SB3614 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB101 19995 RJF 69521 b

101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2019 and 2020
SB3614

Introduced 2/14/2020, by Sen. Scott M. Bennett

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

New Act

Creates the Workforce Diploma Pilot Program Act. Creates the Workforce Diploma Pilot Program to provide performance payments to approved program providers for eligible students enrolled in an approved program provider's program. Provides criteria and other requirements for the selection of approved program providers. Allows the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, subject to appropriation, to disburse payments to approved program providers in amounts, to be specified by the Department by rule, for each eligible student's completion or attainment of specified academic outcomes. Requires approved program providers to submit invoices on an ongoing basis to the Department for payments for student completion or attainment of specified goals. Requires the Department to review data from each approved program provider to ensure the programs offered by each provider are meeting minimum Program performance standards. Provides for the adoption of rules. Provides Program reporting requirements. Repeals the Act on July 1, 2023. Provides a legislative declaration. Defines terms. Effective July 1, 2020.

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning the Workforce Diploma Pilot Program.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Workforce Diploma Pilot Program Act.

Section 5. Legislative declaration. The General Assembly finds and declares that:

(1) In Illinois, nearly 13% of adults do not have a high school diploma.

(2) Research shows that as many as 80% of the individuals who left high school without a diploma did so for nonacademic reasons, including the need to work to support themselves or their families, becoming parents, bullying or social anxiety, or falling too far behind to graduate on time.

(3) Education is a significant economic driver, with significant costs to the State in social services, incarceration expenses, and lost income from taxes attributable to students who drop out of high school.

(4) When combined with lost wages, the average lifetime total opportunity cost for one high school dropout is $755,900.

(5) Therefore, the General Assembly declares that by creating a Workforce Diploma Pilot Program that provides Illinois adults with the opportunity to complete a high school diploma, while transferring the risk to providers who receive performance payments only when those students meet performance milestones, the State can better meet its workforce goals for future economic growth.

Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act:

"Academic skill intake assessment" means a criteria-referenced assessment of numeracy and literacy skill with high reliability and validity as determined by third party research, whether administered in person or online.

"Accredited" means holding an active accreditation from one of the 7 United States regional accreditors recognized by the United States Department of Education, including the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, the New England Association of Schools and Colleges, the Higher Learning Commission, the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges, as well as any successor entities or consolidations of the above, including AdvancEd/Cognia.

"Adult dropout recovery services" includes, but is not limited to, sourcing, recruitment, and engagement of eligible students, learning plan development, active teaching, and proactive coaching and mentoring, resulting in an accredited high school diploma.

"Approved program provider" means a public, non-profit, or other entity that meets the requirements of this Act. An approved program provider may not receive funding for a student if the approved program provider receives federal or State funding or private tuition for that student.

"Coaching" means proactive communication between the approved program provider and the student related to the student's pace and progress through his or her learning plan.

"Career pathways coursework" means one or more courses that align with the skill needs of industries in the economy of the State or region that helps an individual enter or advance within a specific occupation or occupational cluster.

"Career placement services" means services designed to assist students in obtaining employment, including career interest self-assessments, job search skills, resume development, and mock interviews.

"Cost per graduate" means total Program funding reimbursed to a provider divided by total graduates for a cohort year.

"Department" means the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.

"Eligible student" or "student" means a participant in the Workforce Diploma Pilot Program who is 19 years of age or older, who is a resident of Illinois, and who has not yet earned a high school diploma.

"Employability skills certification" means a certificate earned by demonstrating professional non-technical skills through assessment, portfolio, or observation.

"Graduate" means a student who has successfully completed all of the provider requirements in order to obtain a high school diploma.

"Graduation rate" means the total graduates for the fiscal year divided by all students for the fiscal year for whom the provider has received funding, calculated one fiscal year in arrears.

"Graduation guidelines" means course and credit requirements for a student to receive the approved program provider's high school diploma.

"High school diploma" means a diploma issued by an accredited institution. A diploma issued under this Act is recognized as a high school diploma by the State.

"Industry-recognized credential" means an education-related or work-related credential that verifies an individual's qualification or competence issued by a third party with the relevant authority to issue such credentials.

"Learning plan" means a documented plan for courses and credits needed for each individual in order to complete Program and provider graduation requirements.

"Mentoring" means a direct relationship between a coach and a student to facilitate the completion of the student's learning plan designed to prepare the student to succeed in the Program and his or her future endeavors.

"Milestones" means objective measures of progress for which payment is made to an approved program provider under this Act, including earned units of high school credit, attainment of an employability skills certificate, attainment of an industry-recognized credential, and attainment of an accredited high school diploma.

"Program" means the Workforce Diploma Pilot Program created under this Act.

"Request for qualifications" means a request for interested potential program providers to submit evidence that they meet the qualifications established in this Act, all of which once confirmed by the Department that they meet the qualifications become approved program providers. A request for qualifications may be left open with approved program providers approved to operate programs at any time of year.

