House Bill 1002, authored by Rep. Chuck Goodrich (R-Noblesville), features a number of provisions that include expanding work-based learning opportunities, making high school graduation requirements more relevant to real-world expectations and creating funding flexibility for students to complete on-the-job-training and postsecondary credentials.
The Chamber-supported bill was heard by the House Education Committee this week and a committee vote is expected in the next couple of weeks.
House Bill 1002 is the primary legislative vehicle for making good on House Speaker Todd Huston’s (R-Fishers) publicly stated goal of “reinventing high school” with a more relevant secondary education that better prepares Hoosier students for the realities and opportunities posed by a rapidly changing workforce. The bill’s centerpiece is the creation of career scholarship accounts, a state-supported fund that would enable high school students to choose from a variety of on-the-job training and postsecondary credentials offered by employers, higher education institutions, area career and technical education centers and related providers.
The bill also envisions a role for regional intermediary organizations that would help coordinate and support the implementation of these activities in partnership with area educators and employers. While generally supportive of the overall concept, lawmakers and other constituencies raised a variety of questions on the underlying details and how it would work in different communities. While expressing support for the bill’s intent, the Indiana Chamber stressed the need to further clarify and define several aspects, including the acceptable uses and total dollar amounts of the career scholarship accounts, what constitutes a high-value credential and how to differentiate the role/functions of schools, intermediary organizations and other supporting entities in helping students navigate these opportunities.
At 86 pages in length (not including the inevitable plethora of amendments to come), HB 1002 is a well-intentioned but extremely complicated piece of legislation that even its advocates acknowledge is a work in progress at this point. The Chamber spent the bulk of this week meeting with the bill’s authors, policy staff and other mission-aligned partners to begin parsing out these details to ensure a successful implementation that improves – rather than further complicates – an already crowded (and confusing) education and workforce landscape.
The Indiana Chamber whole-heartedly supports the intent of HB 1002, but many of the underlying details and mechanics must be worked out to ensure the measure delivers on its promise for both students and the state. The Chamber is working closely with lawmakers and key advocates to further shape the policy with that goal in mind in the weeks ahead, and the bill will no doubt continue to evolve as other members of the General Assembly put their fingerprints on it.
Jason Bearce is vice president of education & workforce development for the Indiana Chamber. He has been with the organization since 2018 and previously held senior leadership positions at the Indiana Commission for Higher Education and Indiana Department of Education.