The purpose of this rule amendment is to conform to statutory changes made in the 2015 legislative session and to adopt the most recent CAPE Industry Certification Funding List and recommendations from CareerSource Florida and the Department of ...

 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

State Board of Education

RULE NO.:RULE TITLE:

6A-6.0573Industry Certification Process.

PURPOSE AND EFFECT: The purpose of this rule amendment is to conform to statutory changes made in the 2015 legislative session and to adopt the most recent CAPE Industry Certification Funding List and recommendations from CareerSource Florida and the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. The effect is to ensure that appropriate certifications are included on the most recent CAPE Industry Certification Funding List.

SUMMARY: The amendment includes minor technical amendments and updated documents to be incorporated by reference. The 2015-2016 CAPE Industry Certification Funding List is adopted with new CAPE Industry Certifications, CAPE Acceleration Industry Certifications, and CAPE Digital Tool Certificates. Test administration criteria for school districts to report industry certifications are amended. All references to Workforce Florida, Inc. are updated to reflect the new statutory name of CareerSource Florida.

SUMMARY OF STATEMENT OF ESTIMATED REGULATORY COSTS AND LEGISLATIVE RATIFICATION: The Agency has determined that this will not have an adverse impact on small business or likely increase directly or indirectly regulatory costs in excess of $200,000 in the aggregate within one year after the implementation of the rule. A SERC has not been prepared by the Agency.

The Agency has determined that the proposed rule is not expected to require legislative ratification based on the statement of estimated regulatory costs or if no SERC is required, the information expressly relied upon and described herein: This amendment provides additional certifications for students, amends test administration criteria for school districts to report industry certifications and updates all references to Workforce Florida, Inc. to reflect the new statutory name of CareerSource Florida. It is not expected to have any impact on the factors found in Section 120.541(2)(a), F.S.

Any person who wishes to provide information regarding a statement of estimated regulatory costs, or provide a proposal for a lower cost regulatory alternative must do so in writing within 21 days of this notice.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY: : 1003.4203(9), 1003.492(3), 1008.44, 1011.62(1)(0) FS.

LAW IMPLEMENTED: 1003.4203, 1003.492, 1003.493, 1003.4935, 1008.44, 1011.62(1)(o), FS.

A HEARING WILL BE HELD AT THE DATE, TIME AND PLACE SHOWN BELOW:

DATE AND TIME: August 26, 2015, 9:00 a.m.

PLACE: Santa Fe College, Northwest Campus, Fine Arts Hall, 3000 NW 83rd Street, Gainesville, FL 32606

THE PERSON TO BE CONTACTED REGARDING THE PROPOSED RULE IS: Tara Goodman, Bureau Chief, Division of Career and Adult Education, 325 West Gaines Street, Room 744, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0400, Phone: [phone], [e-mail]

 

THE FULL TEXT OF THE PROPOSED RULE IS:

 

6A-6.0573 Industry Certification Process.

(1) through (b) No change.

(c) “CAPE Acceleration Industry Certifications” means certifications identified on the “CAPE Industry Certification Funding List” pursuant to the requirements in Sections 1003.4203(5)(b) and 1008.44(1)(e), F.S. These certifications have statewide articulation agreements for Fifteen (15) or more college credits in a related postsecondary associate degree program.

(d) “Comprehensive Industry Certification List” means a list of certifications identified by the not-for-profit corporation in Section 445.004, F.S., and adopted by their board of directors.

(d)(e) “CAPE Digital Tool Certificates” means certificates identified on the “CAPE Industry Certification Funding List” pursuant to the requirements in Sections 1003.4203(3) and 1008.44(1)(b), F.S. These certificates assess digitals skills that are necessary for a student’s academic work and are appropriate for elementary school and middle grades students.

(e)(f) “CAPE Industry Certifications” means certifications identified on the “CAPE Industry Certification Funding List” pursuant to the requirements in Sections 1003.4203(4) and 1008.44(1)(a), F.S. An industry certification is a voluntary process through which students are assessed by an independent, third-party certifying entity using predetermined standards for knowledge, skills, and competencies, resulting in the award of a credential that is nationally recognized, as specified in Section 1003.492(3), F.S., or an industry certification for farm occupations as specified in Sections 570.07(43) and 1003.492(3), F.S. These certifications either do not have a statewide articulation agreement for college credit or have a statewide articulation agreement for no more than fourteen (14) college credits in a related postsecondary associate degree program.

