c-span now has you covered. downloads the app for free today. >> a new u.s. supreme court term begins today marking a number of firsts for the court. it's the first time the justices are meeting face to face since last march. it's also the first time justice barrett takes the bench for in-person oral arguments. the court is doing live audio for in person oral argument for the first time today. justices have adopted a more organized way of posing questions to the attorney. each will get time to ask questions beginning with the chief justice and then by seniority. listen to the oral arguments live online at c-span.org or on our new c-span now app. >> next an update on job training programs. the senate subcommittee on employment and workplace safety talked about the importance of apprenticeships, alternative pathways to college and job

retraining programs for mid career individuals. the hearing runs about an hour, 40 minutes. >> the senate employment workplace safety subcommittee can come to order. settle down out there.

today we are holding a hearing on getting america ready to work. looking at successful on the job apprenticeship training programs have helped workers and businesses build a trained work force and remain competitive in the global economy. i look forward to today's witness testimony and the discussion that follows. ranking member brawn and i each have an opening statement. then we will introduce the witnesses after the witnesses give their testimony. senators will have five minutes for a round of questions. i think we will have some senators coming and going over the process of this. who knows how many millions of people are watching eventually on recorded video. while we are unable to have the hearing fully open, live video is available on our committee website at help.senate.gov. we have invited members outside the subcommittee to participate in today's hearing.

i look forward to them being a part of the conversation, building a bipartisan coalition to address some of the challenges we face in building tomorrow's work force as we consider investments in education and work force, we need to keep in mind that not everyone will go to college. they don't need to go to college to be successful. some people go to college at different times. only 35% of young people in the united states ever complete a bachelor's degree or higher. apprenticeships and other on the job training programs are powerful alternatives that help shift the conversation away from the traditional, narrow four-year degree path and toward the skills needed to find successful careers in jobs that exist today. right now the three fastest growing jobs in america, wind turbine technicians, nurse practitioners and solar panel installers, many involve skills that can be gained through apprenticeship training programs. these are the kinds of jobs and

comfortable incomes that can rebuild the american middle class according to the bureau of labor statistics, the median base salary for a solar panel installer is about $47,000 a year. wind turbine technician earns a median wage of over $56,000 a year. we need to make sure that we educate and train these workers on the specific and in demand skills and to partner with the employers in these fields. we need to make sure we have programs that provide skills training for careers that are available now but also the careers of tomorrow. coders to support information technology, marketing coordinators, claims representatives, workers who can build new, more sustainable and reliable power grid, just to name a few. these are all careers attainable with a combination of some classroom training and on the job apprenticeship programs.

out of necessity, employers like toyota are creating training programs to build the work force they need to keep their business and their partners globally competitive. our first witness is going to be my friend, knoll ginsberg, of i don't know how long, probably 25 years now, and he has learned over his 35 years of experience in manufacturing that work force development has always been a limiting factor to economic growth. noel has worked for decades to tackle the work force and skills gap by a, personally supporting 42 low-income kids through the i have a dream foundation, changing a dropout rate of 90% to a graduation rate of 90%, founding the colorado advanced manufacturing alliance to engage manufacturers across the state in solving these systemic challenges, chairing the denver

public schools college readiness council as well as the chamber of commerce board, he served on the colorado work force development council, the scholarship initiative, and the colorado economic development council. i could go on. the list goes on beyond that. but also more importantly he came to me with this idea about apprenticeships and founded and has led, always as a volunteer, careerwise, training apprenticeships and programs that aren't typically associated with traditional apprenticeship programs. careerwise has worked with over 200 employers across the country from new york city to denver, to indiana, and to washington, d.c., to build these apprenticeship programs and modern owrptions ranging from software coding to banking to education and on and on. the support careerwise has made

it possible for small businesses that make up the majority of our economy across many markets to provide equitable opportunities while improving their bottom lines. i look forward to discussing how careerwise and toyota are building modern, adaptable apprenticeship programs for the modern digital economy. i think we have some great examples of how apprenticeship and training has worked. mr. morrow completed a registered program in denver and became a full-time journey worker as a business development representative, and ms. curry, the president of toyota motor manufacturing in indiana will share how toyota created an academy which connects high school students with opportunities in advanced manufacturing. i am eagerly looking forward to talking about how we on this committee can support these types of programs and continue to build on their success. with that,ly turn it over to

