Colorado § 8-3.7-106 - Virtual, career-aligned English as a second language program - created - report - appropriation.

§ 8-3.7-106. Virtual, career-aligned English as a second language program - created - report - appropriation.

(1) On or before January 1, 2023, the ONA shall establish a virtual, career-aligned English as a second language program to:

(a) Ensure ELLs have access to work-based learning, job-training, and employment opportunities and the supports they need for success in the career-aligned English as a second language program and employment with workforce partners and employers;

(b) Facilitate work-based learning by providing additional support to help employers and other workforce partners recruit, serve, hire, and promote ELLs;

(c) Provide efficient and effective access to established, career-aligned ESL classes for youth and adults, work-based learning participants, and other job training participants and their employers, program administrators, and teachers;

(d) Streamline access to career-aligned ESL classes through the purchase of licenses to virtual platforms that are then made available to interested workforce partners and employers; and

(e) Accelerate the adoption of career-aligned ESL classes into employer and work-based learning programs and training programs for reskilling, upskilling, and next-skilling, as those terms are defined in section 8-83-601.

(2) The virtual, career-aligned English as a second language program shall address:

(a) The intersection of English language learning with other work-based learning and skill-based hiring efforts;

(b) The challenge of incorporating ELLs into our workforce and workforce programs, including work-based learning opportunities; and

(c) Opportunities for employers to integrate new Americans and ELLs into workforce and talent pipelines, in recognition of the need for equitable opportunities and the importance of harnessing the talents of skilled new Americans and ELLs in this state.

(3) (a) The ONA shall:

(I) Through a process that complies with the "Procurement Code", articles 101 to 112 of title 24, select at least one qualified vendor with an established and existing virtual platform that offers career-aligned ESL classes in in-demand industries and occupations;

(II) Allocate funding to the vendor selected in subsection (3)(a)(I) of this section:

(A) For the purchase of individual licenses that can be distributed to interested and selected employers and work-based learning and workforce partners for individuals to access virtual classes and platforms; and

(B) To create new career-aligned ESL classes, as needed, for Colorado's in-demand occupations;

(III) Determine the most efficient method for distributing licenses for career-aligned ESL classes through a streamlined process to reduce barriers to participation, with a focus on small- to medium-sized employers and work-based learning and workforce partners with existing relationships with the department and on other state agencies and partners, including local workforce centers, schools, institutions of higher education, and nonprofit organizations;

(IV) Communicate the opportunities created through this section holistically and statewide, with a focus on areas of the state with higher proportions of ELLs and new Americans and in areas without existing career-aligned ESL classes or with additional barriers, such as transportation barriers, that currently prevent Coloradans from participating in ESL classes, including in rural areas;

(V) Work collaboratively with other offices and divisions in the department, the department of higher education, the department of human services, and the office of economic development to identify diverse partners and employers and additional supports for participants to ensure their success;

(VI) Share outcomes of the virtual, career-aligned English as a second language program with the employer community; and

(VII) Collect data concerning the program that includes:

(A) The types of entities supported, such as an employer or apprenticeship program, and their location in Colorado;

(B) The number of participating entities;

(C) The number of individuals served at each entity and their demographics;

(D) The careers or occupations supported by the virtual, career-aligned English as a second language program; and

(E) Any outcomes and data to measure the success of the virtual, career-aligned English as a second language program.

(b) In conjunction with the department, the ONA shall include the information in this subsection (3) in the presentations required by section 8-83-602 at the hearings held under the "State Measurement for Accountable, Responsive, and Transparent (SMART) Government Act", part 2 of article 7 of title 2.

(4) For the 2022-23 state fiscal year the general assembly shall appropriate one million one hundred thousand dollars from the general fund to the department, for use by ONA for the purposes of this section. Any unexpended money remaining at the end of the 2022-23 state fiscal year:

(a) Does not revert to the general fund or any other fund;

(b) May be used by the department in the 2023-24 state fiscal year without further appropriation; and

(c) Shall not be used for any purpose other than the purposes set forth in this section.

Source: L. 2022: Entire section added, (SB 22-140), ch. 357, p. 2558, § 4, effective July 1.

Cross references: For the legislative declaration in SB 22-140, see section 1 of chapter 357, Session Laws of Colorado 2022.