14.36 Reimagining Education and Career Help Act.—The Reimagining Education and Career Help Act is created to address the evolving needs of Florida’s economy by increasing the level of collaboration and cooperation among state businesses and education communities while improving training within and equity and access to a more integrated workforce and education system for all Floridians.
(1) The Office of Reimagining Education and Career Help is created in the Executive Office of the Governor to facilitate alignment and coordination of entities responsible for the state’s workforce development system. The head of the office is the Director of the Office of Reimagining Education and Career Help. The Director of the Office of Reimagining Education and Career Help shall be appointed by and shall serve at the pleasure of the Governor.
(2) As used in this section, the term:
(a) “Credential” means an apprenticeship certificate, industry certification, license, advanced technical certificate, college credit certificate, career certificate, applied technology diploma, associate in applied science degree, associate in science degree, bachelors of applied science degree, and bachelors of science degree.
(b) “Office” means the Office of Reimagining Education and Career Help.
(c) “Workforce development system” means the entities and activities that contribute to the state’s talent pipeline system through education, training, and support services that prepare individuals for employment or career advancement, and the entities that are responsible for oversight or conducting those activities such as CareerSource Florida, Inc., local workforce development boards, one-stop career centers, the Department of Commerce, the Department of Education, and the Department of Children and Families.
(d) “Workforce education region” means areas of the state identified by the Department of Education, in collaboration with the Department of Commerce, to maximize resource allocation by combining two or more sources of funding to integrate education and training in order to improve access to credentials of value for participants in adult education programs.
(e) “Workforce related program” means a program operated, delivered, or enabled, in whole or in part, by a state or local entity using federal funds or state appropriations to offer incentives, funding, support, or guidance for any of the following purposes:
1. Job training.
2. The attainment of a credential of value identified pursuant to s. 445.004(4)(h)4.c.
3. The attainment of a postsecondary degree or credential.
4. The provision of other types of employment assistance.
5. Any other program that has, at least in part, the goal of securing employment or better employment for an individual and receives federal funds or a state appropriation.
(3) The duties of the office are to:
(a) Serve as the advisor to the Governor on matters related to the state’s workforce development system.
(b) Establish criteria and goals for workforce development and diversification in the state’s workforce development system.
(c) Provide strategies to align and improve efficiency in the state’s workforce development system and the delivery of workforce related programs.
(d) Coordinate state and federal workforce related programs, plans, resources, and activities provided by CareerSource Florida, Inc., the Department of Commerce, and the Department of Education.
(e) Oversee the Workforce Development Information System described in s. 1008.40 to verify the validity of data collected and monitor compliance of workforce related programs and education and training programs with applicable federal and state requirements as authorized by federal and state law.
(f) Serve on the Credentials Review Committee established in s. 445.004 to identify nondegree and degree credentials of value and facilitate the collection of data necessary to conduct committee work.
(g) Coordinate and facilitate a memorandum of understanding for data sharing agreements of the state’s workforce performance data among state agencies and align, to the greatest extent possible, performance measures adopted under ss. 445.004 and 1008.43.
(h) Develop the criteria for assigning a letter grade for each local workforce development board under s. 445.004. The criteria shall, in part, be based on local workforce development board performance accountability measures and return on investment. The majority of the grade shall be based on the improvement by each local workforce development board in the long-term self-sufficiency of participants through outcome measures such as reduction in long-term public assistance and the percentage of participants whose wages were higher after program completion compared to wages before participation in a program. The office shall also develop criteria and display information that will assist the public in making informed decisions when deciding to access the local workforce development board or one-stop career center.
(i) Streamline the clinical placement process and increase clinical placement opportunities for students, hospitals, and other clinical sites by administering, directly or through a contract, a web-based centralized clinical placement system for use by all nursing education programs subject to the requirements in s. 464.019.
(j) Facilitate coordination among the Department of Commerce, the Department of Education, and CareerSource Florida, Inc., to develop and expand apprenticeship, preapprenticeship, and other work-based learning models and streamline efforts to recruit and onboard new apprentices, preapprentices, students, and employers interested in work-based learning opportunities. Such coordination must include, but need not be limited to, conducting outreach with business leaders, local governments, and education providers.
(k) Coordinate with the Department of Education, the Department of Commerce, and CareerSource Florida, Inc., to publish and disseminate, by March 1, 2025, a statewide asset map of career and technical education to inform workforce and industry partners of opportunities to partner and expand career and technical education in the state. The information must be disseminated in a user-friendly form and must:
1. List secondary career and technical education courses offered by each school district in the state, categorized by career cluster, school, grade level, and the number of students enrolled.
2. Identify the total amount of funding provided for the secondary career and technical education programs offered by each school district in the state.
3. Compare existing secondary career and technical education program offerings, funding, and outcomes, including credential attainment, to data on in-demand careers and the state’s economic needs to identify industry opportunities in which increased program offerings would support state and local needs.
4. Compare alignment and funding of existing secondary career and technical education program offerings and outcomes, including credential attainment, to data on in-demand careers and the state’s economic needs to identify opportunities to better align funding of programs to industry demand and statewide economic needs. Funding alignment may consider the use of virtual reality and other workforce education technologies for secondary career and technical education program offerings and outcomes, including credential attainment.
5. List career dual enrollment programs offered in each school district in the state categorized by program type, offering location, and the number of students enrolled. The list must indicate the credential earned upon completion of the program and if the credential is part of a sequence as identified by the Credentials Review Committee pursuant to s. 445.004(4).
