Bill Text: IL SB3614 | 2019-2020 | 101st General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Creates the Workforce Diploma Pilot Program Act. Creates the Workforce Diploma Pilot Program to provide performance payments to approved program providers for eligible students enrolled in an approved program provider's program. Provides criteria and other requirements for the selection of approved program providers. Allows the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, subject to appropriation, to disburse payments to approved program providers in amounts, to be specified by the Department by rule, for each eligible student's completion or attainment of specified academic outcomes. Requires approved program providers to submit invoices on an ongoing basis to the Department for payments for student completion or attainment of specified goals. Requires the Department to review data from each approved program provider to ensure the programs offered by each provider are meeting minimum Program performance standards. Provides for the adoption of rules. Provides Program reporting requirements. Repeals the Act on July 1, 2023. Provides a legislative declaration. Defines terms. Effective July 1, 2020.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Failed) 2021-01-13 - Session Sine Die [SB3614 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2019-SB3614-Introduced.html


101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2019 and 2020
SB3614

Introduced 2/13/2020, by Sen. Scott M. Bennett

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
New Act

Creates the Workforce Diploma Pilot Program Act. Creates the Workforce Diploma Pilot Program to provide performance payments to approved program providers for eligible students enrolled in an approved program provider's program. Provides criteria and other requirements for the selection of approved program providers. Allows the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, subject to appropriation, to disburse payments to approved program providers in amounts, to be specified by the Department by rule, for each eligible student's completion or attainment of specified academic outcomes. Requires approved program providers to submit invoices on an ongoing basis to the Department for payments for student completion or attainment of specified goals. Requires the Department to review data from each approved program provider to ensure the programs offered by each provider are meeting minimum Program performance standards. Provides for the adoption of rules. Provides Program reporting requirements. Repeals the Act on July 1, 2023. Provides a legislative declaration. Defines terms. Effective July 1, 2020.
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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

A BILL FOR

SB3614LRB101 19995 RJF 69521 b
1 AN ACT concerning the Workforce Diploma Pilot Program.
2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5Workforce Diploma Pilot Program Act.
6 Section 5. Legislative declaration. The General Assembly
7finds and declares that:
8 (1) In Illinois, nearly 13% of adults do not have a high
9school diploma.
10 (2) Research shows that as many as 80% of the individuals
11who left high school without a diploma did so for nonacademic
12reasons, including the need to work to support themselves or
13their families, becoming parents, bullying or social anxiety,
14or falling too far behind to graduate on time.
15 (3) Education is a significant economic driver, with
16significant costs to the State in social services,
17incarceration expenses, and lost income from taxes
18attributable to students who drop out of high school.
19 (4) When combined with lost wages, the average lifetime
20total opportunity cost for one high school dropout is $755,900.
21 (5) Therefore, the General Assembly declares that by
22creating a Workforce Diploma Pilot Program that provides
23Illinois adults with the opportunity to complete a high school

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1diploma, while transferring the risk to providers who receive
2performance payments only when those students meet performance
3milestones, the State can better meet its workforce goals for
4future economic growth.
5 Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act:
6 "Academic skill intake assessment" means a
7criteria-referenced assessment of numeracy and literacy skill
8with high reliability and validity as determined by third party
9research, whether administered in person or online.
10 "Accredited" means holding an active accreditation from
11one of the 7 United States regional accreditors recognized by
12the United States Department of Education, including the Middle
13States Commission on Higher Education, the New England
14Association of Schools and Colleges, the Higher Learning
15Commission, the Northwest Commission on Colleges and
16Universities, the Southern Association of Colleges and
17Schools, the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, the
18Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges, as
19well as any successor entities or consolidations of the above,
20including AdvancEd/Cognia.
21 "Adult dropout recovery services" includes, but is not
22limited to, sourcing, recruitment, and engagement of eligible
23students, learning plan development, active teaching, and
24proactive coaching and mentoring, resulting in an accredited
25high school diploma.

