Yesterday, we looked at the plans the President is desiring to have in place for education in America. We may see that Congress’ budget decisions may OR may not align with the CCSS, CTE, CCR (Common Core State Standards, Career Tech Education, and College/Career Readiness) agenda embedded in those plans. However, we must leave NO stone un-turned! Today’s alert? Workforce as it aligns with not only CCSS, but massive data mining for our students.
First up, where to look:
Yesterday’s in-depth look was in education. Today’s is Workforce. To tackle Workforce (which aligns to CCSS/CTE/CCR beginning in secondary school and moving beyond into post-secondary), we need to see what’s in the Labor budget. After all, if you’ve been following my trail of Workforce articles, you know that’s where we discovered the Workforce Quality Data Initiative’s hidden-in-plain-sight ‘marriage’ to the Dept. of Ed’s Student Longitudinal Data System (see my earlier posts, first from Prevent Common Core, then the one link that has all the articles concerning this, found here on my blog: http://preventcommoncore.com/?p=1223; http://preventcommoncore.com/?p=1187; https://www.commoncorediva.com/?s=workforce+quality+data)
That being said, let’s see what the President’s Dept. of Labor budget looks like, labor2015
In the “Opportunity, Growth, and Security Initiative” section, more funding for community colleges, “Investment in a Community College Job-Driven Training Fund, which includes grants that would support doubling the number of apprenticeships in America over the next five years.” (as you’ll find in my earlier published posts, apprenticeships, community colleges are cast in the CCSS/CTE/CCR net). In the “Reform” section, more “Workforce Innovation and Opportunity” rhetoric complete with more incentives. (think about the articles above, where it ties the 2014 Workforce Investment and Opportunity Act to CCSS)
The numbers you need to know:
So, just how many tax dollars will this arm of CCSS aligned education take?! I’m so glad you want to know!!
*Opportunity, Growth, and Security Initiative, gives $1.5 billion to four year institutions and $6 billion to community colleges to purposefully seek out more P3 relationships (Public, private partnerships) to combine/align education and job skills. “The fund will also help to
create common credentials and skill assessments to allow employers to more easily
identify and hire qualified candidates.” (Think “WorkKeys” assessment; the National CCR credential where if you don’t have a national certificate number, you don’t get a job)
Could the following include data mining as part of the ‘service’? “$60 million in the Workforce Innovation Fund to support innovative State and regional approaches to service delivery.” We’ll have to keep an eye out, won’t we? I can share with you that just a few sentences later, the word ‘incentivize’ is used in relationship to the states.
Other aspects we’ll need to follow is the ‘new Career Pathways’ the Budget includes for. Not yet (at least that I have been able to find) related to CCSS, but also included: “The Budget also provides $2 billion in mandatory funding to encourage States to adopt
Bridge to Work programs.”
Enter, the Dept of Health/Human Services:
We anti-CCSS warriors have been able to learn that not only the U.S. Dept of Ed, the U.S. Dept of Labor are involved in aligning our education and workforce, but ALSO the U.S. Dept of Health and Human Services. (you can find out how in some of my previous posts/articles mentioned above) So, let’s dive into where and how much is in this part of the President’s Budget.
* Under the “Opportunity, Growth, and Security Initiative”, ‘Preparing our children to succeed in life, by providing high-quality early learning opportunities.’ How, you ask? Early Head Start/child care partners, of course.
