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HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 961 FILED ON: 1/14/2025
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 637
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_________________
PRESENTED BY:
Kate Lipper-Garabedian
_________________
To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:
The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
An Act to create and expand student pathways to success.
_______________
PETITION OF:
NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Kate Lipper-Garabedian32nd Middlesex1/14/2025 1 of 6
HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 961 FILED ON: 1/14/2025
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 637
By Representative Lipper-Garabedian of Melrose, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No.
637) of Kate Lipper-Garabedian for legislation to establish a workforce skills cabinet to serve as
a cross-agency governance structure to improve and expand workforce skills and college and
career readiness. Education.
[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
SEE HOUSE, NO. 3009 OF 2023-2024.]
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_______________
In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
(2025-2026)
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An Act to create and expand student pathways to success.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:
1 Chapter 6 of the General laws, as appearing in the 2018 official edition, is hereby
2amended by inserting, after Section 17A, the following section:-
3 “Section 17B. (a) There is hereby established within the office of the governor a
4workforce skills cabinet, hereinafter referred to as the “cabinet,” to serve as a cross-agency
5governance structure for the purpose of advising the governor and relevant executive branch
6agencies as well as the general court, and aligning the programs and policies of the executive
7offices of labor and workforce development, education and housing and economic development
8to improve and expand workforce skills and college and career readiness to meet the varying
9current and future needs of the Commonwealth and its regions. 2 of 6
10 (b) The cabinet shall consist of:
11 1. the secretary of the executive office of education;
12 2. the secretary of the executive office of labor and workforce development;
13 3. the secretary of the executive office of housing and economic development;
14 4. the commissioner of the department of elementary and secondary education;
15 5. the commissioner of the department of higher education;
16 6. the chairperson of the workforce development board established by section 7 of
17chapter 23H of the MGL;
18 7. the executive director of the Massachusetts workforce association;
19 8. three members appointed by the governor representing business and industry
20who-
21 (i)are owners of businesses, chief executive or operating officers of businesses, or
22other executives or employees with optimum policymaking or hiring authority; or,
23 (ii)represent organizations that represent businesses or industries;
24 9. two members appointed by the governor who represent the perspectives and
25interests of current or future workforce participants, including the parents of school age students;
26and,
27 10.three members appointed by the governor from amongst other college and career
28readiness and workforce development stakeholder groups. 3 of 6
29 (c) The appointed members shall each serve three year terms at the pleasure of the
30governor and serve without compensation.
31 (d) The governor shall select an individual from amongst its membership to chair the
32cabinet. The chair shall serve at the pleasure of the governor.
33 (e) The cabinet shall meet monthly and their meetings shall be public.
34 (f) In addition to, and within, the general mission of the cabinet as stated in subparagraph
35(a), the cabinet shall:
36 (i) facilitate alignment, collaboration, strategic planning, and joint execution among
37participating state agencies, offices, and other stakeholders around the development of workforce
38development strategies for the Commonwealth and the expansion of college and career readiness
39pathways for all, with an emphasis on high school programs;
40 (ii) conduct a biennial return on investment audit report of the state’s public education
41high school college and career pathways programs that shall determine the alignment of existing
42career pathways offerings, including career technical education and vocational programs, with
43state and regional labor market plans, employer demand, postsecondary degree or certificate
44programs, and industry-valued credentials. Said audit report shall a) identify the pathways
45offerings that are linked to high-skill, higher-wage, in-demand occupations; b) evaluate student
46participation and outcomes (such as postsecondary attainment, employment status, and wage
47earnings) associated with each pathways program; c) provide information that can be used to
48identify career pathway programs that are not aligned with labor market need and provide
49recommendations for phasing out said programs with a plan for shifting resources to pathway
50programs necessary to ensure the state’s future competitiveness; d) provide information about the 4 of 6
51availability, quality and student outcomes of pathways offerings to support student and their
52families in making informed decisions about their educational options. This audit report should
53include an analysis regarding the equity of access to college and career pathways programs in the
54state’s public high schools and recommendations for improving access to all student groups
55regardless of student background or geographic location. The audit report shall include
56recommendations to improve labor market alignment, quality, student access and outcomes, and
57operational efficiencies across the state’s pathways program offerings. The report shall be made
58available to the public and presented to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
59as well as the legislature’s joint committee on education.
60 (iii) develop and release an annual report on the status of the state’s job market at the
61time of the report and an analysis of the labor market need for the ensuing five year period
62necessary to ensure the economic competitiveness of the Commonwealth. Said report should
63include recommendations on what state policies and investments the state will need to make to
64ensure the state has the workforce it will need to address the future labor market need, including
65identification of those business sectors poised to experience growth and anticipated gaps in
66filling the employment need in those fields; a progress report on the status of career pathway
67programs in the state’s high schools, in higher education and in workforce training programs in
68targeted industries; and an analysis of data regarding the skills required for key industry jobs.
69The cabinet shall distribute this report, along with any related recommendations, to the office of
70the governor and relevant state agencies for the purpose of guiding decision-making in said
71agencies with regard to policy adoption and development and state funding investments. The
72report shall also be submitted to the legislature’s committees on ways and made available to the
73public no later than December 31st in any year. 5 of 6
74 (iv) oversee the improvement of data collection and reporting on pathways programs by
75facilitating data linkages between agencies, creating mechanisms to analyze meaningful growth
76data by specific pathways programs, and building new public-facing data tools;
77 (v) advise the departments of elementary and secondary education and higher education
78with regard to student acquisition of the employability skills that should be achieved in their
79preparation for career success; and,
80 (vi) submit an annual report to the chairs of the house and senate committees on ways and
81means, the chairs of the joint education committee, and the chairs of the joint committee on
82higher education detailing the Cabinet’s work over the past year.
83 (g) The workforce skills cabinet shall be charged with developing and maintaining a set
84of strategic goals for the Commonwealth, its agencies and education and training institutions, in
85coordination with the governor’s office and in consultation with the departments of elementary
86and secondary education and higher education, regarding the expansion of college and career
87pathway programs for students that enhance and improve the likelihood of successful outcomes
88for high school graduates in college and career endeavors. The goals shall include the
89achievement of universal access for all of the state’s high school students to said pathway
90programs, which shall include, but not be limited to, early college programs, vocational/technical
91education programs, innovation pathway programs, STEM tech career academies, and other
92similar programs and courses of study. The cabinet will include, in its consideration of the
93establishment of said goals, that each pathway program should contain at least one, or more, of
94the following elements:
95 (i)the ability of students to earn college credit while in high school; 6 of 6
96 (ii)the ability of students to earn industry-recognized credentials in high school;
97 (iii)the ability of students to participate in a meaningful and relevant work-based
98learning experience while in high school; and,
99 (iv)the ability of students to receive dedicated career counseling while in high school.
100 The cabinet will develop, in consultation with the governor’s office and the departments
101of elementary and secondary education and higher education, a plan for the achievement of the
102goals established in accord with subsection (a) that includes strategies to be implemented,
103timelines for meeting interim outcomes and final outcome, resources to be allocated, and any
104other consideration, including an accounting of the persistent inequities inherent in not achieving
105said goals. The cabinet will report annually on its progress and that of the Commonwealth and its
106agencies in achieving universal student access to student learning pathways and establish
107milestone outcomes toward that achievement whose progress will be reported on as part of its
108annual reporting. The cabinet will undertake periodic review and updating of said goals to ensure
109continued progress in meeting the state’s needs with regard economic competitiveness and
110workforce preparation.
111 (h) The cabinet shall be staffed by a full time Executive Director who shall be an
112employee of the office of the governor, selected in consultation with the cabinet.
113 (i) The cabinet shall have the ability to receive funding to hire additional technical and
114administrative staff, to award contracts and grants, and to take actions necessary to fulfilling its
115responsibilities stated herein or as otherwise assigned by the governor.