(l) Coordinate, facilitate, and communicate statewide efforts to meet supply and demand needs for the state’s health care workforce. Annually, by December 1, the office shall report on the implementation of this paragraph and any other relevant information on the Department of Education’s website. To support the efforts of the office, the Board of Governors and the State Board of Education shall:
1. Provide 10-year trend information on nursing education programs subject to s. 464.019. The Department of Health, the Board of Governors, the State Board of Education, the Commission for Independent Education, the Independent Colleges and Universities of Florida, the Florida Center for Nursing, and postsecondary institutions participating in a state grant, fund, or performance-based incentive program under s. 1009.89, s. 1009.8962, or s. 1009.897 shall provide data, by institution and program, on:
a. The number of student slots available.
b. The number of student applications submitted, the number of qualified student applicants, the number of students accepted, and the number of students enrolled.
c. The number of program graduates.
d. Program retention rates of students tracked from program entry to graduation.
e. Graduate passage rates, as defined in s. 464.003, for, and the number of times each graduate took, the National Council of State Boards of Nursing Licensing Examination.
f. The number of graduates who become employed as practical or professional nurses in this state.
g. The educational advancement of nurses through career pathways for the preceding 10 years by comparing their initial degree to the highest degree they obtained.
h. The outcomes of students enrolled at institutions participating in the Linking Industry to Nursing Education (LINE) Fund under s. 1009.8962 or the Prepping Institutions, Programs, Employers, and Learners through Incentives for Nursing Education (PIPELINE) Fund under s. 1009.897.
i. The outcomes of graduates who have received a nursing student loan forgiveness repayment under s. 1009.66. Such data must include, for the previous 4 fiscal years, the number of graduates who have received a repayment, the amount repaid on behalf of each graduate, each graduate’s employer of record for each repayment and the length of employment at each employer, and the level or levels of nursing licensure earned by each graduate.
2. Develop definitions for data elements and a uniform survey for use by the Department of Health, the Commission for Independent Education, the Independent Colleges and Universities of Florida, and postsecondary institutions participating in a state loan forgiveness program, grant, fund, or performance-based incentive program under s. 1009.66, s. 1009.89, s. 1009.8962, or s. 1009.897 to collect data required under subparagraph 1. The survey must include, but is not limited to, a student’s age, gender, race, ethnicity, veteran status, wage, employer information, loan debt, and retirement expectations.
(4) The office shall create a no-wrong-door-entry strategy to improve equity and access to the myriad of state and federally funded workforce related programs through CareerSource Florida, Inc., local workforce development boards, one-stop career centers, school districts, charter technical centers, Florida College System institutions, the State University System, and through eligible training providers. Individuals must not be required to visit multiple locations when seeking access to education and workforce training. To create the strategy, the office shall:
(a) Develop a training course to cross-train all staff within the state’s workforce development system on workforce related programs, including how to use an integrated case management system, develop an individual employment plan, conduct a comprehensive needs assessment, precertify individuals for workforce related programs, and on any other activities to reinforce the no-wrong-door-entry strategy.
(b) Coordinate and facilitate a common intake form and case management system for use by workforce related programs to minimize duplicate data entry.
(c) Coordinate and facilitate a memorandum of understanding between the Department of Commerce and the Department of Children and Families to permit Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) clients to precertify for Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act training services without having to physically visit a one-stop center.
(d) Oversee the performance evaluation of workforce related programs and services under s. 445.033.
(e) Identify other state and federal programs that serve individuals with significant barriers to employment as demonstrated by low placement, employment, and earnings rates and identify strategies to increase the utilization of such programs by local workforce development boards.
(5) The office shall provide the public with access to available federal, state, and local services and provide stakeholders with a systemwide, global view of workforce related program data across various programs through actionable qualitative and quantitative information. The office shall:
(a) Minimize duplication and maximize the use of existing resources by facilitating the adaptation and integration of state information systems to improve usability and seamlessly link to the consumer-first workforce system and other compatible state information systems and applications to help residents of the state:
1. Explore and identify career opportunities.
2. Identify in-demand jobs and associated earning potential.
3. Identify the skills and credentials needed for specific jobs.
4. Access a broad array of federal, state, and local workforce related programs.
5. Determine the quality of workforce related programs offered by public postsecondary educational institutions and public and private training providers, based on employment, wages, continued education, student loan debt, and receipt of public assistance by graduates of workforce, certificate, or degree programs. To gather this information, the office shall review each workforce related program 1 year after the program’s first graduating class and every 5 years after the first review.
6. Identify opportunities and resources to support individuals along their career pathway.
7. Provide information to help individuals understand their potential earnings through paid employment and cope with the loss of public assistance as they progress through career pathways toward self-sufficiency.
8. Map the timing and magnitude of the loss of public assistance for in-demand occupations across the state to help individuals visualize how their incomes will increase over time as they move toward self-sufficiency.
(b) Provide access to labor market data consistent with the information developed by the Labor Market Estimating Conference and the Labor Market Statistics Center within the Department of Commerce and provide guidance on how to analyze the data, the appropriate use of the data, and any limitations of the data, including instances in which such data may not be used.
(c) Maximize the use of the consumer-first workforce system at locations within the workforce development system.
(d) Maximize the use of funds appropriated for the development and initial operation of the consumer-first workforce system. Any incidental costs to state agencies must be derived from existing resources.
(e) Annually by December 1, report to the Legislature on the implementation and outcomes of the consumer-first workforce system, including the increase of economic self-sufficiency of individuals.
History.—s. 1, ch. 2021-164; s. 1, ch. 2023-81; s. 4, ch. 2024-6; s. 1, ch. 2024-125.