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1 "Approved program provider" means a public, non-profit, or
2other entity that meets the requirements of this Act. An
3approved program provider may not receive funding for a student
4if the approved program provider receives federal or State
5funding or private tuition for that student.
6 "Coaching" means proactive communication between the
7approved program provider and the student related to the
8student's pace and progress through his or her learning plan.
9 "Career pathways coursework" means one or more courses that
10align with the skill needs of industries in the economy of the
11State or region that helps an individual enter or advance
12within a specific occupation or occupational cluster.
13 "Career placement services" means services designed to
14assist students in obtaining employment, including career
15interest self-assessments, job search skills, resume
16development, and mock interviews.
17 "Cost per graduate" means total Program funding reimbursed
18to a provider divided by total graduates for a cohort year.
19 "Department" means the Department of Commerce and Economic
20Opportunity.
21 "Eligible student" or "student" means a participant in the
22Workforce Diploma Pilot Program who is 19 years of age or
23older, who is a resident of Illinois, and who has not yet
24earned a high school diploma.
25 "Employability skills certification" means a certificate
26earned by demonstrating professional non-technical skills

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1through assessment, portfolio, or observation.
2 "Graduate" means a student who has successfully completed
3all of the provider requirements in order to obtain a high
4school diploma.
5 "Graduation rate" means the total graduates for the fiscal
6year divided by all students for the fiscal year for whom the
7provider has received funding, calculated one fiscal year in
8arrears.
9 "Graduation guidelines" means course and credit
10requirements for a student to receive the approved program
11provider's high school diploma.
12 "High school diploma" means a diploma issued by an
13accredited institution. A diploma issued under this Act is
14recognized as a high school diploma by the State.
15 "Industry-recognized credential" means an
16education-related or work-related credential that verifies an
17individual's qualification or competence issued by a third
18party with the relevant authority to issue such credentials.
19 "Learning plan" means a documented plan for courses and
20credits needed for each individual in order to complete Program
21and provider graduation requirements.
22 "Mentoring" means a direct relationship between a coach and
23a student to facilitate the completion of the student's
24learning plan designed to prepare the student to succeed in the
25Program and his or her future endeavors.
26 "Milestones" means objective measures of progress for

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1which payment is made to an approved program provider under
2this Act, including earned units of high school credit,
3attainment of an employability skills certificate, attainment
4of an industry-recognized credential, and attainment of an
5accredited high school diploma.
6 "Program" means the Workforce Diploma Pilot Program
7created under this Act.
8 "Request for qualifications" means a request for
9interested potential program providers to submit evidence that
10they meet the qualifications established in this Act, all of
11which once confirmed by the Department that they meet the
12qualifications become approved program providers. A request
13for qualifications may be left open with approved program
14providers approved to operate programs at any time of year.
15 "Transcript evaluations" means a documented summary of
16credits earned in previous public or private accredited high
17schools compared with Program and approved program provider
18graduation guidelines.
19 "Units of high school credit" means credit awarded based on
20a student's demonstration that he or she has successfully met
21the content expectations for the credit area as defined by
22subject area standards, expectations, or guidelines.
23 Section 15. Workforce Diploma Pilot Program.
24 (a) There is created in the Department of Commerce and
25Economic Opportunity the Workforce Diploma Pilot Program to

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1provide performance payments to approved program providers for
2eligible students enrolled in an approved program provider's
3program.
4 (b) On or before August 15 in any fiscal year in which the
5General Assembly appropriates money for the Program, the
6Department shall issue a request for qualifications for
7providers to participate in the Program as approved program
8providers.
9 (c) The criteria necessary to be an approved program
10provider includes the following:
11 (1) experience providing adult dropout recovery
12 services;
13 (2) the ability to provide academic skill intake
14 assessment and transcript evaluations;
15 (3) the ability to develop a learning plan that
16 integrates academic requirements and career goals;
17 (4) the ability to provide all instruction necessary to
18 meet or exceed the State Board of Education's high school
19 graduation guidelines to achieve a high school diploma;
20 (5) the ability to provide remedial course work in
21 literacy and numeracy;
22 (6) the ability to provide a research-validated
23 academic resiliency assessment and intervention;
24 (7) the ability to provide employability skills
25 development aligned to employer needs;
26 (8) the ability to provide career pathways course work;