ranking member braun for his opening statement. >> thank you, senator hickenlooper. i have probably most recently come off the pavement of running a business, and i can tell you long before covid, in a state like indiana, i travel to visit all of our counties every year that i am a u.s. senator and i learn so much and work force was the number one issue, dwarfing even rural broadband and affordable housing. so every time i sit down with a business in indiana, which has got a great climate, we keep wrestling with this issue. that gap is growing wider rather than kind of naturally shrinking and you would hope that when those high demands, high wage jobs are out there, that there be an easier way to dovetail that basic education you get in high school to whatever you want to do next, including

immediately getting into the work force. nfib, who represents a lot of the start-ups, the small businesses, that turn into larger ones, say over half of their members grapple with that, even the ones down with just a few employees. we are currently looking at re-authorizing the work force innovation and opportunity act, and i have to say that this topic is maybe along with agriculture one of the most bipartisan discussions i have seen here in the senate. so we got a lot of that going for us as well. some of my colleagues are eager to increase the scope and funding of job training and work force development through reconciliation, a process we are going through currently. i must tell you, i think that to get the proper input from employers across the country that we need to be careful there so that we get it right and

maybe this ought to be a topic that we do through regular order and maybe like this, discuss it, bring expert witnesses in, and check with where the rubber meets the road, employers across the country. one way to serve employers' needs is through industry recognized apprentice programs, iraps which allow job creators to have input. as the economy changes, they've lou apprenticeship programs to be flexible. today you will hear from leah curry, president of toyota manufacturing in indiana based in princeton not far from where i live and they have done an excellent job with their academy. it's a model that companies across the country should aspire to put in place. i will close with this. when you have the cost of a college education now eclipsing in terms of increased rate of

cost growth per year, that of health care, you've actually risen to a new level of kinds of having a dubious category of what's probably for families along with health care the most important thing we need to get right. i served on the education committee back in our indiana state legislature, and believe a lot of our issues go deeper in terms of your state boards of education, actually thinking they're doing things by lip service, have generally disaggregated programs that don't hit the sweet spot and had issues of where you actually stigmatize the pathway. like i found in my own school districts, in my home county and one that i served on, where there was no discussion when kids are in middle school, especially when they get to high school, of what your options

are. parents are our main allies in this journey because they probably had one or two kids that pursued a four-year degree, half of them didn't make it to the finish line. a third did make it to the finish line, got a degree with no market. that's sad with as much money as we spend on it. so i think this is going to be collaborative and i think businesses and parents are the main stakeholders in higher education across the country, which i think is the bailiwick of states. we can do a few things here. i am looking forward to them taking the bull by the horns and putting us in a better place. >> thank you very much, ranking member braun. now we can get to witnesses' testimony. i am sure they're sick of us talking about them but i will talk about them a little bit more. noel ginsburg is a manufacturing entrepreneur. he is the c.e.o. of intertech plastic and intertech medical.

he has been on a 30-year journey to create more opportunity for young people. i mention $the dreamers -- the dreamers. he took them from almost no chance and gave 90% of them a great chance, gave all of them a great chance. that journey has helped him create as founder and c.e.o. of our nonprofit careerwise. i think it really is one of the pioneering organizations in american youth apprenticeship industry-led, student-centered model that trains high school students and modern -- trains high school students for modern economy type jobs, manufacturing, i.t., finance, health care, down the list. on monday mr. ginsburg was selected to serve on the department of labor's national advisory committee on

apprenticeships which i know he will do good service there as well. i worked last night practicing to be able to pronounce a difficult name because with a name like hickenlooper you have a certain respect for the challenges of names, but navarro is a business development representative with pinnacle insurance in denver, colorado. she recently completed the careerwise program, which is registered with pinnacle insurance in colorado. she owns a interpreter certification in spanish. because of hir apprenticeship she knows where she wants to take her career. leaning towards additional training, possibly college, that her employer would no doubt help pay for. i also understand your sister alexia has accompanied you here. you can wave. thank you for coming all the way

out here. thank you both for being here. we look forward to -- go ahead, ranking member braun. introduce your witness. >> leah curry is president of toyota motor manufacturing, indiana, based in princeton, a community just an hour away from where i live. when they came into the marketplace, it was interesting because i am from the lowest unemployment county in the state that has chronic issues of getting work force right and there was always that feeling we were having competition coming in for even a tight labor supply. i love that. it's the way you raise wages the old-fashioned way. responsible for all production in administrative functions at the facility, that produces the highlander. started her career there in 1997 and has received national recognition as a lood -- leader in manufacturing and work force training. she will tell us today about the

