Reference is to the bill as introduced.
Amend the bill, as and if amended, by striking all after the enacting clause and inserting:
/ SECTION 1. Section 13-1-2030 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 252 of 2016, is amended to read:
"Section 13-1-2030.
(A) There is established the
'Coordinating Council for Workforce Development' which is
created to engage in discussions, collaboration, and information
sharing concerning the State's ability to prepare and train
workers to meet current and future workforce needs. The
coordinating council shall be is
comprised of the following members:
(1)
the Secretary of the Department of Commerce or his
designee;
(2)
the State Superintendent of Education or his designee;
(3)
the Executive Director of the State Board for Technical
and Comprehensive Education or his designee;
(4)
the Executive Director of the Department of Employment and
Workforce or his designee;
(5)
the Executive Director of the Commission on Higher
Education or his designee;
(6)
the president or provost of a research university who
shall be is selected by the presidents
of the research universities;
(7)
the president or provost of a four-year college or
university who shall be is selected by
the presidents of the four-year universities;
(8)
the president of a technical college who shall
be is appointed by the Chairman of the State
Board for Technical and Comprehensive Education;
(9)
a person appointed by the Superintendent of
Education who has particularized the following
members appointed by the State Superintendent of Education, who
have expertise regarding Chapter 59, Title 59, the South
Carolina Education and Economic Development Act:
(a)
a school district superintendent;
(b)
a school counselor;
(C)
a career and technology education director;
and
(10)
a representative from the business community appointed by
the President of the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce.
(B)(1) The coordinating
council shall:
(a)
develop and implement procedures for sharing information
and coordinating efforts among stakeholders to prepare the
State's current and emerging workforce to meet the needs of the
State's economy. The primary workforce focus of the
council shall be on persons over age twenty-one;
(b)
make recommendations to the General Assembly concerning
matters related to workforce development that exceed the council
members' agencies' scope of authority to implement and
legislation is required;
(c)
recommend, to the General Assembly, programs intended to
increase student access to and incentivize workforce training
within state training programs or through programs offered by
businesses through scholarships, grants, loans, tax credits, or
other programs documented to be effective in addressing current
and future workforce needs;
(d)
develop a method for identifying and addressing long-term
workforce needs;
(e)
conduct an ongoing inventory of existing workforce
programs to identify duplications among and within the programs
and identify ineffective programs. The council may make
recommendations concerning the appropriate actions necessary to
eliminate duplication, improvements to ineffective programs so
that the programs can achieve the desired result, or the
elimination of programs that no longer meet workforce needs;
(f)
advise appropriate agencies and governing boards to
ensure the components of Chapter 59, Title 59, are implemented
with fidelity to provide a better prepared workforce, student
success in postsecondary education, and enhanced coordination
between K-12, higher education, and employers. The council shall
review accountability and performance measures for
implementation of this article and make recommendations for the
promulgation of regulations to carry out its provisions
including, but not limited to, enforcement procedures, which may
include monitoring and auditing functions, and addressing
consequences for noncompliance; and
(g)
submit an annual progress report to the Governor
and the General Assembly, by July
September first of each fiscal year, concerning the
actions taken by the council during the previous fiscal year,
and any recommendations for legislation or agency action. The
council may submit additional reports on an ongoing basis as
deemed necessary by the council chairman.
(2)
The coordinating council may create subcommittees or
advisory groups comprised of community or state or local
government stakeholders to assist the council in carrying out
the council's duties as contained in item (1).
(C) The Secretary of
the Department of Commerce or his designee to the coordinating
council shall be is the coordinating
council's chairman.
(D) The Department
of Education, the Commission on Higher Education, the
Department of Commerce, and the State Board for Technical and
Comprehensive Education shall provide staff for the coordinating
council."
SECTION 2. Chapter 53, Title 59 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
Section 59-53-2620. (A)
The member agencies of the Coordinating
Council for Workforce Development, as designated in this
article, shall define, develop, and implement a statewide
Pathways Initiative in alignment with Chapter 59, Title 59, the
South Carolina Education and Economic Development Act, to
improve employment outcomes and address critical workforce
needs. The Pathways Initiative consists of a Career Pathways
program to facilitate a student's transition from education to
employment and a Pathways to New Opportunities Initiative to
provide career services, including education, training, and job
search assistance to adults.
(B) The Coordinating
Council for Workforce Development shall include an update on the
Pathways Initiative in the progress report submitted annually by
September fifteenth to the Governor, the Chairman of the Senate
Finance Committee, and the Chairman of the House Ways and Means
Committee.
Section 59-53-2630. The State Board for Technical and Comprehensive Education (SBTCE), in consultation with the Department of Education, shall develop, coordinate, and implement a statewide Career Pathways program to facilitate a seamless transition from secondary education and postsecondary technical education to employment in industry sectors with critical workforce needs.
Section 59-53-2640. (A)
There is created a 'Career Pathways Grant
Fund' administered by the SBTCE. The purpose of the fund is to
award grants to eligible technical colleges in order to provide
and support the infrastructure necessary to offer Pathways
programs. Grants awarded to technical colleges must be used only
for Pathways-specific expenses, to include program
administration, career and technical equipment, facilities,
instructional materials, transportation, and tuition grants. The
SBTCE or board-appointed committee, in consultation with the
Department of Education, shall develop and maintain eligibility
criteria for these competitive grants.