(f)(g) “CAPE Innovation Courses” means courses identified by the Commissioner of Education on the “CAPE Industry Certification Funding List” pursuant to the requirements in Sections 1003.4203(5)(a) and 1008.44(1)(d), F.S. These courses combine academic and career content and include at least two (2) third-party assessments, one (1) of which must be associated with an industry certification identified on the “CAPE Industry Certification Funding List.”

(g) “CareerSource Florida Recommendations” is a list of certifications identified by the not-for-profit corporation in Section 445.004, F.S., and adopted by their board of directors.

 

(h) through (j) No change.

(3) Adoption of the CareerSource Florida Recommendations. CareerSource Florida’s list of recommended industry certifications annual “Comprehensive Industry Certification List.” Workforce Florida, Inc.’s approved list of industry certifications, which has been named the “2014-2015 Workforce Florida, Inc. dba CareerSource Florida Comprehensive Industry Certification List for the Career and Professional Education Act” (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-_________ 04678) is adopted by the State Board of Education and incorporated by reference in this rule. The list may be obtained from the Department of Education, Room 744, Turlington Building, 325 West Gaines Street, Tallahassee, FL 32399.

(4) Annual publication date for the “CareerSource Florida Recommendations Comprehensive Industry Certification List.” The list of recommended industry certifications “Comprehensive Industry Certification List” shall be published by March 1 of each calendar year for use in development of the “CAPE Industry Certification Funding List” for the subsequent school year.

(5) Adoption of an annual “CAPE Industry Certification Funding List.” The “CAPE Industry Certification Funding List” is composed comprised of industry certifications, certificates, and courses as specified in Sections 1008.44 and 1011.62(1), F.S.

(a) No change.

(b) This list will be known as the “2015-2016 2014-2015 CAPE Industry Certification Funding List, Updated” (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-_____ 05403) published by the Department of Education and is incorporated by reference in this rule. The list may be obtained from the Department of Education, Room 744, Turlington Building, 325 West Gaines Street, Tallahassee, FL 32399.

(6) No change.

(7) Requirements for “CAPE Industry Certifications,” “CAPE Acceleration Industry Certifications,” and “CAPE Digital Tool Certificates” for inclusion on the “CAPE Industry Certification Funding List.” For “CAPE Industry Certifications” and “CAPE Acceleration Industry Certifications,” the Department of Education shall review the approved “CareerSource Florida Recommendations Comprehensive Industry Certification List” to identify certifications eligible for additional full-time equivalent (FTE) membership funding, pursuant to Section 1011.62(1), F.S., based upon the criteria listed below.

(a) To be included as a “CAPE Industry Certification” on the “CAPE Industry Certification Funding List,” a certification shall:

1. Be on the list of “CareerSource Florida Recommendations “Comprehensive Industry Certification List;”

2. Be achievable by students in a secondary level program students; and,

3. Require a minimum of one hundred fifty (150) hours of instruction.

(b) Pursuant to Section 1008.44, F.S., one (1) industry certification that does not articulate for college credit shall be included on the “CAPE Industry Certification Funding List” where CareerSource Florida Workforce Florida, Inc. submits the following information to the Department of Education no later than June 1 of each year:

1. through 3. No change.

(c) To be included as a “CAPE Acceleration Industry Certification” on the “CAPE Industry Certification Funding List,” a certification shall:

1. Be on the list of “CareerSource Florida Recommendations “Comprehensive Industry Certification List;”

2. through (8) No change.

(9) School district requests to add a “CAPE Industry Certification” to the “CAPE Industry Certification Funding List.

(a) No later than March 5 of each year, the Department shall produce a preliminary “CAPE Industry Certification Funding List.” This list shall be based on certifications identified on the previous year’s “CAPE Industry Certification Funding List” and on the most recently approved adopted “CareerSource Florida Recommendations Comprehensive Industry Certification List.”