innovative 4-t academy program that toyota began and is working in indiana and involves the local high schools and to me is a model that other companies need to look at across the country. >> great, with that why don't you start with your testimony. >> thank you, senator hickenlooper and thank you for being such an advocate, both when you are a business owner, a mayor, a governor and now senator. the challenges we have as a country to address the issues that you spoke so well about is that there are multiple paths to opportunities in this country, and because of that i left a business that i founded over 41 years ago because i believe that this model of apprenticeship that i am going to share can be transformational for our country, for our businesses and for our young people. when i think back to my history as the senator mentioned, i started my business 41 years

ago. i was a junior in college at the time when i started that business. i really knew nothing about injection molding, so i knew that success from my business would be founded on the talent that i surrounded myself with. and so over the ensuing years, when i couldn't find that talent, i assumed that the challenge was the schools. so i went, knocked on the front door and spent the next 10 years learning that in fact there was a missing piece, and it want as much what was happening in the classroom but the role that industry played. it set me on a journey that ultimately led to going to an institute in zurich to learn about how other countries do this, where 70% of young people starting in high school begin an apprenticeship that leads to a job in a market-driven system that pays between $45,000 and $55,000 a year starting, where you can start with an apprenticeship and end with a ph.d. the second reason is what the senator mentioned.

the dreamers that i spent 10 years with as a part of the i have a dream foundation, we is it turn a 90% dropout rate into a 90% graduation rate. once you have had that experience you can't sit back and say that was enough. for me if we could do that for 42, can we do that for a city, a state or maybe a country? and i believe after five years in building this model that i will share with you now that we actually have the opportunity to not just talk about the change or the role that business can play that is in our self-interest but to partner with our education system in ways that will transform this country and opportunity for young people that you will hear about later on in this testimony. so the way our modzle works -- model works, it starts in 11th or is itth grade -- 12th grade where students spend two days a week in a business, three days in a classroom. second year three days in a business, two days a week in a

classroom. the third year, either full or part-time. these are registered apprenticeships where students are being paid a wage so if you think about a student growing up in the inner city, the difference between staying in school or not may be whether or not they can put food on the table. in a registered apprenticeship program, you can do both. it leads to a future career that is limitless for these young people because they have the potential to do anything. apprenticeships are unique because it moves at the speed of business. schools cannot be expected to modify their curriculum in the tech industry where code may change every year. so this is a way to blend the learning that takes place in the classroom with the power of the learning that takes place in the workplace. education belongs in bot places -- both places. it's almost as if i am talking about a three-legged stool. the first is k-12. the second is higher ed.

yes, we should make investments in those and continue to do that. but it's not the only answer. a two-legged stool won't stand up. frankly ours is not in this country. but a three-legged stool can and what is the difference? the difference is industry has a role to play in education and in so doing, they're not just consumers of talent but producers as well and that can be transformational. for our young people and for our businesses. what makes this possible and why careerwise is so critical is the role of intermediatories. this is not -- yes, we have great apprenticeships that have been led by the unions but it's not the only place where apprenticeships belong. the secret place is in high school. students are told there is only one path to prosperity in america. there are two. apprenticeship is the options multiplier. if you add the third leg of the stool, you can change

everything. in my own business, kevin king, a young apprentice, young african-american man, he designed, built and programmed cells that enabled us to bring product back from china. we are also paying for his engineering degree. why? because it's in our self-interest so the point about what i am sharing with you today is this is more than just a program. it's something that can change our country and in the words of jamie diamond, the c.e.o. of j.p. morgan chase who brought us to new york soon after that, we went to indiana and to elkhart county. he said something that was powerful. after visiting pinnacle assurance, he said if each of us would do what pinnacle does and take 5% of our work force and make them use apprentices, we would change this country. that's the reason i left my business. that's the reason i spend 50 hours a week at krierwise -- careerwise because i think we can change this country so that

