HOUSE MEMORIAL 46

48th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2008

INTRODUCED BY

Richard J. Berry

A MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THAT A STUDY BE PERFORMED ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A PRE-APPRENTICESHIP CURRICULUM IN HIGH SCHOOL CAREER-TECHNICAL PROGRAMS.

     WHEREAS, New Mexico has one of the highest dropout rates in the United States; and

     WHEREAS, only twenty-three and nine-tenths percent of New Mexico high school graduates go on to attend college; and

     WHEREAS, students who are not college-bound currently have inadequate options to keep them engaged in school and on track for graduation; and

     WHEREAS, limited educational resources are currently dedicated to career-technical and vocational training; and

     WHEREAS, an untrained and uninterested student has a higher likelihood of becoming involved in gangs and other counterproductive behavior; and

     WHEREAS, there is an ongoing demand for well-trained employees in many technical fields in this state, and those jobs have high pay scales and provide benefits; and

     WHEREAS, students should have an opportunity to start a trades-based career path during their junior and senior years of high school through pre-apprenticeship programs; and

     WHEREAS, students enrolled in a pre-apprenticeship curriculum will be better prepared to enter registered apprenticeship programs with some required coursework completed after high school graduation; and

     WHEREAS, industry experts are often the most qualified teachers for pre-apprenticeship programs and pre-apprenticeship curriculum development; and

     WHEREAS, it is in the public interest of the state to encourage and facilitate the formation of cooperative relationships among business, labor and educational institutions to develop industry-taught pre-apprenticeship programs in order to give students the skills to meet workforce needs; and

     WHEREAS, any program or curriculum development that results from the cooperative relationship among business, labor and educational institutions should be called "Running Start for Careers";

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that representatives from the public education department, the higher education department, the workforce solutions department, the economic development department, the association of commerce and industry, industry advocacy groups and registered apprenticeship programs in the state be requested to study the feasibility of implementing an industry-taught pre-apprenticeship curriculum in high school career-technical programs; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the findings and recommendations be presented to the legislative education study committee and any other appropriate legislative committee during the 2008 interim; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the secretary of public education, the secretary of higher education, the secretary of workforce solutions, the secretary of economic development, the speaker of the house of representatives, the president pro tempore of the senate and the governor.

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