BILL NUMBER: AB 2647	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Swanson

                        FEBRUARY 24, 2012

   An act relating to career technical education.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 2647, as introduced, Swanson. Career technical education.
   Existing law authorizes various career technical education
programs, including regional occupational centers and programs,
specialized secondary programs, partnership academies, and
agricultural career technical education programs.
   This bill would declare the intent of the Legislature to enact
legislation that would raise awareness of the career training
resources available to high school pupils, and would set forth
related findings and declarations.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
   (1) As the state and the nation move fully into the green economy,
there is a unique opportunity to align the various training programs
offered in high schools, community colleges, and other postsecondary
institutions, in order to provide clear pathways to quality
employment and career opportunities in the growth sectors of the
economy. While this alignment is necessary for all young people in
California, it is especially critical for boys and young men of
color, far too many of whom are disconnected from education,
training, and employment opportunities.
   (2) Special attention should be drawn to the need for greater
targeting of resources, expanding learning opportunities, and
capacity-building efforts in under-performing schools where the
greatest number of boys and young men of color are found.
   (3) Attention should also be drawn to the need for greater
accountability for effective accelerated learning opportunities in
alternative schools, such as continuation high schools and community
day schools, in which African American and Latino youth comprise more
than two-thirds of the enrolled pupils.
   (4) High school graduation with completion of the courses that are
required for college admission is an essential platform for
successful postsecondary education, employment, and career
opportunities that provide economic security for boys and young men
of color, their families, and the people of the state.
   (b) It is therefore the intent of the Legislature to enact
legislation that would raise awareness of the career training
resources that are available to high school pupils.