"Transcript evaluations" means a documented summary of credits earned in previous public or private accredited high schools compared with Program and approved program provider graduation guidelines.

"Units of high school credit" means credit awarded based on a student's demonstration that he or she has successfully met the content expectations for the credit area as defined by subject area standards, expectations, or guidelines.

Section 15. Workforce Diploma Pilot Program.

(a) There is created in the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity the Workforce Diploma Pilot Program to provide performance payments to approved program providers for eligible students enrolled in an approved program provider's program.

(b) On or before August 15 in any fiscal year in which the General Assembly appropriates money for the Program, the Department shall issue a request for qualifications for providers to participate in the Program as approved program providers.

(c) The criteria necessary to be an approved program provider includes the following:

(1) experience providing adult dropout recovery services;

(2) the ability to provide academic skill intake assessment and transcript evaluations;

(3) the ability to develop a learning plan that integrates academic requirements and career goals;

(4) the ability to provide all instruction necessary to meet or exceed the State Board of Education's high school graduation guidelines to achieve a high school diploma;

(5) the ability to provide remedial course work in literacy and numeracy;

(6) the ability to provide a research-validated academic resiliency assessment and intervention;

(7) the ability to provide employability skills development aligned to employer needs;

(8) the ability to provide career pathways course work;

(9) the ability to provide preparation for industry-recognized credentials;

(10) the ability to provide career placement services; and

(11) high school diploma accreditation by a recognized regional accrediting body or a consolidation of one or more regional accrediting bodies.

(d) The Department shall review qualifications from approved program providers to determine whether the provider meets the criteria to be an approved program provider under the Program. Within 60 days after submission of qualifications under this Section, the Department shall publish a list of providers that meet the criteria for an approved program provider. An approved program provider is eligible for Program payments for outcomes, as provided under subsection (e), achieved 30 or more days after the Department publishes the list of approved program providers.

Once the Department determines that a provider is an approved program provider under the Program, the provider remains an approved program provider without the need to reapply annually, unless the provider is removed by the Department from the list of approved program providers as provided under subsection (g).

(e) In any fiscal year in which the General Assembly appropriates money for the Program, the Department shall disburse payments to approved program providers in amounts, to be specified by the Department by rule, for each eligible student's completion or attainment of the following outcomes:

(1) for completion of each half-credit;

(2) for completion of an accredited high school diploma;

(3) for completion of an employability skills certification program equal to at least one carnegie unit;

(4) for attainment of an industry-recognized credential requiring up to 50 hours of training;

(5) for attainment of an industry-recognized credential requiring between 51 and 100 hours of training; and

(6) for attainment of an industry-recognized credential requiring more than 100 hours of training.

An approved program provider that receives tuition or other payment from or on behalf of an eligible student shall not also receive a payment from the Program on behalf of the eligible student for the same course or program.

(f) Approved program providers shall submit invoices on an ongoing basis to the Department for payments for student completion or attainment of goals set forth in subsection (e). The Department shall determine the submission dates for the invoices. Subject to available appropriations, approved program providers who submit invoices on or before the dates determined by the Department shall receive payments. If available appropriations are insufficient to satisfy all invoices received by the submission date, the Department shall reduce all payments by the same percentage until the money is exhausted.

The Department shall publish monthly reports for approved program providers indicating the total amount of payments disbursed pursuant to the Program and the total number of students enrolled in the Program.

(g) The Department shall review data from each approved program provider to ensure the programs offered by each provider are meeting minimum Program performance standards, including a minimum 50% high school graduation rate from the approved program provider's programs, calculated one year in arrears. The Department shall place an approved program provider that does not meet the Program performance standards established in this Section on probationary status for the remainder of the State fiscal year. The Department shall remove an approved program provider from the list of approved program providers if the provider does not meet the performance standards for 2 consecutive years.

(h) The Department may adopt rules necessary to implement and administer the Program created under this Act.

Section 20. Program reporting.

(a) On or before August 15 of each year in which Program payments were disbursed for the prior State fiscal year, each approved program provider that received payments under the Program for the preceding State fiscal year shall report the following information to the Department:

(1) the total number of eligible students for whom the approved program provider has received payments;

(2) the total number of units of high school credit earned by eligible students for whom the approved program provider is receiving payments;

(3) the total number of employability skills certifications issued to eligible students for whom the approved program provider is receiving payments;

(4) the total number of industry-recognized credentials earned for each tier of funding described in subsection (e) of Section 15 by eligible students for whom the approved program provider is receiving payments; and

(5) the total number of eligible students for whom the approved program provider is receiving payments who receive high school diplomas.

(b) On or before October 15 of each year in which Program payments were disbursed for the prior State fiscal year, the Department shall submit to the General Assembly a report listing approved program providers and summarizing the information received from approved program providers under subsection (a), and other workforce and postsecondary outcomes, including employment and college enrollment.

Section 25. Repeal. This Act is repealed on July 1, 2023.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect July 1, 2020.