A top U.S. Education Department (ED) official emphasized last week the department’s vision to give states greater flexibility in how they use federal funding and to streamline processes for colleges and students.
Speaking at an American Association of Community Colleges event on workforce development on Thursday, Nick Moore, ED’s acting assistant secretary for career, technical and adult education, said the Trump administration wants to provide states with the resources they need to reach their education and workforce goals. That includes less red tape and more useful data.
Moore also encouraged states to work more closely together in determining workforce demands, definitions and data collection.
“We’re trying to take steps together in the right direction, and leading with the principle that it’s not going to be us federally prescribing to you what you must do, but again partnering with you so that we can help you get done what it is that you want to do,” he told attendees, who included college and business leaders and other stakeholders.
Developing common data
ED is working to create a data infrastructure to help states gather more information and data. He said it’s similar to the federal government’s role to incentivize rural electrification, broadband expansion and the interstate highway system. It wasn’t just funding; it was working with stakeholders to come to consensus on “the common denominator that makes all that work,” Moore said.
“If you go down the interstate, when you hit the stateline the highway doesn’t automatically change,” he said. “So when we talk about a national utility for data and mobility, we have to think about it in the same terms, so if I’m in Alabama and I move to Arkansas, workers’ skills can easily move with them.”
In addition, the administration wants to ensure Americans have opportunities to move into better-paying jobs, which means better data to allow them to determine potential employment and income outcomes for certain education and training programs. It starts with more streamlined data. That data are currently spread across 43 different workforce programs spread across nine federal agencies, which he compared to “one little pat of butter and spreading it across three loaves of toast.”
“What we need to do is consolidate more of that funding so that governors and states can figure out where to plug those dollars in to help co-design programs with employers,” he said.
One-stops and Workforce Pell
The administration would also like to see states over the next few years place more one-stop centers at community colleges, which are the point of training in many instances. Too often, one-stops are set up at a strip mall, which can eat up infrastructure costs and be inefficient in providing services, Moore said.
He argued for more concierge-type services for students and employers to help guide and connect them with what they need. People want one contact and level of service.
“Part of that is about informed customer choice,” Moore said.
Moore also noted that the Workforce Pell Notice for Proposed Rulemaking will be out soon.
“You guys are going to be a critical player on helping to awaken the governor’s office from their dogmatic slumber, in some cases, to make sure they’re keyed in on the exercise with state workforce board,” he said.
He stressed its up to states now to develop plans and legislation to implement Workforce Pell by July 1. If states won’t have it ready, they should at least have an interim process.
