Funding for career programs receives first round approval

A bill that would appropriate funds to the state Department of Education for the creation of career bridge programs advanced from general file March 6.

LB1079, introduced by Omaha Sen. Heath Mello, would designate funding for programs that assist adult students in obtaining academic, career and technical skills. Mello said the bill addresses the widening skills gap in the state.

“While Nebraska doesn’t face the same hardships as some of our neighboring states, there is a significant skills gap,” Mello said. “Our state must find new strategies to train Nebraskans for jobs of the future.”

The bill defines a bridge program as a structured career pathway program, developed in partnership between the provider of the adult education program and a community college, which assists students in obtaining academic, employability and technical skills needed to enter and succeed in postsecondary education and training and the labor market.

The bill would require that a bridge program:
• provide the English reading and writing and math skills required to succeed in a postsecondary credentialing or degree program;
• involve a partnership among a provider of basic skills education and training under the adult education program, a nonprofit social services organization and a community college in Nebraska;
• lead to the attainment of college credit and a recognized postsecondary educational credential or an industry-recognized credential;
• be open only to low-income participants who are co-enrolled in adult education, developmental education or English as a second language and in a community college;
• target the specific workforce needs of an occupational sector within the state and provide services aimed at improving education, skills and employment prospects for low-income adults;
• use educational best practices, including, but not limited to, contextualized instructional strategies, team teaching, modularized learning or reduced student-teacher ratios; and
• provide for supportive services needed for student educational and employment success, including, but not limited to, job coaching and personal needs.

A Mello amendment, adopted 25-0, broadened the language of the bill to include other entities providing basic skills education and training in addition to community colleges.

Funding would be distributed through competitive grants awarded by the state Department of Education. Qualified bridge programs would be required to provide data to the department illustrating participant outcomes.

An Education Committee amendment, adopted 27-0, would provide $200,000 to be transferred annually from the Education Innovation Fund to fund the bridge programs. Of the programs financed by the fund, bridge programs would be prioritized second to last. The funding would end in fiscal year 2015-16 and be subject to reevaluation.

Education Committee chairperson Sen. Greg Adams of York said he agreed with the intent of the bill but worried it may strain education funds.

“Conceptually, this is a good idea,” Adams said, but he reminded lawmakers that the funds proposed for the bridge program would be unavailable to fund other educational purposes.

Senators advanced the bill to select file 26-4.