Education
The National Apprenticeship Act of 2021 defines states' responsibilities in setting up and running the program with annual federal funding and requires the federal departments of Education and Labor to support the creation and expansion of youth apprenticeships, college consortiums and data sharing. The bill is also led by Democratic Reps. Donald Norcross of New Jersey (D) and Suzanne Bonamici of Oregon as well as Republican Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, David McKinley of West Virginia and Don Bacon of Nebraska.
The lack of comparative data from the state makes it hard for the public to get the full grasp of the situation. In a Dec. 17 conference call with Oregon Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, D-Beaverton, superintendents from rural and metropolitan districts shared their struggles with COVID-19 impacts on their ability to provide quality education. In Clatskanie, a rural city along the Columbia River on the Oregon-Washington border, Superintendent Cathy Hurowitz told Bonamici that 136 students in the Clatskanie School District have dropped out since the pandemic hit.