Bill > S278

This bill mandates that the department of elementary and secondary education conduct a study to assess the availability of high-quality vocational education programs that are "chapter 74-approved," meaning they meet specific state standards, across all regions of the Commonwealth, and to determine if students in every town and school district have reasonable access to these programs. If the study finds that access to vocational education is insufficient, the department, in collaboration with the Massachusetts school building authority, which helps fund public school construction and renovation projects, must then submit a report to the state legislature detailing the areas with inadequate access and providing an estimated cost for creating new vocational programs to address the unmet demand.