December 16, 2014
On
Thursday, Dec. 12, 2014, the U.S. Department of Labor announced the
availability of $100 million in training grants to expand Registered Apprenticeships (also known as
American Apprenticeships) in high-skilled, high-growth industries like
healthcare, biotechnology, information technology and advanced manufacturing.
Registered Apprenticeships have long been acknowledged as one of the nation’s
best preparation models for skilled trades, yet the program remains
underutilized. These unparalleled grants will help to transform apprenticeships
for the 21st century and escalate employment in these sectors.
Approximately
25 grants, ranging from $2.5 million to $5 million each, will be conferred
using funds collected from employers who use H-1B visas to hire foreign
workers. Programs sponsored by this initiative will provide U.S. workers with
the training to fill jobs that 1) are estimated to employ a considerable number
of new workers; 2) are being altered by equipment and modernizations that
require 21st-century skills; 3) are in innovating and developing industries
and/or businesses that are anticipated to grow; or 4) have a substantial effect
on the economy, overall.
Apprenticeship
grants will be presented to public and private partnerships among employers,
business associations, joint labor-management organizations, labor
organizations, community colleges, local and state governments, and other non-profit
organizations. Successful applicants will use the federal funds to grow
Registered Apprenticeship programs that align with other postsecondary
education programs and generate career pathways to long-term careers.
These
grants will encourage greater access to apprenticeship opportunities for
historically underrepresented populations, including women, young people of
color, people with disabilities, and veterans and transitioning service
members.
Funding
applications are due by April 30, 2015. The full announcement, which includes
information on eligibility and how to apply, is available here.
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Registered Apprenticeship programs meet
the skilled workforce needs of American industry, and have trained millions of
qualified individuals for lifelong careers since 1937. Registered
Apprenticeship helps mobilize America's workforce with structured, on-the-job
learning in traditional industries, such as construction and manufacturing, as
well as in emerging ones, such as health care, information technology, energy,
telecommunications, and more. The program also connects job seekers looking to
learn new skills with employers, resulting in a competitive workforce with
industry-driven training.
The
Registered Apprenticeship-College Consortium (RACC), a joint initiative of the
departments of Education and Labor, is a national network composed of
postsecondary institutions, employers, labor
management groups, and other associations. These entities work together to give
students the necessary skills to take them from Registered Apprenticeships
through college and gainful employment.
Additionally, the RACC enhances the competitiveness of U.S. businesses
by providing them with highly trained workers who possess in-demand skills and
competencies.
"The decision to prepare a student for
college or career is no longer an option in today's competitive global
economy," said U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan in a press release
about the RACC. "To ensure a highly skilled and trained workforce that can
compete with the best and brightest across the world, we have to train our
students for college and career. This program provides a much needed pathway
for students to develop needed technical skills while also pursuing a college
degree, strengthening the middle class."
The RACC strives to foster (1)
strengthened relationships between the Registered Apprenticeship program and
secondary institutions; (2) informed, mutually understanding partnerships among
Registered Apprenticeship, the RACC and postsecondary institutions; (3) an understanding
of apprentices as students; and (4) the ability of apprentices to earn credits
for the Registered Apprenticeship experience, pursue further credentials, and
pursue transfer opportunities.
For
more information on the Registered Apprentice program, click here, and to learn
about RACC, click here.
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Current data,
including that found in the OECD’s report, Time for the U.S. to Reskill? What the Survey of Adult Skills Says, shows that many low-skilled
adults across the nation experience difficulty securing family-sustaining
employment and career advancement. Concurrently, many employers are reporting
that they have experienced challenges in finding skilled employees, even during
times of high unemployment. Tackling both employer and worker needs are key
priorities for public workforce systems and development organizations. To that
end, the MDRC
recently released its first WorkAdvance
report, Meeting the Needs of Workers and Employers:
Implementation of a Sector-Focused Career Advancement Model for Low-Skilled
Adults, which, in its early findings, provides insight on this critical
issue. Entities providing and coordinating services for adult learners may
benefit from reviewing this report.
According to MDRC, the WorkAdvance program model integrates the most salient features of
two critical areas of workforce policy: “‛sectoral’ strategies, which seek to
meet the needs of both workers and employers by preparing individuals for
quality jobs in specific high-demand industries or occupational clusters; and,
job retention and career advancement strategies, which seek to improve workers’
prospects for sustained employment and upward mobility.” The model, according
to the report, offers sequenced, sector-focused program components for up to two
years following enrollment. These include “preemployment and career readiness
services, occupational skills training, job development and placement, and
postemployment retention and advancement services.” The report notes that four
organizations (two in New York City, one in Tulsa, Okla., and one in greater Cleveland)
are presently operating WorkAdvance
programs centering on a variety of sectors and types of experience and
approaches.
This report contains early results from the four
local program providers on their individual renderings of the model into effective
programs. It includes lessons that may be useful to organizations that are
interested in implementing sector-focused career advancement programs
comparable to WorkAdvance. It also offers lessons and insights for
practitioners and workforce development professionals on best practices and implementation
challenges for a program similar to WorkAdvance.
Key report findings (See full
report for
complete details.):
- The
model is challenging—it requires that providers work effectively with both
employers and program participants and incorporate a new postemployment
advancement component. “Yet all four providers are now delivering each of
the WorkAdvance components, with
postemployment services being the least developed.”
- Screening
for program entry was driven by employer needs and, on average, only one
in five applicants were qualified for the program.
- “Soft”
(essential) skills, taught in career-readiness classes, emerged as being
of similar importance to participants and employers as the technical
skills acquired in occupational skills training.
- Early
indications indicate that completion rates for occupational skills
training are high, with variance across the providers. In most instances,
completion of the training led to industry-recognized credentials for
trainees—a critical first step toward attaining sector-based jobs.
MDRC plans to release a second report in
late 2015. It will provide an in-depth look at the WorkAdvance implementation, as well as findings on program costs,
impacts on employment, earnings, and other outcomes. Collectively, these two
reports will give policymakers, practitioners, and funders valuable information
“on the feasibility, impact, and cost of expanding and replicating a model of
this type for low-income populations in various local contexts.”
WorkAdvance program operations and evaluations are funded through
the federal Social Innovation Fund (SIF), a public-private partnership administered
by the Corporation for National and Community Service. This SIF
project is led by the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City, and the NYC Center for Economic Opportunity, in collaboration with MDRC. For more
detailed information, please read the report’s executive
summary
and/or the full report.
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On Thursday,
Dec. 4, 2014, President Obama and the first lady joined college presidents and
other leaders to mark the second College Opportunity Day of Action. Attendees
made new commitments to improve postsecondary degree completion, sustain
community collaborations that encourage college-going, train high school
counselors (part of the first lady’s Reach Higher Initiative), and produce
more STEM graduates with diverse backgrounds. This is part of the
administration’s commitment to increasing the opportunity for all Americans to
enroll in and succeed in college, especially low-income and underrepresented
students. Fulfilling this commitment is important, both for the
nation’s prosperity and for rebuilding a strong middle class.
For more information on this event,
please click here. For a summary
of the progress of those leaders who participated in the first day of action,
held on Jan. 14, 2014, please click here. To view the
president’s report, Commitments to Action
on College Opportunity, please click here.
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