{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.hatch.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/releases?ContentRecord_id=5C320ADA-7293-4B29-9BA7-32E218328A0A", "Hatch and Bennet work to Support Utah Education Priorities with Funding for Innovative Education", "2016-09-15", "2016", "2016-09", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Orrin Hatch", "H000338", "www.hatch.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, D.C.\u2014Senator Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, member and former chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, and Senator Michael\u00a0Bennet, D-Colo., issued the following statement after introducing the Innovation for Tomorrow\u2019s Workforce Act of 2016:\r\n\u201cLast year we enacted a valuable education overhaul that is beginning to address shortcomings of No Child Left Behind,\u00a0especially\u00a0the needs of Utah\u2019s transformative education system,\u201d Hatch said.\u00a0\u201cThis new legislation will supplement those efforts by providing resources to encourage and support better pathways from the classroom to the workplace. Utah companies are eager to improve STEM education in our schools to prepare students to work in our ever-changing workforce and global economy. This bill is the product of discussions with many Utah stakeholders to ensure that we build on Utah\u2019s successes by allowing funds to be used for Pay for Success initiatives and to bolster students\u2019 success by making free, high-quality\u00a0Open Education Resources more accessible.\u201d\r\n\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHigh Quality career and technical education programs can provide important access to the knowledge and skills needed for job and career success for students across Colorado,\u201d Bennet said. \u201cAt a time when a great education has never been more important, we must create opportunities for those on the ground to innovate and create new approaches to providing key workforce skills. In addition to creating a fund for innovation, this bill will help encourage states and communities to engage in pay for success initiatives. It also promotes vital work-based learning opportunities and apprenticeships, which can be effective pathways to successful careers and well-paying jobs.\u201d\r\n\u00a0Background\r\nThe Innovation for Tomorrow\u2019s Workforce Act of 2016 would amend current law to create a grant program to identify and support innovative activities to improve CTE and to align workforce skills with labor market needs. Priority in awarding grants would be given to entities that predominantly serve students in low-income families, and entities receiving funds must provide for an independent evaluation of the activities carried out using the grant.\u00a0The innovation fund may be used flexibly to strengthen ongoing state efforts in career and technical areas, including: improving teacher effectiveness, integrating STEM and computer science into CTE, increasing work-based learning opportunities, and supporting employment outcomes for students.\r\nThis grant is similar to The Education Innovation and Research, which was included in the Every Student Succeeds Act thanks to Senator Hatch\u2019s efforts. The House passed a similar version of this fund on the floor, but the Senators has added in pay for success (PFS) and open education resource (OER) programs as allowable local and state uses of CTE funds to support Utah priorities. To support efforts to further develop apprenticeship opportunities, the Senators added language in the local use section to provide or support work-based learning opportunities as a permissible use of funds.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.hatch.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/releases?ContentRecord_id=5C320ADA-7293-4B29-9BA7-32E218328A0A"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.580890966579318, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}