Senate Bill sb0918
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Florida Senate - 2007 SB 918
By Senator Wise
5-465A-07
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to the Florida Work Experience
3 Program; amending s. 1009.77, F.S.; providing
4 that certain participants in educator
5 preparation institutes may participate in the
6 program; authorizing career centers that are
7 operated by district school boards to
8 participate in the program; lowering the
9 minimum percentage of a participating student's
10 wages which must be reimbursed to employers;
11 prescribing requirements for career education
12 programs whose enrollees may participate in the
13 work experience program; providing an
14 appropriation; providing an effective date.
15
16 WHEREAS, the public community colleges and school
17 district postsecondary career centers were created by the
18 state to provide affordable access to higher education for the
19 residents of this state, and
20 WHEREAS, students seeking certificate workforce
21 programs have no access to state need-based financial aid and
22 must rely on student loans and scholarships to finance their
23 higher education, and
24 WHEREAS, student debt has escalated at an unprecedented
25 level, causing students to owe large sums of money that are
26 often difficult to repay, especially with compounding
27 interest, and
28 WHEREAS, the State of Florida needs a trained
29 workforce, and between 70 and 80 percent of jobs in the future
30 will require education beyond high school but less than a
31 baccalaureate degree, and
1
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Florida Senate - 2007 SB 918
5-465A-07
1 WHEREAS, students' willingness to work for their
2 need-based financial aid in a field for which they are
3 studying is of benefit to the student, the employer, and the
4 state, NOW, THEREFORE,
5
6 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
7
8 Section 1. Subsections (1), (4), (5), and (6) of
9 section 1009.77, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
10 1009.77 Florida Work Experience Program.--
11 (1) There is established the Florida Work Experience
12 Program to be administered by the Department of Education. The
13 purpose of the program is to introduce eligible students to
14 work experience that will complement and reinforce their
15 educational program and career goals and provide a self-help
16 student aid program. Such program shall be available to:
17 (a) Any student attending a state university or
18 community college authorized by Florida law or a career center
19 operated by a district school board; or
20 (b) Any student attending a nonprofit Florida
21 postsecondary education institution that is eligible to
22 participate in either of the student assistance grant programs
23 established in ss. 1009.51 and 1009.52; or.
24 (c) Any student enrolled in an educator preparation
25 institute who demonstrates financial need, even if he or she
26 already has earned a baccalaureate degree.
27 (4) The participating postsecondary educational
28 institution shall be responsible for reimbursing employers for
29 student wages from moneys it receives from the trust fund
30 pursuant to subsection (8). Public elementary or secondary
31 school employers shall be reimbursed for 100 percent of the
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Florida Senate - 2007 SB 918
5-465A-07
1 student's wages by the participating institution. All other
2 employers shall be reimbursed for up to 70 percent of the
3 student's wages. When a college or university employs a
4 student on campus through this program, other student
5 financial aid funds may not be used to fund the institution's
6 30-percent portion of the student's wages.
7 (5) The employer is responsible for furnishing the
8 full cost of any mandatory benefits. Such benefits may not be
9 considered part of the 30-percent wage requirement total for
10 matching purposes.
11 (6) A student is eligible to participate in the
12 Florida Work Experience Program if the student:
13 (a) Is enrolled:
14 1. In a postsecondary career education program
15 comprising 450 hours of instruction or more which is approved
16 by the Department of Education and offered through a career
17 center operated by a district school board, or through a
18 community college, as no less than a half-time student in good
19 standing; or
20 2. At an eligible college or university as no less
21 than a half-time undergraduate student in good standing.
22
23 However, a student may be employed during the break between
24 two consecutive terms or employed, although not enrolled,
25 during a term if the student was enrolled at least half time
26 during the preceding term and preregisters as no less than a
27 half-time student for the subsequent academic term. A student
28 who attends an institution that does not provide
29 preregistration shall provide documentation of intent to
30 enroll as no less than a half-time student for the subsequent
31 academic term.
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Florida Senate - 2007 SB 918
5-465A-07
1 (b) Meets the general requirements for student
2 eligibility as provided in s. 1009.40, except as otherwise
3 provided in this section.
4 (c) Demonstrates financial need.
5 (d) Maintains a 2.0 cumulative grade point average on
6 a 4.0 scale for all postsecondary college work.
7 Section 2. For the 2007-2008 fiscal year, the sum of
8 $500,000 is appropriated from recurring general revenue funds
9 to the Florida Work Experience Program for community colleges
10 and postsecondary career centers operated by the school
11 districts for the purpose of providing need-based financial
12 aid to students working through this program.
13 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2007.
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16 SENATE SUMMARY
17 Amends requirements relating to students and institutions
that may participate in the Florida Work Experience
18 Program. Allows certain participants in educator
preparation institutes to participate. Authorizes career
19 centers that are operated by district school boards to
participate. Prescribes the minimum percentage of a
20 participating student's wages which must be reimbursed to
employers as "up to 70 percent," rather than 70 percent.
21 Prescribes requirements for career education programs
whose enrollees may participate in the work experience
22 program. Provides an appropriation.
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