Bill Text: NJ S1337 | 2024-2025 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Establishes "Manufacturing Workforce Development Grant Program" for students enrolled at county colleges.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-09 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Higher Education Committee [S1337 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2024-S1337-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
221st LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2024 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Senator MICHAEL L. TESTA, JR.
District 1 (Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland)
Senator ANTHONY M. BUCCO
District 25 (Morris and Passaic)
SYNOPSIS
Establishes "Manufacturing Workforce Development Grant Program" for students enrolled at county colleges.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Act concerning internship and career opportunities for students enrolled at county colleges and supplementing chapter 64A of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. The Secretary of Higher Education, in consultation with the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development, shall create the "Manufacturing Workforce Development Grant Program" to encourage county colleges in the State to partner with local manufacturers to provide students with internship opportunities. The purpose of the program shall be to prepare students for entry into the workforce by providing real workplace experiences as a complement to traditional classroom instruction. Students who successfully complete the program shall receive academic credit for their participation, while earning a stipend funded by the program.
b. The Secretary of Higher Education, in consultation with the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development and the New Jersey Manufacturing Extension Program, shall develop a list of approved manufacturers that county colleges shall partner with for the program. The secretary shall issue a request for proposals within 30 days of the effective date of this section to all county colleges detailing the purpose of the program, the application process and required documentation, evaluation criteria, and the submission timeline.
The secretary shall award grants, within the limits of available appropriations, to selected county colleges to be used to support the development of internship opportunities for students. The secretary shall determine the amount of each grant awarded under the program and may award multi-year grants.
c. A county college that wishes to participate in the program shall submit an application to the secretary on such forms and in such a manner as determined by the secretary. The application shall include:
(1) a memorandum of understanding between the county college and a local manufacturer including, but not limited to, the responsibilities of each partner, a description of the work to be performed by student interns, and the process by which a student may earn an offer of employment or a promise of employment from the manufacturer after completion of an associate's degree and upon successful completion of an internship under the program;
(2) a description of current or proposed course offerings at the county college and how those course offerings will help students complement and reinforce the work skills and knowledge acquired through participation in the program;
(3) the application process for students seeking admission into the program;
(4) the selection criteria that will be used by the county college in evaluating whether a student will be accepted into the program;
(5) the number of students the county college will accept into the program each academic year;
(6) a description of how students accepted into the program will be matched with an approved manufacturer;
(7) a description of how the internships offered through the college will provide real workplace experiences and promote the mastery of occupation-specific or transferable skills; and
(8) the number of credits a student may be awarded towards the completion of an associate's degree program upon successful completion of an internship under the program.
Priority status shall be given to county colleges that demonstrate that one or more proposed manufacturing internships to be offered by the college are in careers designated as labor demand occupations as defined in section 3 of P.L.1993, c.268 (C.34:15E-3).
To the maximum extent possible, the department shall select county colleges from the northern, central, and southern regions of the State and shall select a cross section of colleges in urban, suburban, and rural areas.
d. Grants shall be awarded on an annual basis and subject to the limit of funds appropriated or otherwise made available to effectuate the purposes of this section. Eighty-five percent of all funds received by a recipient county college shall be used to fund student stipends for hours worked at a program internship. Fifteen percent of all funds received by a recipient county college shall be used to cover costs incurred while administering the program, fund career counselor positions to assist students accepted into the program, and for any other purposes as may be approved by the secretary to meet the program's objectives.
e. The secretary shall submit an annual report by December 31 of each year to the Governor, and to the Legislature pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), concerning:
(1) the number of new and current partnerships created by each county college with local manufacturers;
(2) the total number of students participating in the program;
(3) a description of the various work skills students have learned or refined through participation in the program;
(4) the number of students in the program who have transferred to a four-year institution of higher education;
(5) the number of students who received offers of employment upon successful completion of a program internship;
(6) the amount of money distributed through the program and the purposes for which those funds have been used; and
(7) any other information
deemed relevant by the secretary.
2. This act shall take effect on the first day of the sixth month next following the date of enactment, except the Secretary of Higher Education may take any anticipatory administrative action in advance as shall be necessary for the implementation of this act.
STATEMENT
This bill establishes the "Manufacturing Workforce Development Grant Program" to encourage county colleges in the State to partner with local manufacturers to provide internship opportunities for their students. Through the creation of these partnerships, county colleges will be able to better prepare their students for entry into the workforce by providing real workplace experiences as a complement to traditional classroom instruction.
Under the provisions of the bill, the program would be created by the Secretary of Higher Education in consultation with the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development. Eighty-five percent of program funds would be used by recipient county colleges to fund student stipends for hours worked at a program internship while the remaining fifteen percent of funds received would be used to cover costs incurred while administering the program, fund career counselor positions, and for any other purposes as may be approved by the secretary to meet the program's objectives. Priority status would be granted to county colleges that demonstrate that one or more of the proposed manufacturing internships to be offered by the college are for careers designated as labor demand occupations. Students who successfully complete a program internship would receive academic credit towards completion of an associate's degree and may earn an offer of employment.
The secretary would be required to submit an annual report to the Governor and the Legislature by December 31 of each year concerning the number of new and current partnerships created by each county college with local manufacturers, the total number of students participating in the program, a description of the various work skills students have learned or refined through participation in the program, the number of students in the program who have transferred to a four-year institution of higher education, the number of students who received offers of employment upon successful completion of a program internship, the amount of money distributed through the program and the purposes for which those funds have been used, and any other information deemed relevant by the secretary.
