Have you ever thought it would be cool to build homes or work in construction? Perhaps you’re trying to figure out what you want to do with your life, and you’ve heard Colorado is extremely short on labor. But where do you start? One way to gain experience is to enroll in a college or university that offers a degree in Construction Management.
If a four-year degree program isn’t for you, there are also occupational schools that offer courses in everything from construction to carpentry to basics in concrete. However, up until recently, Colorado essentially barred these types of schools from being accredited.
To reverse this and open the door for construction education institutions to receive accreditation, Colorado lawmakers passed bipartisan House Bill 21-1306, “Accreditation of Postsecondary Institutions.” Here’s why this is a win for Colorado.
The Importance of Accreditation
How do you know if an institute of higher education is worth your money? One way is to check if it’s accredited. If a postsecondary institute (meaning a school you attend after high school) is accredited, that means it’s been reviewed, and the organization that reviewed it found that the institute provides a quality education that meets certain criteria.
Additionally, there are two types of accreditation:
- Institutional, meaning the entire school is accredited.
- Programmatic, meaning just a specific program is accredited.
More importantly, if you’re hoping to use state or federal grants or loans, often, you’ll need to attend a program or school that’s accredited.
However, until recently, Colorado colleges and universities could only receive accreditation from national or regional accrediting bodies recognized by the United States Department of Education (DOE), and it had to be an institutional accreditation. Institutional accreditation is not only costly, but it’s also challenging for schools to obtain.
As a result, private occupational schools in Colorado often couldn’t and didn’t seek accreditation. This resulted in these schools not having quality control oversight, and students attending these schools didn’t have access to state and federal grant and loan programs.
To address this issue, Senators Lundeen and Rodriguez, along with Representatives Garnett and Geitner, sponsored HB21-1306, which passed and became law in June of this year.
A Win for School Choice
HB21-1306 allows schools to receive accreditation from accrediting bodies recognized by the DOE and receive accreditation from programmatic accrediting bodies recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). Further, accrediting bodies recognized by CHEA can accredit “freestanding, single-purpose institutions of construction education.”
To learn more about HB21-1306 and what it means for Coloradoans, The Maverick Observer reached out to Sen. Lundeen, a prime sponsor of HB21-1306. When asked why he chose to sponsor HB21-1306, Sen. Lundeen told TMO that he wanted to create more education opportunities for Coloradoans. “We need to be creative in how we look at people expanding their skills both mentally and manually,” he said.
Lundeen pointed out that prior to this legislation, four-year degrees were given priority when it came to accreditation. However, a certificate from a trade school that helps develop manual skills is just as valuable, and Lundeen wanted to recognize this, and promote it. HB21-1306 does just that.
Lundeen stated, “We need to provide more flexibility and more opportunities” regarding education, and not limit it to four-year programs. He pointed out that educational opportunities are expanded for all Coloradoans by including internships, certificates and trade schools when it comes to accreditation. Once someone receives a certificate or has a successful internship, that person may choose to continue expanding on their education, leading to even more opportunities.
Finally, while HB21-1306 specifically opens the door for construction education institutions to receive accreditation, Lundeen said that, philosophically, he believes accreditation opportunities should be expanded to other private occupational schools (think real estate, beauty, dental, etc.). HB21-1306 may help pave the way toward future accreditation opportunities.
Freedom of Choice
When you attend an institution that’s accredited, you know that its education program meets specific standards. This is not only important to prospective students but also to potential employers. Accreditation allows students access to additional loans and grants.
A four-year degree isn’t for everyone, and HB21-1306 recognizes this by expanding accreditation opportunities to private occupational schools, and more specifically, construction education. This not only gives Coloradoans more options when it comes to education, but it should also help with the construction labor shortage Colorado is experiencing.
Will these new benefits help bring more skilled construction labor to the workforce? Only time will tell, but a bill that increases Coloradoans’ education options is a step in the right direction, and an overall win for Colorado.
Colorado should look to CT for maybe the only thing that state does right. I am a graduate of WF Kaynor technical high school in Waterbury CT. The state runs several technical high schools around the state, they are some of the most successful schools in the state.