Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 98 Part 3.djvu/100

 98 STAT. 2472

Public information,

PUBLIC LAW 98-524—OCT. 19, 1984

promote employment opportunities for older individuals in accordance with this subpart. "(b) Any center established and operated by an eligible recipient under this subpart— "(1) provide training or retraining to update older individuals' skills, prepare such individuals for new careers when their skills have been rendered obsolete by technological advances, and promote employment through training or retraining in areas of job potential in growth industries utilizing new technologies; "(2) provide assistance for later-life career changes, with special emphasis on the needs of older individuals who are displaced homemakers; "(3) provide information, counseling, and support services to assist older individuals in obtaining employment; "(4) encourage providers of vocational education, including community colleges and technical schools, to offer more job training opportunities targeted to or easily accessible to older individuals; and "(5) promote training of paraprofessionals in gerontology and geriatrics. "(c) The Secretary shall establish and operate a national clearinghouse within the Department of Education to provide State and local governments, and interested organizations and individuals with information concerning centers established under this subpart and their programs. "(d) For purposes of this subpart, the term 'older individual' means an individual fifty-five years of age or older. "PART C—VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AND OCCUPATIONAL INFORMATION DATA SYSTEMS "DATA SYSTEMS AUTHORIZED

20 USC 2421.

"SEC. 421. (a)(1) The Secretary shall develop, within the National Center for Education Statistics, a national vocational education data reporting and accounting system using uniform definitions. The system required by this section shall include information on vocational education— "(A) students (including information concerning race, sex, and handicapping condition), "(B) programs, "(C) program completers and leavers, "(D) placement and followup, "(E) staff, "(F) facilities, and "(G) expenditures in relation to the principal purposes of this Act. Such information shall include the participation of special populations, including women, the disadvantaged, the handicapped, individuals of limited English proficiency, and minorities. "(2) The Secretary shall take such action as may be necessary to secure the data required by this section at reasonable cost. The Secretary, in consultation with the Congress, shall determine the number and types of vocational education institutions to be sampled, the methodology to be used, group sample sizes, appropriate breakdown analyses of such groups, and the frequency with which such studies under this section are to be conducted.

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