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1 (9) the ability to provide preparation for
2 industry-recognized credentials;
3 (10) the ability to provide career placement services;
4 and
5 (11) high school diploma accreditation by a recognized
6 regional accrediting body or a consolidation of one or more
7 regional accrediting bodies.
8 (d) The Department shall review qualifications from
9approved program providers to determine whether the provider
10meets the criteria to be an approved program provider under the
11Program. Within 60 days after submission of qualifications
12under this Section, the Department shall publish a list of
13providers that meet the criteria for an approved program
14provider. An approved program provider is eligible for Program
15payments for outcomes, as provided under subsection (e),
16achieved 30 or more days after the Department publishes the
17list of approved program providers.
18 Once the Department determines that a provider is an
19approved program provider under the Program, the provider
20remains an approved program provider without the need to
21reapply annually, unless the provider is removed by the
22Department from the list of approved program providers as
23provided under subsection (g).
24 (e) In any fiscal year in which the General Assembly
25appropriates money for the Program, the Department shall
26disburse payments to approved program providers in amounts, to

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1be specified by the Department by rule, for each eligible
2student's completion or attainment of the following outcomes:
3 (1) for completion of each half-credit;
4 (2) for completion of an accredited high school
5 diploma;
6 (3) for completion of an employability skills
7 certification program equal to at least one carnegie unit;
8 (4) for attainment of an industry-recognized
9 credential requiring up to 50 hours of training;
10 (5) for attainment of an industry-recognized
11 credential requiring between 51 and 100 hours of training;
12 and
13 (6) for attainment of an industry-recognized
14 credential requiring more than 100 hours of training.
15 An approved program provider that receives tuition or other
16payment from or on behalf of an eligible student shall not also
17receive a payment from the Program on behalf of the eligible
18student for the same course or program.
19 (f) Approved program providers shall submit invoices on an
20ongoing basis to the Department for payments for student
21completion or attainment of goals set forth in subsection (e).
22The Department shall determine the submission dates for the
23invoices. Subject to available appropriations, approved
24program providers who submit invoices on or before the dates
25determined by the Department shall receive payments. If
26available appropriations are insufficient to satisfy all

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1invoices received by the submission date, the Department shall
2reduce all payments by the same percentage until the money is
3exhausted.
4 The Department shall publish monthly reports for approved
5program providers indicating the total amount of payments
6disbursed pursuant to the Program and the total number of
7students enrolled in the Program.
8 (g) The Department shall review data from each approved
9program provider to ensure the programs offered by each
10provider are meeting minimum Program performance standards,
11including a minimum 50% high school graduation rate from the
12approved program provider's programs, calculated one year in
13arrears. The Department shall place an approved program
14provider that does not meet the Program performance standards
15established in this Section on probationary status for the
16remainder of the State fiscal year. The Department shall remove
17an approved program provider from the list of approved program
18providers if the provider does not meet the performance
19standards for 2 consecutive years.
20 (h) The Department may adopt rules necessary to implement
21and administer the Program created under this Act.
22 Section 20. Program reporting.
23 (a) On or before August 15 of each year in which Program
24payments were disbursed for the prior State fiscal year, each
25approved program provider that received payments under the

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1Program for the preceding State fiscal year shall report the
2following information to the Department:
3 (1) the total number of eligible students for whom the
4 approved program provider has received payments;
5 (2) the total number of units of high school credit
6 earned by eligible students for whom the approved program
7 provider is receiving payments;
8 (3) the total number of employability skills
9 certifications issued to eligible students for whom the
10 approved program provider is receiving payments;
11 (4) the total number of industry-recognized
12 credentials earned for each tier of funding described in
13 subsection (e) of Section 15 by eligible students for whom
14 the approved program provider is receiving payments; and
15 (5) the total number of eligible students for whom the
16 approved program provider is receiving payments who
17 receive high school diplomas.
18 (b) On or before October 15 of each year in which Program
19payments were disbursed for the prior State fiscal year, the
20Department shall submit to the General Assembly a report
21listing approved program providers and summarizing the
22information received from approved program providers under
23subsection (a), and other workforce and postsecondary
24outcomes, including employment and college enrollment.
25 Section 25. Repeal. This Act is repealed on July 1, 2023.

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1 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect July 1,
22020.
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