A coalition of more than 100 congressional Democrats鈥� vision for education policy puts a big focus on getting students ready for the workforce鈥攅ven if they decide not to attend college.
, released Friday by the New Democrat Coalition, , calls for steps such as exposing young people to 鈥渙pportunities in the building and construction trades to destigmatize that very lucrative job pathway鈥� and expanding partnerships with businesses and labor organizations so that prospective employees can 鈥渆arn while [they] learn.鈥�
The blueprint may foreshadow how lawmakers in the coalition鈥攕ome of whom represent competitive districts鈥攚ill talk about education on the campaign trail as the November midterm election approaches.
Democrats are trying to retake the U.S. House of Representatives where Republicans currently hold a slim majority.
The blueprint鈥檚 emphasis on career training rather than college represents a U-turn from former President Barack Obama鈥檚 goal that the United States have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world by 2020 and the Biden administration鈥檚 push to forgive college-loan debt.
What it does do is build on the policy direction taken more recently by governors from both parties, including Democrats who have been politically successful in swing states such as Pennsylvania鈥檚 Josh Shapiro.
鈥淔ifty percent of jobs need more than a high school degree, less than a college degree, and we have to change how we鈥檙e providing that education to fit workforce needs,鈥� said Rep. Val Hoyle, D-Ore., who helps lead the coalition鈥檚 policy development on apprenticeships and training.
Some lawmakers have been slow to understand the importance of elevating noncollege pathways, Hoyle added.
鈥淲e鈥檝e stigmatized anything but college degrees, like somehow an apprenticeship program or certification, stackable certifications are a lesser option,鈥� said Hoyle, who was herself the first in her family to graduate from college.
鈥淲e have a lot of people that are here in Congress that come from college-educated families, upper-middle-class families. They鈥檙e not first-generation college students.鈥�
President Donald Trump has talked about apprenticeships and workforce training in a way that resonates with some swing voters, she added.
鈥淭hey鈥檝e successfully talked about it,鈥� she said of Republicans.
In her view, though, Trump鈥檚 move to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education and shift key K-12 programs to the Department of Labor is part of a broad play to 鈥渂reak public education鈥濃�攏ot to elevate workforce training.
Career training is an area of bipartisan agreement
Emphasizing education鈥檚 role in workforce development is a 鈥渟mart transition鈥� for Democrats, said Adam Kissel, a visiting fellow at the conservative Heritage Foundation鈥檚 Center on Education Policy.
鈥淎merica needs lots more nurses, lots more welders, electricians, plumbers, and by diverting students who would be talented in those areas away from practical pre-professional trades, we鈥檙e putting people on the wrong path,鈥� he said.
He thinks the Trump administration鈥檚 move to put K-12 programs in the Labor Department was a key step toward bringing more of a workforce focus to federal education programs.
Despite vehement disagreement over that move, Rep. Johnny Olszewski, D-Md., a former social studies teacher who helps lead the coalition鈥檚 work on education, sees potential for bipartisanship on career training.
For instance, he co-sponsored a bill with Rep. Roger Williams, R-Texas, . The measure has passed the House and is awaiting Senate action.
鈥淲hether we鈥檙e in the majority or not, that鈥檚 actually one of the places I think Republicans and Democrats can and should come together,鈥� Olszewski said.
The blueprint comes as the public increasingly questions the value of a traditional four-year college degree.
A plurality of adults鈥�49 percent鈥攂elieve a four-year degree is less important in getting a well-paid job than it was 20 years ago, according to a .
Blueprint aims to bolster the teaching profession, though it鈥檚 light on specifics
Beyond career development, the coalition鈥檚 blueprint calls for protecting funding for key federal K-12 programs, including Title I grants to help schools educate children in poverty and state grants for students in special education financed under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
And it seeks to help Pell Grants, which help low-income students cover the cost of higher education, keep up with the rising price of college. It calls for increasing the awards鈥攚hich currently max out at $7,395 annually鈥攂y an unspecified amount of money and indexing them to inflation.
The plan also prioritizes bolstering the teaching profession, including through apprenticeship programs that Democrats believe could give prospective teachers classroom experience without accumulating 鈥渕assive debt.鈥� Apprentices are paid while they work in the classroom. Today, almost every state has a teacher-apprenticeship program registered with the federal Labor Department, since Tennessee became the first state with one in 2022.
And it calls for incentivizing schools to adopt what the blueprint deems 鈥渆vidence-based鈥� practices, namely high-dosage tutoring and instruction aligned with the science of reading.
