Governor Signs Leyva Career Tech Education Bill

SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY >> On July 1, Governor Jerry Brown signed important legislation authored by Senator Connie M. Leyva (D-Chino) that will continue to allow students to take Career Technical Education (CTE) courses in high school in order to meet one of the necessary high school graduation requirements. SB 1123 will extend until July 1, 2022, the option for students to take CTE courses to fulfill the existing graduation requirement to take a course in visual or performing arts (VPA) or foreign language. This choice was first made available in 2011 with the passage of AB 1330 (Furutani). Motivated in part by studies that found high school students were dropping out of school because they were uninterested and disengaged by coursework, this new option gave students another choice in their education in order to help them stay engaged in their classes. This option for students is currently slated to sunset on July 1, 2017. “SB 1123 allows students to have another choice in their education, one that research has shown improves their chances of success after high school and reaching their future goals,” Leyva said. “I thank Governor Brown for signing SB 1123 and for continuing to allow students the opportunity to meet one of their graduation requirements by taking CTE courses so that they may receive practical skills and real life work experience. I also appreciate the tremendous support by my legislative colleagues in both the Senate and Assembly, as SB 1123 did not receive a single ‘No’ vote during its legislative journey.” Currently, the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools Regional Occupational Program (SBCSS ROP) provides CTE courses to a variety of schools in different districts, along with the Juvenile Court Schools, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Glen Helen Rehabilitation and West Valley Detention Centers and Technical Employment Training Inc., where the ROP’s Manufacturing Technology program is hosted. Research shows that students who complete both an academic and a CTE sequence of courses in high school have a higher likelihood of being enrolled in postsecondary education and being employed in professional, managerial, or skilled jobs. Notably, the Public Policy Institute of California found that the state will likely face a labor shortage of 1.5 million workers with “some college” education— mostly workers who have either completed an associate’s degree or some type of certificate—by 2025. CTE will be a key component for students to obtain these types of jobs and alleviate this shortage. SB 1123 received strong bipartisan support in the California Legislature and takes effect on Jan. 1, 2017. The bill was also supported by the Association of California School Administrators, California Agricultural Commissioners and Sealers Association, California Business Education Association, California Federation of Teachers and Kern County Superintendent of Schools.