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Issue No. 28, June 14, 2012
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 NO CLEAR PATH ON WIA
Last Thursday, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce held a "mark-up" on HR4297, the version of a WIA reauthorization bill introduced by Reps. Virginia Foxx, Joe Heck, and "Buck" McKeon. As expected, the mark-up was partisan in nature, with only one Democratic amendment approved among many offered. While a wide range of national leadership organizations in adult education, youth employment, workforce development, human resource development, and civil and minority rights opposed HR4297, it was approved 23 to 15, strictly along party lines.
Among the more notable amendments, Rep. George Miller offered HR4227 (the Democratic version of WIA) as a substitute for the Republican bill and Rep. Ruben Hinojosa offered an amendment to substitute portions of the Adult Education and Economic Growth Act (AEEGA, HR2226) for the Republican provisions on Adult Education.
Both amendments enjoyed wide support in the field and both Democratic bills capture adult education and workforce skills development needs more fully and effectively than the Foxx-Heck-McKeon bill. Although neither amendment was approved, it is good that they were introduced because they are important frameworks to have in the public record and will continue to have influence as the hearing/approval process unfolds.
In the near future, HR4297 may be considered by the Full House. There will be opportunities to try to influence the content of the bill again at that time. When and if it is eventually approved, it will move to the Senate. Unfortunately, the Senate bill--drafted on a bipartisan basis with significant input from many leadership groups including CAAL--has not been formally introduced in the Senate and its fate is uncertain. It exists only in draft form and it is hard to know what the "will" of the Senate is at present.
The bottom line is that WIA will probably still be pending in 2013, going another year without vitally needed reform being enacted. Nevertheless, it is important for leaders at all levels to continue speaking to their congressional representatives about the importance of the AEEGA, the Miller bill, WIA, and workforce investment.
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 OTHER NEWS  Teaching Patients with Low Literacy Skills (2nd Edition published in 1996) is considered a classic and continues to be a highly useful text in health literacy. Because the book is out of print, a resourceful Rima Rudd of the Harvard School of Public Health recently asked and got permission from the authors (who hold the copyright) to scan the entire publication and make it available at no cost in a series of PDF files. The book, by Cecilia Doak, Leonard Doak, and Jane Root, can thus be downloaded in full as five files.
Manufacturing Institute Gains in Workforce Credentialing -- In May, the Manufacturing Institute of the National Association of Manufacturers reported that the Institute, together with its certification and college partners, is making progress in its 5-year goal to award half a million industry-based credentials to verify readiness for jobs and advancement in manufacturing. In the past year, nearly 85,000 certificates have been awarded to potential and incumbent workers. In its system of stackable credentials, the Institute is working with 113 colleges to "certify individuals with industry-based credentials in for-credit degree programs of study and for-credit fast-track programs that integrate portable credentials, internships, and links to employment." Early this month, the Institute also reported on an array of activities being carried out specifically to certify veterans. Through partnerships with various branches of the military and several military associations, programs are being piloted to offer credentials for machinists, welders, and a range of technical engineering jobs. (Click above links for more details.)
The Promise of Career Pathways Systems Change is a new publication by Jobs for the Future. The paper focuses on the roles and actions that WIA systems, and Workforce Investment Boards, One-Stops, and service providers can take to develop sound career pathways systems. It is based on strategies and initiatives identified in a series of 2010 discussion forums offered by the Employment and Training Administration and the Office of Vocational and Adult Education of the U.S. Departments of Labor and Education respectively. Written by JFF's Mary Clagett, Director for Workforce Policy, and Ray Uhalde, Vice President for Workforce and Education Policy, this 73-page publication discusses the benefits that will result from career pathways programs. It also offers illustrative examples of successful programs.
CAAL Futures Project -- Within the next few weeks, CAAL hopes to release a report on a "Futures" project begun late last year with a widely representative group of adult education and ESL leaders to consider next-step top priorities for the field in a time of extraordinarily scarce resources. Detailed information will be posted in due course.
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Council for Advancement of Adult Literacy ~ 1221 Avenue of Americas ~ 44th Fl ~ New York, NY 10020
Tel. 212-512-22363 ~ Fax. 212-512-2610 ~ www.caalusa.org
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