Could the above be included in “The Budget includes $77.1 billion in discretionary funding”? Why would I pose that question? Because the Dept of Health/Human Services is the principal agency in America to oversee health and well-being..including mental health. With all the social-emotional agenda components to CCSS, we need to know what’s up as well as what’s being planned. We already know a universal PreK is in the works. We know home visits are a distinct possibility, as well. Part of the discretionary funding taps ‘biomedical research’ (think all that biometric data mining going on)
*As part of Affordable Care, “14.6 billion over 10 years to implement innovative policies to train new health care providers and ensure that the future health care workforce is prepared to deliver high quality and efficient health care services.” (remember those Career Clusters? A big one, health care) $5.2 billion is marked for ‘incentivizing’ physicians. A little bit further on, “The Budget also invests more than $3.9 billion over the next six years in the National Health Services Corps to place 15,000 health care providers in the areas of the
Nation that need them most.” There’s more: ” The Now is the Time initiative includes
$55 million for Project AWARE (Advancing Wellness and Resilience in Education) to help States and communities implement plans to keep schools safe and refer students with behavioral health challenges to the services they need, as well as to provide Mental Health First Aid training in schools and communities to equip adults who work with youth to detect signs of mental illness; $50 million to train 5,000 new mental health professionals to serve students and young adults; $20 million for Healthy Transitions to help support transitioning youth (ages 16-25) and their families in accessing and navigating behavioral
health treatment systems; and $5 million to change the attitudes of Americans about
behavioral health workforce needs.” With all the ‘one-size-fits-all’ attitude, who’s to say what will and not be deemed as needing treatment?
*Biomedical research, to get ‘$30.2 billion for NIH to support research at institutions across the United States.’ While this portion of the Budget report says it is to tackle things like Alzheimer’s, I would suggest we watch this one, especially knowing how much biometric data is being reported or finding us being warned about (Dr. Duke Pesta/Mary Black’s presentation about the dangers of CCSS highlighted this very reality. See: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epo2oWoL7ZE)
*For those with little ones, this might be of interest, “The Budget supports initiatives that will help every child reach his or her potential and strengthen the Nation’s competitiveness. This includes $650 million in the base Budget and $800 million in the Opportunity, Growth, and Security Initiative for Early Head Start-Child Care Partnerships.” Those home visits we’ve heard about? Well, who’s to say just HOW they would be in reality, but here’s what the Executive Summary states, “Further, the
Budget provides discretionary and mandatory resources for States to support higher-quality child care, and dedicates $200 million in discretionary funds to improve the quality of child care. In addition, the Budget invests $15 billion in mandatory funds over the next 10 years to extend and expand evidence-based, voluntary home visiting programs, which enable nurses, social workers, and other professionals to connect families to services and educational supports that improve a child’s health, development, and ability to learn.” Again, who’s to say, but consider this, where are the parental rights? What if the family is choosing to home educate? Why does it appear everyone must fit the same mold? To see the entire Health/Human Services Budget outline:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/budget/fy2015/assets/health.pdf
Bottom Line:
While all of this MAY or MAY NOT be what Congress actually supports is not yet 100% clear. However, knowing what we know about the vast overreach, the control from top down, AND the public private partnerships involved. We MUST not rest for one moment or assume that because the plans didn’t go as laid out, that they won’t at some point surface again..maybe in some new bill or act. It certainly is a trick that has been used before.
In fighting against CCSS and all that goes with it, we must be wise as serpents, sharp as foxes, and gentle as doves.
What about the States? With federal money and all the plans between yesterday and today’s posts revealing what the agenda is, we know the states will be pressured (incentivized) into conformity. We MUST interact with those in authority. We MUST keep an eye on the appropriations funding. We can’t afford to be REACTIVE. We MUST keep a pro-active stance in our children’s futures, no matter where they are as a student.
Thank you for all of the research you put into this post. Most of us don’t have the time to cross reference all of these documents, so your blog is very helpful. I have noticed in CA that much of the reform, almost all of it in fact, is happening through the budget process. Our Local Control Funding Formula does just the opposite. CC is required for funding. Line items are no longer necessary to delineate spending for certain programs to give us the “flexibility” to steal from GATE, home ec, Future Farmers of America, etc. to pay for all of the unfunded mandates for new technology, curriculum and professional development. A budget trailer bill removed fiscal oversight of charter schools. Those are public funds! They also added flexibility in funding for blended/online school funding in the budget. All of these things direct schools in underhanded ways and make it impossible to exert local control over education. BTW, we are supposedly a local control state. This is now a total joke. School boards are becoming irrelevant, which is part of the plan nationwide.
Thank you for sharing this. I’ve noticed that some of the same things have been happening here, in NC, as well. Total rubbish!
Thanks for sharing. This is certainly something to have our officials not only explain, but stop rubber stamping.