HB 180

Work-Based Learning Coordinator Pilot Program established. Establishes the Work-Based Learning Coordinator Pilot Program for the purpose of expanding equitable access to high-quality work-based learning experiences for public school students. The bill requires the Department of Education to administer the Pilot Program by selecting 12 to 24 school divisions or consortia thereof as participants. Under the bill, each participating school division is required to employ or contract with a work-based learning coordinator to perform certain duties over the three-year pilot period, including executing written agreements with employer partners to provide work-based learning experiences for students, such as paid or unpaid internships, cooperative education, clinical experiences, youth-registered apprenticeships, pre-apprenticeships, externships, job shadowing, and school-based enterprises. The bill also contains provisions relating to the funding of and the reporting of data pursuant to the Pilot Program. The bill sunsets on July 1, 2029.