10 years from now we won't be talking about the same problems. thank you. >> thank you, noel. appreciate that. ms. navarro? >> good morning, everyone. thank you for my invitation to speak today. i completed my registered apprenticeship with pinnacle assurance in denver and became a full-time worker as a business development representative at pinnacle. i didn't know what path i was going to be in. i would probably pick something random and would have got stuck in something that wasn't fulfilling. that's what a lot of people my age do. they don't feel like they have options. because of my apprenticeship i feel like i have options. i have experience, confidence, a career path and the ability to provide for myself. today i would like to tell you how my apprenticeship has affected my life. i grew up in denver with my mom, dad, three brothers and one sister. my parents spoke spanish. growing up i heard from a lot of adults that work experience was essential to finding a promising career later. i wasn't the type of person that

wanted to go to college before i knew what i was passionate about. i tried to figure out what i wanted to do before spending money on college. when i was in high school i didn't know what i wanted to do for a career. i tried several ways to not be in the school setting such as a welding class and an internship. my high school coordinator suggested that i do an apprenticeship. i need to say a big thank you to her because i wouldn't have tried that if not for her. on top of that i would like to thank pinnacle and all the amazing people who helped me to be the person i am today. i did my apprenticeship at pinnacle insurance. when i began my apprenticeship, i spent half of my days in high school classes and the other half at work. i was attracted to the apprenticeship because of the different career pathways that were open. i started on the marketing team and claims team. in addition at pinnacle about 5% of the work force use

apprentices so i had lots of other young people to learn with. through my training i learned a lot of skills, time management is a big one. when i was in high school, there weren't repercussions if i showed up late or didn't meet a deadline. however at work i needed to meet deadline. i had to learn to manage my time. from this my teachers commented that they noticed i had become more mature and responsible at school. i have also become more confident about public speaking. without my training i wouldn't be here speaking with you today. i like meeting new teams and learning new things in the beginning. in the beginning it was stressful for me when i was going through training and learning new things but then as i grasped those things i feel accomplished and i know that i am ready for more and more. as with my job, learning is an ongoing skill. knowing i can talk to my supervisors about much more work and to keep gaining experience. one of my proudest moments at my

apprenticeship is when two other apprentices and i managed an entire claims queue. we were the only ones in charge. we reached out to our supervisors when we needed it. i saw we were trusted like the adults around us. when i started my apprenticeship, my parents were hesitant because they wanted me to go to college. when we went through the pros and cons, they got onboard. i promised them i would get hired full-time. recently i was hired into a full-time role and i am so proud of myself. i am also leaning towards going to college now that i know what i want to do with my career. my company will help me with tuition. i have learned a community interpreter certification in spanish as well as a property casualty insurance certification and am aiming towards a bachelor's degree. i moved out of my parents house and got my own place. previous internships and jobs i was employed through said a wage with no opportunity of promotion, no hope of a bitter future. my apprenticeship has been very

different and has allowed me to become a full-time employee. i want this committee to know my apprenticeship has changed my life. i have the opportunity to work, has given me the confidence to succeed in whatever i want to do. it's been a wonderful experience and i hope that more businesses hire high school apprentices to that other students can have the same opportunity i had. thank you for listening. >> thank you so much for coming. that was very well done. ms. curry? >> good morning, chairman hickenlooper and senator braun. i am president of toyota motor research in indiana where we produce some of the most technologically advanced vehicles on the world today. i want to thank the subcommittee for conducting this hearing. work force development is extremely important topic for toyota and one i care deeply

about since i have been in the industry for 41 years. i am pleased to see many senators on the subcommittee represent states where toyota has significant operations, as well as work force partnership. over the years toyota has invested more than $29 billion in the united states. in fact in june, 2020, we completed our five-year pledge to invest $13 billion in our u.s. operations one year earlier than anticipated. in april my indiana plant announced a new investment that would create an additional 1400 jobs, to put all new electric vehicles. 10 manufacturing facilities overall, nearly 1500 dealerships and 180,000 people working across the united states. the work force pipeline is of paramount importance to tie yoa at that. my passion for work force development is directly connected to my own experience as a young woman trying to find her way academically and

professionally. inlition i thought -- initially i thought i wanted to be a chemist. it wasn't for me. instead when lab equipment failed, i learned that i liked trouble shooting equipment rather than doing the analysis. that really excited me. so i returned to school for electronics. through an internship i was able to learn theory and apply it on the job. a learning style that suited me perfectly. despite often being the only woman in the room, i was not deterred. i percent veerdz and turned my passion for machines into a rewarding career. as i reflect on those experiences, a few things come to mind that are fundamental to how toyota approaches work force development. first, exposure early in life matters. i came across electronics by chance after already embarking on a serious course of study. if i was exposed to the stem program before college, i would have landed on my pathway much

