Washington, D.C. – IBM (NYSE: IBM) today issued this statement on the House passage of the bipartisan H.R. 2353, The Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act:

“IBM applauds today’s House passage of H.R. 2353. By updating and reauthorizing the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act, Congress has an opportunity to ensure our students achieve strong academic and career preparation in the nation’s fastest growing industries. We urge Senator Alexander to take up this legislation and quickly bring it before the full Senate for passage.

This bill is critical to equipping America’s students with the skills to succeed in promising New Collar careers. There is no issue more connected to U.S. competitiveness than equipping our nation’s youth with the academic and workplace skills needed for 21st century jobs. Jobs in the technology industry’s fastest growing fields — New Collar Jobs — demand candidates with the right mix of high-tech skills and do not always require a traditional Bachelor’s degree.

IBM, together with hundreds of members of the Perkins Coalition, will be working hard to ensure the timely Senate passage of this bill, which is critical to serving the American workforce, building our economy and preparing our nation’s next generation for New Collar Jobs.

We thank Reps. Glenn “GT” Thompson (R-PA) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) as well as Chairwoman Foxx and Ranking Member Scott for their bipartisan leadership on this issue.”

– Stanley S. Litow, President Emeritus of the IBM Foundation and P-TECH Co-Founder

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Media Contact:
Ashley Bright
Ph: (202) 551-9519
brighta@us.ibm.com

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