§ 23-60-902 — Accelerated education and skills training - certificates

(1) (a)
The board may collaborate with the local district colleges, area technical colleges,
the unit within the department of education that works with adult education, and
local workforce development programs to design certificate programs through
which an eligible adult who has an insufficient level of information or math literacy
may obtain a career and technical education certificate on an accelerated schedule
to assist him or her in entering or re-entering the workforce or in obtaining better
employment. Each certificate program must consist of courses that integrate
information and math literacy development programs with career and technical
training. The time required to complete a certificate program must not exceed
twelve months.

(b) The board shall work with the community colleges, local district colleges,
and area technical colleges to design the career and technical training portion of
each certificate program.

(c) The board is encouraged to collaborate with and may enter into
memorandums of understanding with local district colleges, area technical
colleges, the unit within the department of education that works with adult
education, local workforce development programs, and other local adult education
providers to ensure that the accelerated certificates program can be implemented
locally.

(2) In implementing the accelerated certificates program, the board must
ensure that, at a minimum, the program:

(a) Is available to eligible adults who are seeking to enter or re-enter the
workforce or obtain better employment and who may benefit from information or
math literacy development programs, as indicated by their scores on the
developmental education assessments in English and mathematics adopted by the
commission pursuant to section 23-1-113.3 or by a referral from a local adult
education program or a local workforce development program;

(b) Includes only career and technical certificate programs that a student
can complete within twelve months; and

(c) Requires that each course offered through the certificate programs
integrates appropriate information or math literacy instruction and career and
technical skills training and is jointly designed by mathematics, English, and career
and technical education faculty.

(3) (a) A community college in the state system of community and technical
colleges, a local district college, and an area technical college may choose to
participate in the accelerated certificates program by offering one or more of the
certificate programs created through the accelerated certificates program
pursuant to subsection (1) of this section.

(b) An institution or program that participates in the accelerated certificates
program shall, on or before July 1, 2014, and on or before July 1 each year thereafter
in which the institution or program participates in the accelerated certificates
program, submit to the department of higher education a report that includes the
following information:

(I) The certificate programs that the institution or program offered;

(II) The number of students who enrolled in each certificate program;

(III) The number of students who successfully completed each certificate
program; and

(IV) The percentage of students who obtained employment in the subject
area in which they obtained a certificate or who enrolled for additional education in
that subject area.

Legislative History

Source: L. 2013: Entire part added, (HB 13-1005), ch. 358, p. 2105, � 1, effective May 28. L. 2016: (1)(a), (1)(b), (1)(c), and (3)(a) amended, (HB 16-1082), ch. 58, p. 149, � 30, effective August 10. L. 2019: (2)(a) amended, (HB 19-1206), ch. 133, p. 606, � 21, effective April 25.