Portman amendments included in Every Child Achieves Act of 2015

U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-Ohio), co-chair of the Senate Career and Technical Education (CTE) Caucus, announced Wednesday that several of his provisions passed the Senate as part of the Every Child Achieves Act of 2015 and are headed to the President for signature.

Portman’s Career Ready Act of 2015 will help ensure students are college and career-ready by strengthening school counseling programs and encouraging states to keep track of career readiness factors implemented in school districts. He authored this bipartisan legislation with U.S. Senator Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and the bill passed as part of the Every Child Achieves Act of 2015.
 
“While much focus is given to traditional college preparation, career readiness programs are also critical to help Ohio students obtain a job in a high-demand career field,” Portman said.  “Our bill will help to better prepare students for jobs in the 21st century, and I’m pleased it will now be law.”
 
The Career Ready Act of 2015 amends the Elementary and Secondary Schools Act (ESEA) to encourage states to keep track of school districts’ use of “career readiness indicators,” which are factors that demonstrate a student’s preparedness for postsecondary education and the workforce, such as CTE course completion and the number of students earning postsecondary credentials while in high school. Currently, all 50 states track districts’ efforts to instill academic knowledge for college preparation, but less than half of states publicly report on career readiness indicators. By tracking and publishing this data, businesses and workforce leaders will be better-informed about the level of career preparation in a given state or region. Additionally, the bill amends the current Elementary and Secondary School Counseling grant program to fund professional development for school counselors and train them to use information on the workforce needs of the local community to help guide students toward in-demand career paths.
 
The Career Ready Act has been endorsed by the Alliance for Excellent Education, the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), the Association for Career and Technical Education, and the National Association of State Directors of Career and Technical Education Consortium (NASDCTEc).

The second provision is to encourage greater college access for low-income students by allowing them to earn college credits in high school.
 
By providing students the opportunity to simultaneously pursue a high school diploma while earning college credits tuition-free, early college high schools and dual and concurrent enrollment programs improve secondary and postsecondary outcomes for students. Portman authored this bipartisan language with U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.) and it is based on the senators’ bill, the Go to High School, Go to College Act of 2015, which incentivizes early college high schools and dual enrollment programs.
 
“Today we took an important step to break down barriers for low-income students pursuing a college education,” Portman stated. “These provisions will allow students to get a head start on college courses in high school, therefore improving their chances of completing a college degree. This is an important part of helping low-income students succeed and I urge the President to quickly sign these measures.”
 

Despite recent increases in the nation’s high school graduation rate, the number of graduating students who place into remedial coursework in college is at a record high and more than 3.5 million jobs remain unfilled because employers cannot find workers with the necessary skills. The educational demands of the workforce are growing, and by 2018, two-thirds of the nation’s jobs will require at least some postsecondary education. The federal government must help states and districts tackle these challenges by ensuring increased access to high quality accelerated coursework that gives high school students a leg up on postsecondary education.

Finally, Portman included an amendment to provide recovery support services for students in schools and communities working to overcome drug addiction, which he authored with U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D- R.I.) to expand drug and violence prevention grants.
 
“Addiction is a common enemy that everyone should be willing to fight, and passage of my measure marks an important step in helping to address this problem in our homes, schools and communities,” Portman stated. “Preventing drug abuse and helping those who suffer from addiction is an issue that can break through partisan divides, and I am pleased this provision will now be law.
 
Portman discussed his amendment on the Senate floor earlier this year. 
 
Portman and Whitehouse are the authors of the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2015, which provide a series of incentives and resources designed to encourage states and local communities to pursue a full array of proven strategies to combat addiction. This legislation includes provisions to expand prevention and educational efforts—particularly aimed at teens, parents and other caretakers—to prevent the abuse drugs and to promote treatment and recovery.