(B) Funds available
through these competitive grants are awarded to technical
colleges that demonstrate the strongest ability to meet grant
criteria. Funds may not be awarded to all colleges in a given
year.
(C) Funds must be used
to establish new pathways or enhance existing pathways that
confer the necessary skills and training to prepare students for
careers in high-demand fields. Funds only support career and
technical education programs and courses in industry sectors
with critical workforce needs.
(D) To qualify for
Career Pathways grant funding as established pursuant to this
section, the technical college and school or school district
must enter into Memorandums of Understanding that meet the grant
requirements.
(E) The SBTCE or
board-appointed committee, in consultation with the State
Department of Education, is responsible for determining if a
pathway meets the established criteria and may promulgate
regulations further enumerating the specifics of these criteria
and the evaluation process.
(F) The SBTCE shall
prepare an annual report on the Career Pathways program and
grant awards by September first of each year. The report must
be submitted to the Coordinating Council for Workforce
Development for inclusion in its annual report to the Governor,
the Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, and the Chairman
of the House Ways and Means Committee. The report must include,
at minimum, an update of progress toward full statewide
implementation of the Career Pathways program, and upon
implementation, an analysis of program accountability measures
and key performance indicators.
(G) As used in this
section:
(1)
'Industry sectors with critical workforce needs' means the
industry sectors as outlined by the member agencies of the
Coordinating Council for Workforce Development and their
business and industry partners.
(2)
'Pathways' means a partnership between a secondary
education provider, a technical college, and a business or
industry that incorporates the following elements:
(a)
secondary and postsecondary education elements;
(b)
coherent and rigorous content aligned with challenging
academic standards and relevant career and technical content in
a coordinated, nonduplicative progression of courses that align
secondary education with postsecondary education to adequately
prepare students to succeed in postsecondary education;
(c)
opportunity for secondary education students to
participate in dual or concurrent enrollment programs or other
ways to acquire postsecondary education credits at no cost to
the student; and
(d)
student attainment of an industry-recognized credential,
or a postsecondary certificate, diploma, or associate degree,
with multiple entrance and exit points.
Section 59-53-2650. (A)
The Department of Employment and Workforce,
in coordination with the SBTCE and the Department of Commerce,
shall develop, coordinate, and implement a Pathways to New
Opportunities Initiative, which must leverage existing services
and new resources to provide subsidized career training and
certification and job placement assistance to adults throughout
the State pursuing careers in high-demand occupations in
industry sectors with critical workforce needs.
(B) The SBTCE shall
administer the Workforce Opportunity Scholarship and Grant Fund,
established pursuant to Section 59-53-110, to be used for
tuition and education-related expenses for eligible career
training and certification programs for qualifying individuals.
The SBTCE, in consultation with the Department of Education and
the Commission on Higher Education, shall develop and maintain
eligibility criteria for scholarships and grants. Funds may be
used to provide opportunities through existing programs.
(C) The Department of
Employment and Workforce shall coordinate with the SBTCE to
identify and refer qualifying individuals to the training
programs and scholarship opportunities established in this
section. The Department of Employment and Workforce, in
consultation with the Department of Commerce, also shall develop
and implement a plan to facilitate the job placement of
qualifying individuals who have completed the necessary training
and certification, to ensure that they are matched with
available employment opportunities in industry sectors with
critical workforce needs throughout the State."
SECTION 3. Article 1, Chapter 53, Title 59 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 59-53-110.
(A) There is created a 'Workforce
Scholarship and Grant Fund' administered by the State Board for
Technical and Comprehensive Education (SBTCE). The purpose of
the fund is to provide financial assistance to qualifying
individuals pursuing career education or professional
certification through eligible programs.
(B) As used in this
section:
(1)
'Qualifying individual' means a person who is a South
Carolina resident and who is eligible to be enrolled in a South
Carolina technical college or professional certification
program.
(2)
'Cost of attendance' means the total amount of money
charged for the cost of a qualifying individual to attend an
eligible program including, but not limited to, tuition, fees
for attending the school, textbooks, and school related
transportation, less all federal grants, need based grants, and
lottery tuition assistance.
(3)
'Eligible program' means a program that:
(a)
does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, or
national origin;
(b)
is located in this State;
(c)
has school facilities that are subject to applicable
federal, state, and local laws; and
(d)
meets all eligibility guidelines promulgated by the
SBTCE;
(C) Grants may be
awarded from the fund in an amount not exceeding the total cost
of attendance for a qualifying individual to attend the eligible
program of his choice. The cumulative grant award for each
qualifying individual may not exceed ten thousand dollars.
(D)(1) The SBTCE, in
consultation with the Department of Education and the Commission
on Higher Education, is responsible for determining if a program
meets the criteria established by subsection (B)(3), and shall
publish an approved list of qualifying programs. For the
purpose of this subsection, the board may promulgate regulations
further enumerating the specifics of these criteria.
(2)
By the first day of August for the current fiscal year,
the SBTCE, on its website available to the general public, shall
provide a list of approved programs that accept grants for
eligible students and that in the board's determination are in
compliance with the requirements of subsection (B)(3).
SECTION 4. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor. /
Renumber sections to conform.
Amend title to conform.