campus or of a regional occupational centers to provide sufficient in-house expertise and laboratory facilities to teach the required curriculum. (3) The willingness and availability of a local machinists union to actively participate in program-related activities, including, but not limited to, technical assistance for curriculum development, mentoring, and recruiting pupils as future journeymen upon completion of the preapprentice curriculum. (4) Whether there are opportunities to build on existing partnerships with local high schools in the region. (e) Community college campuses selected for receipt of a competitive grant in consultation with area high schools, shall identify the location at which instruction shall occur, whether on the high school campus, at a regional occupation center, or at a community college. Factors such as availability of curriculum, instructors, lab facilities, and transportation may be considered. (f) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2015, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2015, deletes or extends that date.   SECTION 1.   It is the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation to create a pilot program for career technical education or preapprenticeship curriculum specifically geared toward high school pupils. The pilot program would consist of coursework in aerospace machining technology and maintenance with mathematics and science applications curriculum, and that will meet employer needs in the aerospace industry, thus strengthening California's economy. Instruction would occur at community colleges and position pupils to pursue higher education in related math or science fields, or to go directly into an apprenticeship program with an aerospace employer with the ultimate goal of employment in the aerospace industry or another related field.