Sponsored by:
Senator MICHAEL L. TESTA, JR.
District 1 (Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland)
Senator LINDA R. GREENSTEIN
District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)
SYNOPSIS
Establishes Career and Technical Education Dual Enrollment Grant Program; appropriates $5 million.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act establishing a grant program to expand opportunities for dual enrollment in career and technical education, supplementing chapter 61C of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes, and making an appropriation.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. The Secretary of Higher Education shall establish a Career and Technical Education Dual Enrollment Grant Program. The grant program shall provide grants to public institutions of higher education to expand or provide college-level career and technical education instruction to high school students through courses offered by the institution on its campus or in a high school.
b. The grant recipient shall use the funds to expand opportunities to earn college credits in career and technical education coursework while in high school. The secretary shall determine allowable uses for grant funds prior to accepting applications to participate in the grant program and shall describe the allowable uses in a notice of grant opportunity.
c. A public institution of higher education wishing to participate in the grant program shall submit an application to the secretary in a form and manner prescribed by the secretary. The application shall include:
(1) the institutions plan for the establishment or expansion of dual enrollment programs in career and technical education;
(2) information on any existing dual enrollment programs operated by the institution;
(3) the institutions capacity to offer career and technical education dual enrollment coursework, in addition to traditional academic semester course offerings;
(4) the number of students able to be supported by the grant program and the number of students expected to participate; and
(5) any other information the secretary deems necessary.
d. The secretary shall establish selection criteria for awarding grant funds under the program, and shall award grants through a competitive process based upon review of the applications and subject to the availability of funds. The secretary shall give preference to programs that are designed to operate beyond the duration of available grant funding. The secretary shall establish the amount for each grant that is approved.
2. The secretary shall submit a report to the Governor, and to the Legislature pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), on the Career and Technical Education Dual Enrollment Grant Program established pursuant to section 1 of this act following each year in which grants are awarded. The report shall include, but not be limited to, information on the number of grant applicants, the number and amount of the grant awards, the number of students supported by the grant program, information on the impact of the grant program on workforce shortages in the State, and any recommendations concerning the continuation or expansion of the grant program.
3. a. There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education the sum of $5,000,000 to fund the Career and Technical Education Dual Enrollment Grant Program established pursuant to section 1 of this act.
b. The Legislature may appropriate additional amounts as necessary to the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education to fund the Career and Technical Education Dual Enrollment Grant Program.
4. This act shall take effect on the first day of the seventh month next following the date of enactment, except the Secretary of Higher Education may take any anticipatory administrative action in advance as necessary to implement the provisions of this act.
STATEMENT
This bill requires the Secretary of Higher Education to establish a Career and Technical Education Dual Enrollment Grant Program to expand opportunities for dual enrollment in career and technical education. The program is to award grants to public institutions of higher education to expand or provide college-level career and technical education instruction for high school students through courses offered by the institution on its campus or in a high school.
In order to be eligible for consideration of a grant award, a public institution of higher education is required to submit an application to the secretary in a form and manner prescribed by the secretary. A grant application is required to include: the institutions plan for the establishment of dual enrollment programs in career and technical education; information on any existing dual enrollment programs operated by the institution; the institutions capacity to offer career and technical education dual enrollment coursework, in addition to traditional academic semester course offerings; the number of students able to be supported by the grant program and the number of students expected to participate; and any other information the secretary deems necessary.
The bill requires the secretary to establish selection criteria for awarding grant funds under the program and requires grants to be awarded through a competitive process based upon review of the applications and subject to the availability of funds. Additionally, the bill stipulates that the secretary is required to give preference to programs that are designed to operate beyond the duration of available grant funding. The secretary is required to establish the amount for each grant that is approved.
Finally, the secretary is required to submit a report to the Governor and the Legislature on the grant program, following each year in which a grant is awarded.