July 2023
 Adult Career Pathways
Adult Career Pathways Team Updates
We encourage Grantees and interested organizations to check out the DEED Competitive Grants and Contracts page for SFY24-25 program Requests for Proposals (RFPs). The site posts all outgoing grants, and each solicitation includes a brief description of work and a link to its Request for Proposals (RFP). Sign up to receive emails when new opportunities are listed.
The COVID waivers put in to place in 2020 will end beginning July 1, 2023. The team is working on updating the Operations Guide to reflect the updates.
Marketing ACP programs? A reminder to review the ACP Cost Category Guidance for allowable marketing and outreach costs and the disclaimer that must be included on ALL marketing material.
“The State of Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) funded (or funded in part) this training through a grant. The grant recipient created this training. DEED does not endorse this publicity or training or make guarantees, warranties, or assurances of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, usefulness, adequacy, continued availability or ownership of the information herein or elsewhere.”
Mn Family Resiliency Partnership
(Federally known as Displaced Homemaker Program)
The MN Family Resiliency Partnership (MFRP) has been a staple program at DEED for over 20 years. It is unique in services and targeted populations they serve. We encourage a collaborative approach to serving participants to seamlessly meet the needs of participants and enhance a participant’s career goals. Co-enrollments are allowed within organizations and between organizations including participants receiving pre-employment services through one of the six MFRP providers across the state. For more information about the Minnesota Family Resiliency Partnership program check out DEED’s ACP webpage.
SNAP E&T 50/50
The SNAP E&T project can provide additional, unrestricted funds to your organization when partnered with your ACP Grant. If you serve SNAP recipients within your ACP program(s) and are interested in more information about adding the SNAP E&T 50% Reimbursement program to your organization, please contact Ann Meyers at ann.meyers@state.mn.us.
Workforce One- ACP Programs
As a reminder, all participants enrolled in any SFY22-23 ACP program MUST be appropriately exited from Workforce One (WF1) upon the completion of the grant.
In order for your organization to capture outcomes for these participants, all participants must Exit from Workforce One (WF1) within 45 days from the expiration of the grant contract.
If your organization received a SFY24-25 grant for the same services/training and have participants in the midst of receiving services or attending training by the end of your SFY22-23 contract, these participants can be re-enrolled in the SFY24-25 grant. In this case, these participants will have to be exited in WF1 with the Program/Type Transfer exit reason, then re-enrolled into your SFY24-25 program.
It is imperative that the participant is EXITED from the SFY 22-23 funding and ENROLLED into SFY24-25 with a new application. Do not just change funding streams on activities. If this happens you will not capture the service to the participant on your SFY22-23 grant and they will not be counted in outcomes.
You must make sure that all enrollment documents (intake/application, IEP, etc.) are current, up-to-date, and signed prior to enrolling into the new funding stream. It is not necessary to complete new enrollment documents (with the exception of the “How we use your personal information”) if eligibility was determined within the last 6 months. Providing a case note in WF1 detailing the transfer will be required. Workforce One will not allow an enrollment with paperwork outside of 180 days (6 months).
Please reach out to your Grant Coordinator with any questions!
Adult Career Pathways Guides
The ACP Operations Guide has been updated for June and posted to the ACP home page. If you have any suggestions for the guide, please submit those to your Grant Coordinator.
- Please contact your Grant Coordinator directly with any questions regarding Adult Career Pathways.
 Dislocated Worker and Federal Adult Programs
Formula Funds
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THANK YOU, PARTNERS! The DW Team would like to say a big thank you to our program partners for working with us to quickly turnaround PY23FY24 planning documents! We greatly appreciate your partnership and all that you do to serve the people of Minnesota.
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PY22 Carry Forward Request
- A memo listing all approved waiver requests will be sent out soon
- The full amount of each waiver will be informed by June 2023 Request for Payment (RFP) or Financial Status Report (FSR).
