1. The department of elementary and secondary education shall develop a “ready to work” endorsement program that enables high schools to endorse a certificate for students who meet certain standards that demonstrate that such students are deemed ready to work. The program shall be available no later than June 30, 2007.

2. The program shall include, but not be limited to, the following:

Terms Used In Missouri Laws 160.575

  • following: when used by way of reference to any section of the statutes, mean the section next preceding or next following that in which the reference is made, unless some other section is expressly designated in the reference. See Missouri Laws 1.020

(1) Voluntary participation by high school seniors who choose to participate;

(2) Academic components;

(3) Work readiness components;

(4) Assessment tools and techniques for a third-party, independent, and objective assessment and endorsement of individual student achievement through an existing workforce investment service delivery system; and

(5) An easily identifiable guarantee to potential employers that the entry-level employee is ready to work.

3. In developing such standards, the department shall involve representatives of the division of workforce development, employers, students, career center providers, local workforce investment boards, and school district personnel.