Angie Craig: “Education is at the core of our communities, but for too long, students have been told that traditional, 4-year degrees…”

“Education is at the core of our communities, but for too long, students have been told that traditional, 4-year degrees are their only option for finding good-paying jobs. In reality, we have a major skills gap in Minnesota. We are unable to find skilled workers for the jobs that exist. I have one son in high school, two in traditional 4-year colleges, and my last son, Josh, just graduated from a career training program. He is my son with multiple job offers. Career and technical education needs to be a critical investment in order to connect workers with the right training to help keep our economy strong. My amendment stresses the importance of Perkins funding in adult education to ensure that we are devoting adequate resources to job training programs. Expanding access to grants for career and technical education, including apprenticeships, is critical. Minnesota's economy depends on bright, talented young people, and we need to make sure that they have the skills they need to succeed. That starts with taking a new approach to postsecondary education and training and expanding career and technical education opportunities. Everyone should be able to get the skills and training that they need to find a good-paying job. To make this a reality, we need to take a fresh look at our job market, our education system, and the way we prepare students for the workforce.…”