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Final PY21 RPRs/FSRs
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RPRs: Other than Admin, over is only allowed on the final RPR (as long as the total expended doesn’t exceed the total budgeted, of course). The more expended in cost categories that directly benefit program participants the better. Throughout the grant cycle, since these are reimbursements, providers can’t request more than the budgeted amount for any cost category. Our accounting system won’t approve it.
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FSRs: Budget adjustment is allowed if the total expended doesn’t exceed the total budgeted and they don’t go over the 10% Admin max on the final. Under and over is allowed throughout the grant cycle.
- Please keep state statute cost category requirements in mind per state statute (providers may adhere to any approved waivers):
- Administration: No more than 10% of the total grant expenditures
- Career Services: No more than 40% of the total grant expenditures
- Direct Customer Training: At least 50% of the total grant expenditures
- Support Services: No more than 15% of the total grant expenditures
- The SDW Cost Category Policy does state “DEED grants staff will require a brief written justification (one paragraph) if the variance of any cost category exceeds 2% of the budgeted amount.”
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Quarterly Progress Report
- Reports for quarter ending June 2023, are due on July 30. Please report on all active grants.
National Dislocated Worker Grants (DWGs)/Disaster Relief Grants (COVID-19 and OMNI/Opiods)
- Both DWGs grants ended on June 30, 2023.
- The final quarterly narrative progress report (QNPR) is due on Thursday, July 20.
- DEED is requesting providers to complete a feedback survey to help identify strategies to ensure the most efficient and effective program administration for future grants.
New Mass Layoff Project
- HyLife Foods, Windom, non-compete Mass Layoff Project was awarded to Southwest Minnesota Private Industry Council, Inc. (SWMNPIC).
- 3M Mass Layoff was awarded to HIRED to serve impacted workers.
Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP)
- Program Year (PY) 2023 Funding Application was submitted on time by May 16, 2023, in accordance with TEGL 18-22 instructions. This Application also includes a request to increase Administrative Costs from 13.5% to 15% of total funding allotted. Additionally, a request has been made to allocate 10% in Additional Participant Training and Supportive Services, to allow sub-grantees to spend not less than 68% on participant wages and fringe benefits instead of the standard 78% of the program year allocation.
- All SCSEP sub-grantees should have received their PY2023 planning documents on June 21st, 2023. These documents are required to be completed and submitted by July 03, 2023.
- Grants Performance Management System (GPMS)
- All GPMS Training webinars, and Virtual Live Events are recorded and archived at WorkforceGPS. You can also access GPMS e-newsletters (June 2023 Issue Vol 1 is now out), and other GPMS resources and related materials on the same site. The FAQ is a valuable resource for finding answers to commonly asked questions, so please remember to check it out first before submitting your queries.
Retaining Employment and Talent after Injury/Illness Network (RETAIN)
- MN RETAIN continues to scale its efforts across Minnesota. More than 1,339 people have enrolled!
- The team will be at multiple outreach events this summer so if you happen to see us, please stop by our booth and say hello.
- The MN RETAIN team welcomes Kristine Johnson as Employer Engagement Specialist.
- If you or someone you know have an injury or illness that affects work? Visit mnretain.com to see if RETAIN could help!
- Follow us on LinkedIn and Facebook for our latest updates and information.
Question from the Field
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QUESTION: Should we be turning people away who are referred to DW services who are (or were) getting UI benefits but whose contract/temporary/consultant work did NOT end prematurely?
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ANSWER: Yes, those with pre-determined work end dates do not qualify for DW program services per policy. We encourage you to refer these types of individuals to the WIOA Adult or other similar programs.
Background
The updated state and WIOA DW policies are clear and easy to follow. It seems straightforward that someone working on a contract, temporary or consultant basis whose employment ends according to an agreed-upon date or duration of employment (not prematurely) IS NOT eligible for DW services.
However, we get many referrals from UI staff conducting re-employment assessments with individuals receiving UI benefits who were consultants or contractors (1099 employees, or maybe W2 employees who were with an agency). In those cases, they are getting UI benefits but there was no premature end date for the employment – no layoff letter, and people telling us the contract ended when it was supposed to.
