A. The adult workforce diploma program is established within the state board of education to assist a person who is at least twenty-one years of age in earning a high school diploma and developing critical employability and career and technical skills to prepare the person for employment. The department of education shall administer the program. The program may be delivered in a campus-based, online or blended modality.

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B. The adult workforce diploma program fund is established consisting of legislative appropriations, gifts, grants and other donations. The department of education shall administer the fund. The department of education shall use monies in the fund to pay approved program providers as prescribed in subsection E of this section. Monies in the fund are continuously appropriated and are exempt from the provisions of section 35-190 relating to lapsing of appropriations.

C. On or before August 15 of each year, to be approved to participate in the program, an eligible program provider shall submit to the state board of education on a form that is developed by the board information showing that the eligible program provider meets all of the following requirements:

1. Is operating a regionally accredited high school diploma-granting entity.

2. Has the ability to develop a learning plan for each student that integrates graduation requirements and career goals.

3. Provides a course catalog that includes all courses that are necessary to meet graduation requirements.

4. Has the ability to provide all of the following:

(a) Remediation opportunities in literacy and numeracy.

(b) Career pathways coursework.

(c) Preparation for industry-recognized credentials and stackable credentials.

(d) Career placement services.

(e) Academic skills intake assessments and transcript evaluations.

D. On or before October 15 of each year, the state board of education, in consultation with the department of education, shall place all qualified program providers that submit the form pursuant to subsection C of this section on an approved program providers list. Approved program providers shall begin enrolling students on or before November 15 of each year. Approved program providers maintain approval status unless the approved program provider is removed from the approved program providers list pursuant to subsection J of this section.

E. The department of education shall pay approved program providers the following amounts for each student who completes the following milestones:

1. $250 for each completed half unit of high school credit.

2. $250 for each completed employability skills certification.

3. $250 for each earned industry-recognized credential or stackable credential that requires not more than fifty hours of training.

4. $500 for each earned industry-recognized credential or stackable credential that requires at least fifty hours but not more than one hundred hours of training.

5. $750 for each earned industry-recognized credential or stackable credential that requires more than one hundred hours of training.

6. $1,000 for each earned high school diploma.

F. Approved program providers shall submit monthly invoices to the department of education not later than the tenth calendar day of each month for milestones met in the previous calendar month. The department of education shall pay approved program providers in the order in which invoices are submitted until all available monies are exhausted. The department of education shall provide a written update to the approved program providers on or before the last calendar day of each month, including the aggregate total dollars that have been paid to approved program providers to date and the estimated number of enrollments still available for the program year.

G. On or before October 30 of each year, each approved program provider shall report the following to the department of education:

1. The total number of students who were funded through the program.

2. The total number of earned credits.

3. The total number of earned industry-recognized credentials or stackable credentials earned for each tier of funding.

4. The total number of students who graduated through the program.

5. The information required by the performance measures adopted by the state board of education pursuant to section 15-217.

H. The department of education shall compile the reports received from each approved program provider under subsection G of this section and, on or before December 15 of each year, shall provide an annual report to the governor, the president of the senate, the speaker of the house of representatives and the state board of education and provide a copy of this report to the secretary of state.

I. Beginning with the end of the second fiscal year of the program, the state board of education, in cooperation with the department of education, shall review data from each approved program provider to ensure that each approved program provider is achieving minimum program performance standards, including:

1. A graduation rate of at least fifty percent.

2. An average cost per graduate of $7,000 or less.

J. The state board of education, in cooperation with the department of education, may develop a process to bring an approved program provider into compliance. The state board of education shall revoke an approved program provider’s authorization to participate in the program if the approved program provider does not comply with the requirements of this section within two years.

K. The department of education shall provide adequate staff support for the state board of education to comply with this section.

L. For the purposes of this section:

1. "Academic skills intake assessment" means a criterion-referenced assessment of numeracy and literacy skills with high reliability and validity that is determined by third-party research and that may be administered in person or online.

2. "Accredited provider" means an entity that is currently accredited by one of the seven regional accreditation organizations or any successor entity.

3. "Approved program provider" means a public, nonprofit or other entity that meets the requirements of this section and that does not receive federal or state funding or private tuition for a student who is funded through the program.

4. "Average cost per graduate" means the total program funding dispersed to an approved program provider divided by the total number of graduates for a cohort calculated twelve months after the close of the cohort.

5. "Career pathways coursework" means one or more courses that align with the skill needs of industries in the economy of this state or region and that assist students to enter or advance within a specific occupation or occupational cluster.

6. "Career placement services" means services that are designed to assist students in obtaining employment, including career interest self-assessments, job search skills, résumé development and mock interviews.

7. "Cohort" means the students who enter the program between July 1 and June 30 of each program year.

8. "Employability skills certification" means a certificate earned by demonstrating professional nontechnical skills through assessment and must include the program standards of the United States department of labor’s "skills to pay the bills: mastering soft skills for workplace success".

9. "Graduate" means a student who has successfully completed all state and approved program provider requirements to earn a high school diploma.

10. "Graduation rate" means the total number of graduates from a cohort divided by the total number of students from the same cohort calculated twelve months after the close of the cohort.

11. "Graduation requirements" means course and credit requirements needed to earn a high school diploma from an approved program provider.

12. "High school diploma" means a diploma that is issued by an accredited provider and that is recognized as a secondary school diploma by this state.

13. "Industry-recognized credential" means an education-related or work-related credential that verifies an individual’s qualification or competence and that is issued by a third party with the relevant authority to issue the credential.

14. "Learning plan" means a documented plan that both:

(a) Is designed to prepare a student to succeed in the program and the student’s future endeavors.

(b) Identifies the courses and credits that are needed for a student to complete the program and that are approved program provider graduation requirements.

15. "Milestones" means objective measures of progress for which payment is made to an approved program provider under this section, including earned units of high school credit, earned industry-recognized credentials and earned high school diplomas.

16. "Program" means the adult workforce diploma program.

17. "Stackable credential" means a third-party credential that is part of a sequence of credentials that can be accumulated over time to build up an individual’s qualifications to advance along a career pathway.

18. "Student" means a participant in the program who is at least twenty-one years of age, who is a resident of this state and who has not earned a high school diploma.

19. "Transcript evaluation" means a documented summary of credits that were earned in previous public or private accredited high schools compared with program and approved program provider graduation requirements.

20. "Unit of high school credit" means a credit that is awarded based on a student’s demonstration that the student has successfully met the content expectations for the credit area as defined by subject area standards, expectations or guidelines.