sooner. toyota has provided money to k-12 schools to implement programs to provide students with stem education. additionally in the area close to my plant, we have teamed up with local high schools to create the 4-t academy designed to connect upper level students with career opportunities in advanced manufacturing. these efforts have significantly increased the visibility of manufacturing career pathways in our region. secondly, combining classroom learning with on the job experiences is by far the most powerful way to learn. in states where toyota operates manufacturing plants, we have collaborated with community colleges to develop a highly successful, advanced manufacturing technician or a.m.t. program. our a.m.t. students attend school two days a week and they learn on the job three days. they acquire technical knowledge, professional

behaviors and a distinct manufacturing core skills through a focused experience. in indiana i partner with a university. nationally about 400 employers pool tal -- pull talent from 32 chapters in 12 states in which is known collectively as the federation of advanced manufacturing education. they are led by the manufacturing institute of which i am on the board. it's quickly becoming america's premier homegrown education network. over 1,300 students have graduated since 2010 with more nan 500 since 2020 despite the pandemic. lastly i cannot overstate the importance of -- bringing underrepresented people into stem careers. toyota is collaborating with national alliance for partnership equity to help employers increase participation and persistence of women and underrepped student groups and

prepare them for advance manufacturing careers. as the full committee considers next steps i want to offer two suggestions. first, because exposure early matters. i want to emphasize the importance of considering work force development policies in conjunction with education policies. if education policies are not flexible enough to allow students to explore various pathways students may bypass even the best work force opportunities. second, i urge the committee to prioritize re-authorization. in doing so, the committee should continue to legislate change that further increases participation in a work force system. the same u.s.a. systems tem proves they can drive work force development to new heights. i appreciate this opportunity to testify before you and i look forward to expanding on these comments in q&a. thank you.

>> thank you so much, ms. curry. thank you for all that you are doing for work force. now i will ask a few questions. i will turn it over to senator braun. we will rotate back and forth and interrogate you with a broad cross section of u.s. senators. you said this already, but why is it do you think that intermediaries are so important for small and medium-sized businesses trying to develop an apprenticeship program? why do we need intermediaries? >> thank you, senator. that's an important question because i can tell you, we struggled to create an adult apprenticeship program for years , and it's because as a small business, we didn't have a model

of what it would look like and didn't know how to tap the talent of those interested. why an intermediary is so important is in the u.s. context , few businesses are like toyota that understand the roles they can play, but if you are a small business that has an intermediary that connects the schools, students, educates the parents, links and educates the businesses as to how an apprenticeship operates, which is essential to ensuring currency for a young person once they graduate to move to another business with a registered apprenticeship, you know what the training looks like. an intermediary enables all of that to take place. for a large company, they don't

have the resources, particularly around youth. this is an internship. they are providing productive, valuable work. 68% of our students kept working as apprentices because they were essential workers. >> thank you, nolan. i wanted to say, try to be concise, but you are naturally concise. specifically, how could you build this partnership when so many educators are convinced college is the next step? how can you break down that stigma that you must go to college to be successful?

>> thank you, senator. the key is getting awareness to the students and parents as discussed earlier. our academy, with our high skills, we started with three, 4, 5, next year. it's been a perfect marriage with a lot of the students who aren't sure about what they want to do. they are high skilled, high paying. they have great benefits. you can go on to get your degree

. you can go into engineering and. it's the key is the parents are understanding and the students are understanding how exciting these careers are and by learning as you are going to school and working on the job site, i've seen the faces of these students. i see what i want to do. it is extremely important to continue that. sorry. i'm going long.

>> we had that expression in front of us. i wanted to get a question you. you give credit to your high school coordinator. how do we get the word out to other kids of how attractive and beneficial this program is? >> for me, we had presentations at school all people times of apprenticeships. how i advise other students who might not have that person, it's going to look for the resources. there are students who are shy and timid and don't want to go because they feel intimidated by the person they are going to talk to. i said, no matter what, you will find the resources. having a person who has done it means a lot, definitely.

i was like, this is not going to work out. what am i going to do? after i saw it tied together, i want to go to schools and talk to to its. >> thank you. >> up to five high schools soon. what did you find? were they into this idea of cte training as opposed to the four-year degree? >> i think most of the guidance counselors understand that if you'd teach a skill, you have

that skill for life. as we showed them the types of training we'd give them, they were quick to get on board. we want to make this awareness for students. once we were able to come together on how we wanted to market the program, it has been successful. >> how did parents react? >> the parents had an open house. i spoke to the parents, and they were very interested in the program. some of us have not had those high-tech robotics.

