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Maple River Education Coalition PAC
105 Peavey Rd, St 116 
Chaska, MN  55318 
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May 2, 2001

"Mandatory career tracking"
    You Need to Contact These Legislators

You will need to become engaged with conferees and Minnesota House and Senate leadership if we are to have language protecting our children from mandatory career tracking included in the final bills.

On May 2nd, we reported that the following amendment was added to the House Omnibus Jobs and Economic Development Finance bill, HF2486 on the floor of the House on April 26th.

Introduced by Representatives Lipman, McElroy, Gerlach and Gunther:

46.1 Sec. 29. [CAREER TRACKING.]
46.2 As used in this section, "career tracking" is defined as
46.3 identifying individuals for the selective presentation of
46.4 specific course offerings or training programs to students or
46.5 prospective trainees, based upon a government entity's or a
46.6 workforce council's preference for an industry, a company, or a
46.7 skill set. Career tracking is prohibited.

It passed, 66 to 64.

During the debate on the House floor, Rep. Al Juhnke argued against the amendment by saying that if we accept this amendment, we will lose federal School-To-Work money. This means that supporters of STW recognize that STW and the new central planning workforce system require mandatory career tracking. And they are okay with that!!

Yet that same Rep. Juhnke was featured in our April 20th update, as follows:

"One legislator (Rep. Juhnke, Willmar) did not believe that students were getting career training, except perhaps in the last two years of high school, and then only by their own choices!"

Representative Juhnke cannot have it both ways. Either he knows STW is career tracking students or he does not. Which is it? And how many other legislators who insist this new education system and central workforce system is not about career tracking oppose the language protecting students against mandatory career tracking, as he did? (See the voting record on the career tracking amendment)

The Commissioner goes great lengths to tell the public that School-Work is completely voluntary. On her "Chat line with Christine Jax", she says it three different time:

"From: Isanti

"Q: Hello Christine. This question goes to when in the near future the Regional Labor Boards are in place and operating. If my 15 year old boy, who is really a whiz at computers and has a dream of becoming a computer analyst, and he is also very good in Metals class, welding etc. If the regional labor board says we need more machinists than computer guys, will he still be able to follow his dream of a career in computer science? Be honest now. I will hold you to your answer. Thank You.

"A: Go ahead, hold me to it: ******** This is America, everyone gets to choose his or her own career. ************" [Emphasis theirs!]

"School to Work is voluntary."

"As to the School-to-Work initiative: It is voluntary for districts to participate, and it is voluntary for students to participate. If you don't want your child to participate -- don't let them."

For more on how STW is being forced on all students, see our article, "Decoding St. Paul's 'Education Blueprint."

K-12 Conference Committee:

This week, the K-12 Conference Committee Members brought up the Dawkins amendment that clearly prohibits mandatory career tracking in K-12. The Dawkins amendment is in the House language but not it the Senate's. The Dawkins amendment was not accepted by the Senate. It was tabled.

Why is the Senate unwilling to prohibit mandatory career tracking in our schools? And will the House bring it back to the table? Their next meeting is unscheduled.

Omnibus Jobs and Economic Development Finance Committee:

The desired prohibition on mandatory career tracking is running into trouble in that committee as well. Since Commissioner Jax, the Governor's Workforce Development Council and all of the advocates of the government workforce training and placement system insist this is not career tracking, Why is this amendment running into trouble?

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