PUBLIC LAW 101-392—SEPT. 25, 1990 104 STAT. 789 "SEC. 342. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. 20 USC 2394. "(a) FINDINGS.— The Congress finds that— "(1) rapid technological advances and global economic competition demand increased levels of skilled technical education preparation and readiness on the part of youths entering the workforce; "(2) effective strategies reaching beyond the boundaries of traditional schooling are necessary to provide early gind sustained intervention by parents, teachers, and educational institutions in the lives of students; "(3) a combination of nontraditional school-to-work technical education programs, using state-of-the-art equipment and appropriate technologies, will reduce the dropout rate for high school students in the United States and will produce youths who are mature, responsible, and motivated to build good lives for themselves; "(4) the establishment of systematic technical education articulation agreements between secondary schools and postsecondary educational institutions is necessary for providing youths with skills in the liberal and practical arts and in bsisic academics, including literacy instruction in the English language, and with the intense technical preparation necessary for finding a position in a changing workplace; "(5) by the year 2000 an estimated 15,000,000 manufacturing jobs will require more advanced technical skills, and an equal number of service jobs will become obsolete; "(6) more than 50 percent of jobs that are devieloping will require skills greater than those provided by existing educational programs; "(7) dropout rates in urban schools are 50 percent or higher, and more than 50 percent of all Hispanic youth drop out of high school; and "(8) employers in the United States pay an estimated $210,000,000,000 annually for formal and informal training, remediation, and lost productivity as a result of untrained and unprepared youth joining, or attempting to join, the workforce of the United States. "(b) PURPOSE. —It is the purpose of this part— "(1) to provide planning and demonstration grants to consortia of local educational agencies and postsecondary educational institutions, for the development and operation of 4-year programs designed to provide a tech-prep education program leading to a 2-year associate degree or a 2-year certificate; and "(2) to provide, in a systematic manner, strong, comprehensive links between secondary schools^and postsecondary educational institutions. "SEC. 343. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED. 20 USC 2394a. "(a) DISCRETIONARY AMOUNTS.—In any fiscal year in which the amount made available under section 3(d)(l)(E) to carry out the provisions of this part is equal to or less than $50,000,000, the Secretary, in accordance with the provisions of this part which are not inconsistent with this paragraph, shall award grants for techprep education programs to consortia of— "(1) local educational agencies, intermediate educational agencies or area vocational education schools serving secondary
�
