The state Senate approved a bipartisan bill this week expanding job-training programs by allowing Private Licensed Schools to create branch campuses in different counties.
Currently, technical schools can only establish branch campuses within the same county as the primary site. For a second, out-of-county location, schools must secure another independent license. The bill would allow schools to create branch campuses within 60 miles of the primary location.
“When career and technical schools have a proven track record of success in placing students in great job opportunities, we should not make them jump through additional hoops when they want to expand those programs to serve more people and more communities,” Sen. Camera Bartolotta (R-Beaver, Greene and Washington counties), one of the bill’s sponsors, said. “The state needs to be a stronger partner in helping more Pennsylvanians access job training programs, and I thank my colleagues in the Senate for taking another step toward that goal.”
The bill could support workforce development efforts by helping more state residents access job training programs, Bartolotta, chairwoman of the Senate Labor and Industry Committee, said.
Sen. Jim Brewster (D-Allegheny and Westmoreland counties) also sponsored the bill.
The bill now goes to the House of Representatives for consideration.