(b) No change.

(c) Districts shall be notified of the recommendation decision for inclusion on the list through a posting by June 15 on the Department’s web site at the following link: http://www.fldoe.org/workforce/fcpea/default.asp.

(10) through (c) No change.

(d) The Department of Education shall add the industry certification to the “CAPE Industry Certification Funding List” based on the following criteria:

1. The industry certification meets the statutory requirements in Sections 570.07 570.70 and 1003.492, F.S.;

2. through (13)2. No change.

3. Middle grades or high school student is enrolled in a “CAPE Innovation Course” and completes all of the requirements for the “CAPE Innovation Course” on the “CAPE Industry Certification Funding List.”

(b) Pursuant to Section 1011.62(1), F.S., middle grades students who earn additional FTE membership for a CAPE Digital Tool Certificate may not use the previously funded examination to satisfy the requirements for earning a “CAPE Industry Certification,” “CAPE Acceleration Industry Certification,” or “CAPE Innovation Course.” The district shall not report a certification for which a portion of the industry certification exams were previously funded as a “CAPE Digital Tool Certificate.”

(c) through 4. No change.

5. The exams leading to the industry certification must not have been administered to a student more than three (3) times during the academic year with a minimum of twenty (20) thirty (30) calendar days between test administrations.

(d) No change.

(14) Registration of career and professional academies and career-themed courses. The Department of Education shall maintain a web site for school districts to register high school career and professional academies, middle grades career and professional academies, and career-themed courses.

(a) For high school career and professional academies, school districts shall submit up-to-date information on each career and professional academy through an annual reporting window which shall open on or after July 15 and close on September 15, and shall remain open for a minimum of thirty (30) days. Form FCAPEA-01, Florida Career and Professional Education Act Career and Professional Academies, (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-___ 04680) is hereby incorporated by reference in this rule to become effective September 2015 November 2014 and shall be utilized for reporting the information. Form FCAPEA-01 may be found on the Department’s web site at: https://app1.fldoe.org/workforce/CAPE/.

(b) For middle grades career and professional academies, school districts shall submit up-to-date information on each career and professional academy through an annual reporting window which shall open on or after September 16 and close on October 15 and shall be open for a minimum of twenty (20) days. Form FCAPEA-02, Florida Career and Professional Education Act Career and Professional Academies, (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-_____ 04681) is hereby incorporated by reference in this rule to become effective September 2015 November 2014, and shall be utilized for reporting the information. Form FCAPEA-02 may be found on the Department’s web site at: https://app1.fldoe.org/workforce/CAPE/.

(c) For career-themed courses, school districts shall annually submit up-to-date information on each career-themed course by school during an initial registration period from October 16 to November 30 and shall be allowed to submit updates after the initial registration period during the subsequent period of February 1 to March 1 and August 1 to August 15. Form FCAPEA-03, Career and Professional Education Act Career-Themed Course Registration Form, (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-______ 04682) is hereby incorporated by reference in this rule to become effective September 2015 November 2014, and shall be utilized for reporting the career-themed course information. Form FCAPEA-03 may be found on the Department’s web site at: https://app1.fldoe.org/workforce/CAPE.

Rulemaking Authority 1003.4203(9), 1003.492(3), 1008.44, 1011.62(1)(o) FS. Law Implemented 1003.4203, 1003.492, 1003.493, 1003.4935, 1008.44, 1011.62(1)(o) FS. History–New 10-20-08, Amended 8-18-09, 6-22-10, 6-21-11, 10-25-11, 8-23-12, 3-25-13, 11-3-13, 6-25-14, 11-4-14, 5-19-15,_____________.

 

NAME OF PERSON ORIGINATING PROPOSED RULE: Rod Duckworth, Chancellor, Career and Adult Education

NAME OF AGENCY HEAD WHO APPROVED THE PROPOSED RULE: Pam Stewart, Commissioner, Department of Education

DATE PROPOSED RULE APPROVED BY AGENCY HEAD: July 24, 2015

DATE NOTICE OF PROPOSED RULE DEVELOPMENT PUBLISHED IN FAR: May 13, 2015