Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions

Floor Speech

By Mr. KAINE (for himself, Ms. BALDWIN, and Mr. PORTMAN):

S. 2867. A bill to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide for the preparation of career and technical education teachers; to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Mr. KAINE. Mr. President, school districts across the nation are facing serious shortages in high-quality career and technical education, CTE, teachers. When CTE teachers have real-world experience in a related industry before entering the classroom, students not only benefit from their hands-on knowledge, but also look to them as career role models. Through grant in the Higher Education and Opportunity Act of 2008, many teacher residency partnerships already exist between postsecondary institutions and local schools to train prospective educators, but none are CTE focused.

This is why I am pleased to introduce with my colleagues, Senator BALDWIN and Senator PORTMAN, the Creating Quality Technical Educators Act, which would create a CTE teacher-training grant partnership to give aspiring CTE teachers the preparation necessary to mirror their success in the business world with that in the classroom. The Creating Technical Education Act will foster CTE teacher training partnerships between high-needs secondary schools and postsecondary institutions to create a 1-year residency initiative for prospective teachers and includes teacher mentorship for a minimum of 2 years.

This bipartisan bill amends the Higher Education Act and would give aspiring CTE teachers the experience necessary to succeed in the classroom, where students can benefit from their work experience and credibility. The Creating Quality Technical Educators Act would take a robust proactive approach to recruit and train high-quality CTE teachers. In addition to midcareer professionals in related technical fields, CTE teacher residencies would target candidates who are recent college graduates or veterans or currently licensed teachers with a desire to transition to a CTE focus.

I am pleased we are beginning to see a renaissance of interest in career and technical education, but we have to recruit and train talented teachers to meet this rising demand for CTE. The Creating Quality Technical Educators Act will take an important step to ensure students in communities of all sizes have access to high-quality CTE teachers and career-training programs.

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