we gave them a tour, and they were amazed at the types of careers that their kids could have and how we were going to be partnering with them to teach the best skills. letting them be a part of it, letting them feel it, touch it, we can help them understand what this program is all about. >> we were talking about state boards of education, the philosophy you could only be successful getting a four-year degree or a two-year degree. what do you think the issue with what you are doing, what miss navarro figured out on her own, how much is higher ed an issue from the top down in terms of

policy to the guidance counselors in high school, and has it come along as much as you've seen things move. toyota looks like they are moving the dynamic by being in the community giving opportunity to get in that direction. how big of a deal is higher and that still believes in mostly four-year degrees and stigmatizes the pathways we are trying to talk about? >> you are talking about a challenge in our society itself. what they want is what is in the best interest of their students. what they don't understand is the value of this type of learning. at the higher ed level, they are an important part of this system. you do your general ed first,

and then you can get there. purdue university is a leader. they are enabling companies to send their employees to get specific training, may be not a degree, but recognizing that a certification is valuable. i think apprenticeship can help to facilitate more students taking the benefit and doing it in a way that is career aligned. >> it sounds like you put two and two together fairly quickly to get to where you are today, choosing to get into the workplace. your high school, you said they

had information, and was that something recently they did to make you aware of other options other than the military, or did you have to do most of this on your own? >> for my school, we were hired out, but we were the first apprentices. there were other schools. it was like going to school and learning there. it was not working at all. most of those resources were with careerwise. there is a boot camp where they did a bunch of sections where all of the workplaces that were hiring that year.

luckily, that place hired me. for the most part, there's a lot of students who had to do it on their own. susie was a big resource to me. she took me to my internship. my school had a lot of resources, taking all the students into a school bus, doing all the things we needed to do to get hired. >> senator portman, i understand you've got a conflict, so i was going to give you priority. >> thank you, chairman hickenlooper. i always wanted to be on the health committee, and here i am on the dais. i am here with friends, and the two of you being employers in your previous incarnations, and

i know everyone has a passion for this -- senator kaine and i have been trying unsuccessfully, although we came close in this frontier act, to get a program in place many of you are familiar with, but to get people to the point where we can get these short-term certificates and have the federal government help them. we spend so much money as a federal government on a higher ed, and i'm not against that, but shouldn't we spend money on training people to the jobs that are available now where they will not have a big debt and to be able to go right into buying a car? that is what this is about, our economy post-covid 19 needs this more than ever.

i know the same is true in all of your states. we had a call with the oil and gas industry. the number one issue, it's truck drivers. it is disposal wells, to have some way to find people to do the work. it is more important than ever. i do think it is about the entire economy, so i'm not suggesting it is. it is hospitality. the biggest concern is among these middle skill jobs.

i've gotten to hear some exciting things going on with your high schools. senator kaine and i are cochairs . we've passed legislation to get federal government funding, and to provide more standards. in my view, that's not going to solve the problem. these are jobs like welders and machinists. it is truck drivers. it is coders. it is people who can help to

code these computers running our lives. our idea is to provide this pell grant funding not just for a two or four year degree, but for these short-term training programs. you are much more likely to stick around, and unfortunately with pel and our higher ed level, most students do not get a degree. again, i am for pell and higher ed, but shouldn't we promote it this other purpose where these

students are going to get that certificate, and when they get that certificate, get a job. the jobs act now has 39 cosponsors, including ranking member braun. i would urge managers to take a look at it. my hope is we would find a vehicle this year to be able to move forward.

encouraging more young people to step up and take advantage of these grams, every community college in our state is focused more and more on this. i think it is the best way to begin to fill this jobs gap that we see. >> no senator smith. >> think you so much, cheer hickenlooper and for our panel for this excellent testimony, and thank you, senator portman, for joining us. i constantly hear the stories you are telling in minnesota about people interested in pursuing well-paying, high skill

jobs that are not dependent on a four-year degree. folks like miss navarro, you want to go out and do things, and people also want to pursue a diverse range of opportunities, from truck drivers to welders to logistics. that is why this hearing is so important. i want to hone in first on the question of registered apprenticeships, and this is something i will direct to you. i introduced a bill called the 21st century partnerships act, which would better prepare students for high skill jobs. it prioritizes partnerships between schools and employers

that had registered apprenticeship programs. they are employer customized on-the-job training with pay. these apprenticeships seem to be the gold standard for workforce training, and the return on investment is fantastic. workers are seeing average ranges -- wages of $60,000 a year. mr. ginsberg, could you speak to us about your experience about how registered apprenticeship programs are beneficial to your business? >> the registered system is critical as we move youth apprenticeship forward. the reason why is is -- is it is a frame advised by industry. the standards are what industry

contributes, and if you are a small company like mine, it is valuable, because it is a guide. if you are company like j.p. morgan or accenture, they do business in all 50 states. a registered apprenticeship is they know that those competencies they helped to contribute to create are the same for all of their branches throughout the country. that is a powerful tool for scaling this. this is something that senator portman said. this is a complex model. managing all the movements, including what we support around the country, if we don't resource workforce differently than we did in the past, the outcomes will be the same.

