Partner Express - August 2020

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Adult Career Pathways Updates


SFY20-21 Grants
DEED has completed the process of changing seventy-eight contracts to reflect new end dates due to the COVID-19 crisis. This process needed to be completed prior to the original June 30 expiration date.  Otherwise, all unspent funds in a grant would be unavailable to the grantee. 

As of July 20, contracting for the SFY21 ACP grants is completed with an effective date of July 1, 2020.  Providers were offered three month extensions through September 30, 2021 to help make up for time left reconfiguring services in response to COVID-19 and the stay at home order.  Approximately seventy-eight providers sought extensions for their SFY21 grants.

SFY18-19 P2P Grants
The SFY18-19 Pathways to Prosperity Grants expired June 30, 2020. The Adult Career Pathways team is in the process of receiving final invoices and reports to evaluate the success of the program.

Displaced Homemaker Program
Effective August 1, 2020, the Displaced Homemaker Program will officially be known as the Minnesota Family Resiliency Program. 

SNAP E&T 50/50
Four existing SNAP E&T 50/50 providers have re-applied to continue offering SNAP to their participants by substituting SFY21 grants for the SFY20 grants that are expiring on June 30.  Once DHS awards SNAP E&T grants to applicants to its RFP, DEED will open the application process to new providers.  Our goal is to add as many as six providers.  With so many people hurting due to layoffs, this is an excellent way to connect job training participants with more resources.  We encourage providers to apply. 

Workforce One Tip – Case Noting
Case notes must provide a complete, accurate, and concise explanation of frequency and type of contact with participants, as well as services provided and the outcomes associated with those services. Case notes must be written so that the reader has all background information for the participant, as well as the purpose of meetings, and the where, why, and how contact took place. Case notes should be entered at minimum, once every 30 days.

Case notes must record details of the customer's participation in all activities, including:

  • Date and manner of the contact - face to face, individual, small/large group, text, chat, individual social media, mail, or phone call;
  • Enrollment summary/Preliminary case note:
  • Participant current situation; including skills, barriers to gaining employment, work history, current work situation, family status, justification of enrollment,
  • Participant goals; including goals from IEP, steps participant will work towards to achieve those goals, and how training program will assist in meeting those goals
  • Support Services and/or Referrals that program will provide to participants to assist in achieving employment goals
  • Life events that may impact the customer's participation; i.e. changes in health (illness), family status, incarceration, housing situation…
  • Individual Employment Plan/Individual Service Strategy activities and progress toward goals, including updates and changes in this living document;
  • Information provided verbally by other service providers (for example, training provider, social worker) about the customer's participation or progress;
  • Purpose of the contact, information provided, support services provided, and description of outcomes;
  • Activities during the contact;
  • Pertinent information provided verbally by the customer;
  • Outcomes of the contact - actions taken, decisions made, and assignments of tasks for next steps;
  • Information on contacts with other program staff;
  • Exit detail reason/summary.

ACP Operations Guide
ACP’s Operations Guide is now available from the ACP home page. The Guide documents current practices for ACP.  On a quarterly basis, or more frequently if needed, ACP will meet to discuss suggested additions, updates, modifications, and other changes. The Guide is intended to be a living document and will be updated as procedures evolve.  It does NOT include measures implemented in response to COVID-19, which are listed separately.

Heads-up!
Watch for a very small RFP for ACP programs to be published soon.