ENROLLED
       2024 Legislature                                         SB 1688
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                                             20241688er
    1  
    2         An act relating to career-themed courses; amending s.
    3         1003.491, F.S.; revising the requirements for a
    4         specified school district strategic plan to include
    5         certain information; amending s. 1003.492, F.S.;
    6         requiring the Department of Education to include
    7         specified data in an annual review of K-12 and
    8         postsecondary career and technical education
    9         offerings; amending s. 1003.4935, F.S.; requiring
   10         school districts to provide specified information to
   11         students and parents during middle school course
   12         selection; providing an effective date.
   13          
   14  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   15  
   16         Section 1. Subsection (3) of section 1003.491, Florida
   17  Statutes, is amended to read:
   18         1003.491 Florida Career and Professional Education Act.—The
   19  Florida Career and Professional Education Act is created to
   20  provide a statewide planning partnership between the business
   21  and education communities in order to attract, expand, and
   22  retain targeted, high-value industry and to sustain a strong,
   23  knowledge-based economy.
   24         (3) The strategic 3-year plan developed jointly by the
   25  local school district, local workforce development boards,
   26  economic development agencies, and state-approved postsecondary
   27  institutions must be constructed and based on:
   28         (a) Research conducted to objectively determine local and
   29  regional workforce needs for the ensuing 3 years, using labor
   30  projections as identified by the Labor Market Statistics Center
   31  within the Department of Economic Opportunity and the Labor
   32  Market Estimating Conference as factors in the criteria for the
   33  plan;
   34         (b) Strategies to develop and implement career academies or
   35  career-themed courses based on occupations identified by the
   36  Labor Market Statistics Center within the Department of Economic
   37  Opportunity and the Labor Market Estimating Conference;
   38         (c) Strategies to provide shared, maximum use of private
   39  sector facilities and personnel;
   40         (d) Strategies to ensure instruction by industry-certified
   41  faculty and standards and strategies to maintain current
   42  industry credentials and for recruiting and retaining faculty to
   43  meet those standards;
   44         (e) Strategies to provide personalized student advisement,
   45  including a parent-participation component, and coordination
   46  with middle grades to promote and support career-themed courses
   47  and education planning;
   48         (f) Alignment of requirements for middle school career
   49  planning, middle and high school career and professional
   50  academies or career-themed courses leading to industry
   51  certification or postsecondary credit, and high school
   52  graduation requirements;
   53         (g) Provisions to ensure that career-themed courses and
   54  courses offered through career and professional academies are
   55  academically rigorous, meet or exceed appropriate state-adopted
   56  subject area standards, result in attainment of industry
   57  certification, and, when appropriate, result in postsecondary
   58  credit;
   59         (h) Plans to sustain and improve career-themed courses and
   60  career and professional academies;
   61         (i) Strategies to improve the passage rate for industry
   62  certification examinations if the rate falls below 50 percent;
   63         (j) Strategies to recruit students into career-themed
   64  courses and career and professional academies which include
   65  opportunities for students who have been unsuccessful in
   66  traditional classrooms but who are interested in enrolling in
   67  career-themed courses or a career and professional academy.
   68  School boards shall provide opportunities for students who may
   69  be deemed as potential dropouts or whose cumulative grade point
   70  average drops below a 2.0 to enroll in career-themed courses or
   71  participate in career and professional academies. Such students
   72  must be provided in-person academic advising that includes
   73  information on career education programs by a certified school
   74  counselor or the school principal or his or her designee during
   75  any semester the students are at risk of dropping out or have a
   76  cumulative grade point average below a 2.0;
   77         (k) Strategies to provide sufficient space within academies
   78  to meet workforce needs and to provide access to all interested
   79  and qualified students;
   80         (l) Strategies to implement career-themed courses or career
   81  and professional academy training that lead to industry
   82  certification in juvenile justice education programs;
   83         (m) Opportunities for high school students to earn weighted
   84  or dual enrollment credit for higher-level career and technical
   85  courses;
   86         (n) Promotion of the benefits of the Gold Seal Bright
   87  Futures Scholarship;
   88         (o) Strategies to ensure the review of district pupil
   89  progression plans and to amend such plans to include career
   90  themed courses and career and professional academy courses and
   91  to include courses that may qualify as substitute courses for
   92  core graduation requirements and those that may be counted as
   93  elective courses;
   94         (p) Strategies to provide professional development for
   95  secondary certified school counselors on the benefits of career
   96  and professional academies and career-themed courses that lead
   97  to industry certification; and
   98         (q) Strategies to redirect appropriated career funding in
   99  secondary and postsecondary institutions to support career
  100  academies and career-themed courses that lead to industry
  101  certification; and
  102         (r)Strategies to inform and promote the career and
  103  technical education opportunities available in the district to
  104  students, parents, the community, and stakeholders.
  105         Section 2. Subsection (3) of section 1003.492, Florida
  106  Statutes, is amended to read:
  107         1003.492 Industry-certified career education programs.—
  108         (3) The Department of Education shall collect student
  109  achievement and performance data in industry-certified career
  110  education programs and career-themed courses as part of the
  111  annual review required under s. 1003.491(5) that includes, but
  112  need not be limited to, graduation rates, retention rates,
  113  Florida Bright Futures Scholarship awards, additional
  114  educational attainment, employment records, earnings, industry
  115  certification, return on investment, and employer satisfaction.
  116         Section 3. Subsection (1) of section 1003.4935, Florida
  117  Statutes, is amended to read:
  118         1003.4935 Middle grades career and professional academy
  119  courses and career-themed courses.—
  120         (1) Beginning with the 2011-2012 school year, Each district
  121  school board, in collaboration with local workforce development
  122  boards, economic development agencies, and state-approved
  123  postsecondary institutions, shall include plans to implement a
  124  career and professional academy or a career-themed course, as
  125  defined in s. 1003.493(1)(b), in at least one middle school in
  126  the district as part of the strategic 3-year plan pursuant to s.
  127  1003.491(2). The strategic plan must provide students the
  128  opportunity to transfer from a middle school career and
  129  professional academy or a career-themed course to a high school
  130  career and professional academy or a career-themed course
  131  currently operating within the school district. Students who
  132  complete a middle school career and professional academy or a
  133  career-themed course must have the opportunity to earn an
  134  industry certificate and high school credit and participate in
  135  career planning, job shadowing, and business leadership
  136  development activities. The district shall inform students and
  137  parents during course selection for middle school of the career
  138  and professional academy or career-themed course available
  139  within the district.
  140         Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2024.