Also, in the document “Acceptable Documentation for Program Eligibility” (also attached here) this is listed as an acceptable verification:
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Unemployment Insurance Status
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Required if used as the basis for program eligibility.
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One of the following: Cross-Match to State UI Database • Cross-Match to State MIS Database • Referral Transmittal by RESEA or WPRS • Self-Attestation
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Please email all requests, reports, and technical assistance questions to the Dislocated Worker Federal Adult Programs general email at dwfaprograms.deed@state.mn.us.
 Performance Updates for Dislocated Worker and WIOA Adult
IMPORTANT UPDATE: Program Year 2022 Data Freeze Date is now scheduled for July 15, 2023. Please have all your data entry up to date including all Measurable Skill Gains achieved by your participants during the timeframe of 07/01/2022 – 06/30/2023 entered into Workforce One no later than close of business 07/15/2023.
Cases accessing PY2021 Dislocated Worker (DW) and WIOA Adult (AD) Allocations
Reminder: PY2021 allocations will be expiring on June 30, 2023.
 If needed in an alternative format contact amy.carlson@state.mn.us
All cases showing the following funding streams within an open activity will need your attention.
 If needed in an alternative format contact amy.carlson@state.mn.us
If the participant will continue receiving a service currently supported by PY2021 allocations after June 30, 2023, a new activity will need to be opened for each service the participant will continue.
Reminder: All Dislocated Worker and WIOA Adult program year formula allocations (small layoff grants/WIOA Adult allotments) remain active for two years.
- PY2021 = July 1, 2021 – June 30, 2023
- PY2022 = July 1, 2022 – June 30, 2024
- PY2023 = July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2025
This means, the new activity will need a PY2022 or PY2023 formula grant selected within them depending on your agencies budget.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION TO KNOW
- All activities with a PY2021 allocation selected within them cannot have a start date after June 30, 2023. They must also have an end date no later than June 30, 2023.
- If any participant will continue participating in an activity that is currently showing a PY2021 allocation supporting that service, that activity needs to be copied within their activity detail screen.
- The new activity will need a start date of July 1, 2023
- An active funding source (PY2022 or PY2023) will need to be selected within them.
- To help in this funding source transition
- Amy Carlson will mass close all currently open PY2021 funded activities with an end date of June 30, 2023, which means you will only need to open/copy the old activities. If you want to close the old activities yourself with a date no later than 06/30/2023, that is fine. If you choose not to close them yourself, it will be taken care of for you.
- This mass activity closure will begin August 1, 2023.
- If there are cases without other open activities on record showing a different funding source, this mass closure will not work for those cases. Any cases that show they cannot be included in the PY2021 activity closure will be emailed to the management team for the COFFR funding the case with directions on how the case manager needs to correct the data.
- Shortly after July 1, 2023, additional funding streams will be added to your dropdown lists for PY2023 allocations. The date these new funding streams will be available is dependent on when PY2023 contracts are in place. Your management teams will be alerted as soon as your agency’s PY2023 funding streams are available in WF1.
Program Year (PY) 2022 Quarter Two (Q2) Performance Outcomes compared to Negotiated Goals
Attached you will find the performance outcome spreadsheets for Total Dislocated Worker, State Dislocated Worker, WIOA Dislocated Worker, DWG, and WIOA Adult programs. These are best when printed landscape, in color, and on 11x17 size paper.
 If needed in an alternative format contact amy.carlson@state.mn.us
 If needed in an alternative format contact amy.carlson@state.mn.us
 If needed in an alternative format contact amy.carlson@state.mn.us
 If needed in an alternative format contact amy.carlson@state.mn.us
 If needed in an alternative format contact amy.carlson@state.mn.us
- Performance goals based on WlOA negotiated standards for PY2022
- Color Key:
- Blue are the negotiated performance standards
- