| 1 | 1 | | 87R6590 KJE-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Powell S.B. No. 663 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to the development of and report on a tri-agency |
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| 8 | 8 | | work-based learning strategic framework by the Texas Workforce |
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| 9 | 9 | | Commission, the Texas Education Agency, and the Texas Higher |
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| 10 | 10 | | Education Coordinating Board. |
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| 11 | 11 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 12 | 12 | | SECTION 1. Subtitle B, Title 4, Labor Code, is amended by |
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| 13 | 13 | | adding Chapter 318 to read as follows: |
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| 14 | 14 | | CHAPTER 318. TRI-AGENCY WORK-BASED LEARNING STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK |
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| 15 | 15 | | Sec. 318.001. TRI-AGENCY WORK-BASED LEARNING STRATEGIC |
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| 16 | 16 | | FRAMEWORK. (a) The commission, the Texas Education Agency, and the |
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| 17 | 17 | | Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board jointly shall develop a |
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| 18 | 18 | | strategic framework to encourage work-based learning in this state. |
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| 19 | 19 | | Each agency shall appoint an existing agency employee to lead the |
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| 20 | 20 | | development of the framework. |
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| 21 | 21 | | (b) Not later than December 31, 2022, the commission, the |
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| 22 | 22 | | Texas Education Agency, and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating |
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| 23 | 23 | | Board jointly shall prepare and submit to the legislature a report |
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| 24 | 24 | | on the framework developed under Subsection (a). The report must: |
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| 25 | 25 | | (1) define "work-based learning opportunity" in a |
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| 26 | 26 | | comprehensive manner that includes a variety of high-quality and |
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| 27 | 27 | | rigorous work-based learning opportunities, such as youth |
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| 28 | 28 | | apprenticeships, internships, simulated workplaces, service |
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| 29 | 29 | | learning, and virtual workspaces; |
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| 30 | 30 | | (2) determine common language, definitions, and |
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| 31 | 31 | | quality standards to be used by each agency for work-based learning |
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| 32 | 32 | | opportunities that span secondary and postsecondary education; |
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| 33 | 33 | | (3) establish methods of identifying student and adult |
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| 34 | 34 | | learner skills and competencies that are aligned with industry |
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| 35 | 35 | | demand and talent needs, with a particular focus on high-demand, |
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| 36 | 36 | | high-growth industries that offer livable wages; |
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| 37 | 37 | | (4) align priorities, programs, and goals across the |
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| 38 | 38 | | agencies to ensure the development of cohesive work-based learning |
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| 39 | 39 | | strategies that strengthen workforce pipelines; |
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| 40 | 40 | | (5) identify strategies for the agencies to partner |
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| 41 | 41 | | with public primary and secondary schools, public institutions of |
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| 42 | 42 | | higher education, businesses, workforce organizations, and |
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| 43 | 43 | | relevant collaboratives to implement high-quality project-based |
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| 44 | 44 | | learning in middle and junior high school classrooms and work-based |
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| 45 | 45 | | learning experiences in high school and postsecondary education; |
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| 46 | 46 | | (6) provide methods of supporting partnerships |
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| 47 | 47 | | between public institutions of higher education to create |
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| 48 | 48 | | additional pathways for postsecondary work-based learning |
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| 49 | 49 | | credentials of value to high-demand, high-growth industries and |
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| 50 | 50 | | that lead to quality career opportunities; |
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| 51 | 51 | | (7) articulate the roles and responsibilities of |
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| 52 | 52 | | public primary and secondary schools, public institutions of higher |
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| 53 | 53 | | education, and workforce boards and organizations in implementing |
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| 54 | 54 | | high-quality work-based learning programs and partnerships; |
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| 55 | 55 | | (8) provide a strategy for identifying industry-led |
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| 56 | 56 | | high-quality training models that promote and replicate high-need |
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| 57 | 57 | | jobs that lead to equitable outcomes for individuals and can be |
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| 58 | 58 | | scaled across industries and regions; |
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| 59 | 59 | | (9) identify opportunities to improve and incentivize |
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| 60 | 60 | | regional coordination across the state to better reflect regional |
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| 61 | 61 | | workforce needs and eliminate duplicative programs, including by |
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| 62 | 62 | | providing state support to build capacity in regional intermediary |
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| 63 | 63 | | organizations to facilitate education-workforce partnerships and |
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| 64 | 64 | | programs; |
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| 65 | 65 | | (10) identify streamlined data collection models for |
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| 66 | 66 | | primary, secondary, and postsecondary education and workforce |
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| 67 | 67 | | accountability that can be disaggregated as necessary to evaluate |
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| 68 | 68 | | and increase equity in access to high-quality programs, with a |
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| 69 | 69 | | focus on underrepresented populations; and |
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| 70 | 70 | | (11) include recommendations to improve the |
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| 71 | 71 | | coordination of funds and awarding of grants among the agencies to |
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| 72 | 72 | | eliminate barriers to entry for regional partners. |
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| 73 | 73 | | Sec. 318.002. EXPIRATION. This chapter expires September |
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| 74 | 74 | | 1, 2023. |
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| 75 | 75 | | SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021. |
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