the next few weeks, you have an incredibly hard job, but i will tell you an investment in workforce to move this forward, i believe we will move the country forward. registration is a key component. we will help bring businesses in and handhold until they learn the system. we won't be making any difference, and 10 years from now, we will have a hearing talking about the problems we have. >> how registered apprenticeships can work is a great example of that. another thing we have to do differently is to get into schools and high schools sooner. i love to have a chance to talk with you. i've been working on legislation with senator graham that would pull in afterschool providers to help connect young people with

providers similar to the experience you had, provide on-the-job training and career exploration and moving into what you did. could you talk about how old you were when you got connected to this, and what difference it would've made if you had that exposure earlier in your educational career? >> great question. i started my sophomore year summer. i started to internships. one with xcel energy and one with emily griffin technical college. these lead me into the workforce. it was six weeks, and i was also doing work that was not very enjoyable. it was probably work they left off for the intern. i thought, what can i do that will be longer?

i thought, there are internships i could do during the semester, and they won't be that valuable to me. with the apprenticeship, there's a lot of benefits with the certification. you also get connected with a lot of people there. on top of that, you also get a coach who helps guide you through those few years. they created such a great structure that helped me be like, i can talk to my coach about this. she's going to help me with college classes. then i can talk to my supervisors about training that is not going well, and they did a six-month training. i didn't know how to dress for the day with my internship. now i'm here. i know what to do, public

speaking and everything. now being 19 years old, talking in front of the senate, it is definitely a big impact. i want students to be doing that. in colorado, my little brother is four years old. he's like, i can't wait until i am able to start my apprenticeship. >> miss navarro, i think you are a good organizer. i appreciate your feedback. thank you for letting us go a little long. >> senator tupper bill. >> think you for having this. this is much needed. if we had one of these hearings every week for the next 10 years, it probably wouldn't be enough. i spent 40 years in education. i am here today because of education.

i ran for the u.s. senate in the state of alabama because i saw our education going in the wrong direction. we have the best education system in the world. for some reason we want change, we will do the things we need to do to make it better. for kids coming up we are different. we are different and still have different goals. now we have cyber, now we have computer science. the main thing we need to do, in my perspective is what was said a little earlier. we have to expose people to something they want to do. when i got up every day when i graduated from college and went to work coaching and teaching, i loved every minute of it. i think i did a pretty good job. he hit it right on the head and talking about the smile on her face and talking about how she's

excited. we have to do something about education. when i ran i talk to groups across alabama, road builders, bridge builders. you better start educating your own, because their education system doesn't educate people anymore. we indoctrinate. we bring them in and we don't teach the things they need to teach to use her hands. we better start teaching people to use their hands instead of their brains. we have to do that. that's what you are talking about with apprenticeships and coming in and learning a skill and having a great life. you can have a great life, you can also have fun doing it. i'm here today because of that. i want to thank you, we have a community college in alabama that has one of your

partnerships. how does his partnership really work? how do you get involved at community college? >> we have five partnerships in your state. the coalition, which is the federation -- we pulled together in small, medium, and large businesses. we market to all businesses with the school system. we look at the curriculum of the school system, we help change that curriculum to meet the business needs. we have over 400 companies, small, medium and large with 32 different community colleges involved in our technician program. it is ran by that manufacturing institute now. it works very well, we also teach the teacher and bring them

in to our businesses and let them see what is needed. fins to is the conduit to bring more chapters in. in 2021, we were already initiating nine more chapters. it is definitely something that is out there, very easy to get on the website, anyone can be a proctor and help them with the chapters. >> thank you. i know careerwise, the technical assistance contract with birmingham promise initiative in

alabama come up programs like this one, what are parents us is paid -- what are paren apprentices paid? >> what we are seeing is around $15, 16 dollars, even before the pandemic. companies saw the value and wanted to make the investment. more importantly, graduating from the apprenticeship earning 45,000 to $55,000. his is an apprenticeship wage, you have to increase that as competency increases. this is a path, not just to the middle class, but beyond. >> i remember graduating from college back in 1976. my parents spent a lot of mind for that scholarship, back then it was a lot of mind. my first contract teaching school was $8,500 a year. we've come a long way.

