§ 16-80-4. Interagency partnerships.

A mechanism will be developed as part of the statewide school-to-career system that brings the departments of elementary and secondary education, labor and training, human services and the Rhode Island economic development corporation together to collaboratively support, implement, and maintain the statewide school-to-career system and to provide resources, technical assistance and support to regional and local partnerships. Regional and local partnerships must include employers, local school district representatives, teachers and their unions, post-secondary institutions, labor unions, and students. The roles and responsibilities of the partners will include the following:

(1) The economic development corporation and the department of labor and training will:

(i) Work in collaboration to define regions and major industry clusters in each region; and

(ii) Identify skills needed for growing and emerging businesses and industries.

(2) The department of labor and training, the human resource investment council, and department of elementary and secondary education will:

(i) Work in collaboration to develop employer incentives and guidelines for school-to-career local partnerships;

(ii) Develop a statewide information and delivery system to encourage and facilitate business, labor and education partnerships;

(iii) Develop testing and assessments to measure student knowledge and skills; and

(iv) Provide a state plan for professional development for various constituencies in the regional and local partnerships, and conduct an aggressive and ongoing outreach and marketing campaign.

(3) The human resource investment council€™s school-to-career subcommittee shall serve as the governing board for the school-to-career system and management team. This subcommittee shall consist of twenty (20) members comprised of: a chairperson who shall be appointed by the governor and be a member of the human resource investment council; the commissioner of elementary and secondary education or his or her designee; the director of the department of labor and training or his or her designee; the chairperson of the human resource investment council or his or her designee; the president of the Community College of Rhode Island or his or her designee; one superintendent of schools and one school principal to be appointed by the governor; two (2) representatives of labor unions appointed by the president of the Rhode Island AFL-CIO; four (4) members representing Rhode Island employers to be appointed by the governor; the president of the Rhode Island Federation of Teachers or his or her designee; and the president of the National Education Association of Rhode Island or his or her designee and five (5) additional members appointed by the governor based on recommendations from the school-to-career subcommittee to afford the subcommittee the opportunity to recommend potential members from stakeholder groups that are underrepresented on that subcommittee.

(4) The private industry councils, regional employment and training boards, and collaboratives will:

(i) Serve as the connectors between schools and the business community;

(ii) Provide technical assistance to employers and educators;

(iii) Provide training for workplace and school-site mentors; and

(iv) Collect data on post-program outcomes.

(5) The interagency transition council, created by § 16-24-18, will serve as the liaison on behalf of individuals with disabilities consistent with the mandate of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), 20 U.S.C. § 1400 et seq.