A bill passed in the Michigan House this month would give academic credits to students working in a skilled trade.
The bill would require school districts to grant credit to high school seniors who work at least 30 hours per week in manufacturing, construction, or other fields that provide verifiable job training. Individual school districts would determine how many credits the work could fulfill.
Representative Jason Woolford (R-Howell) said he introduced the bill to address a shortage of skilled-trade workers and to provide a job pathway for young people.
“We don't have people to fulfill the trades,” Woolford said. “If we don't have people to do these jobs, we won't have jobs. We won't have people because they'll move to a different state.”
Representative Tim Kelly (R-Saginaw Township) said the bill could provide opportunities for students who aren’t seeking a college degree, helping to “dispel the notion … that you have to have a four-year baccalaureate degree for the American dream.”
Woolford said he’s not concerned that students working the required 30 hours per week might struggle to keep up with other academic obligations.
“You have to remember when people were in school many years ago they worked on the farm, they worked full time, and yet they figured out a way to … invent the automobile and pipelines and railroads and all of those things,” Woolford said. “I think we've got to give our kids a little bit more credit and a little bit more responsibility.”
The bill passed the House with only two Democrats voting in support. It now heads to Democratic-controlled Senate.