you are talking 55,000 for new printed ship -- 55 thousand dollars for an apprenticeship. where lucky to have -- where they can train on the job. >> ranges from their first year, 16 hours a week in the business, second year, three days a week, thinking go to full or part-time pending on postsecondary options. >> what is your percentage of success, people staying in your program? >> we have now graduated to war -- two cohorts,, nearly 1000 apprentices in the problem -- program nationally, over 200 businesses ranging from small businesses like those in goshen, indiana, as well as large companies like j.p. morgan chase in new york. what we see in those twofold cohorts is that the equity promise is rising. it is breaking that cement ceiling that i believe exists

above students that may not come from the same opportunity or rights of code. they are gaining jobs that pay middle-class wages early on. i would tell you the percentages are in the 30% to 40%, but we are early on those the graduate and matriculate, another 20%, 30% will continue on with postsecondary education, which we view as a win, because they've already spent two years in the practical learning takes place in the workplace, married to the theoretical. what is important, the company are reporting that her apprentices 91% is efficient, productive as a regular employee. about that. i school student, pre--- train through apprenticeship, coming out alright 91% is effective, the students themselves are

finding almost 100%. they say because of the apprenticeship, she had the opportunity to get a credential and move on to postsecondary education. all of our apprentices are saying that this is the path of opportunity, a path of options. >> one thing i would like to say about it, it gives them opportunity to continue their education and really enjoy it. our panel doesn't understand -- if you look at the direction we are heading in public schools, as we speak today, half the kids cannot read over the sixth grade reading level. apprenticeships will teach them and encourage them to continue to learn to read, learn to write, and do all those things. i think that is another very important aspect at this point. >> senator, you're hitting the nail on the head. what we are seeing, they are not reading at grade level, sometimes many grade levels

below. once a apprenticeship and can see where that math and reading is important, high write in email or professional letter, they come up to grade level faster than they would in the classroom. you are 100% right, you're also right, students when they find their passion, like you did, like i was fortunate to do, it accelerates their life and potential that they have is a a him person and contributing member of our country, our society. >> thank you. sorry for going over, mr. chairman. >> that was a great answer and question, wouldn't have missed it for the world. senator baldwin?

>> i appreciate are having this hearing in our witnesses today, thank you so much for your participation. i wanted to make a couple of observations before asking my question. obviously, this hearing focuses on apprenticeship opportunities and a lot of discussion about talking the m people early about how they might progress in their careers and what opportunities exist. i too am hearing for so many of my employers in wisconsin, where a state by the way that has a big manufacturing state. ranking member and i compete, we go back and forth between being first and second with regard to the population in our states involved in making things, and manufacturing. we are competitive about those things. i wanted to suggest that not only are we hearing today about workforce shortages, but we have some ambitious plans on the bipartisan basis to pass the

frontier act and feel the supply chain issues and bring manufacturing for critical supply chain items back to the u.s. we have a bipartisan infrastructure bill that we hope to advance that would really scale up our interest in say getting rid of drinking water laterals, we are going to need a lot more plot -- pipefitters and plumbers in order to get rid of all of our lead laterals in eight years, versus 70 years at our current pace. we need a lot more people. my questions are going to be, what obstacles exist to what you are doing now, and how do we scale up the type of activities you are engaged in to deal with the workforce issue? i also wanted to know -- note there is another population, that is those who have been displaced from the workforce for a while ran a number of reasons, caregiving for a loved one,

incarceration, their job going away during the pandemic and they have not returned. those individuals, i think there is a call for other types of programs. what i have always been supportive of his having some scalable transitional job program that allows us to help folks who have been out of the workforce for a while to identify the barriers to their employment. we are going to have to work on all fronts, assuming that we get our bipartisan bills across the undersigned -- across the finish

line to create a lot of new jobs. what obstacles do you see other businesses having to doing the type of partnership work you are talking about? especially small and medium-size businesses, and how do we scale up from that dramatically? >> thank you for the question, senator. it is the most important question is is this just a nice program, or going to change our country? in manufacturing, you go to the root of the problem and saw that there as opposed to in the warehouse. >> you can watch the rest of the program on our website. we take you to the white house for the press secretary briefing with jen psaki. sec. psaki: within 53 days, were able to get to over 95% of its staff vaccinated. we saw jetblue, alaska and er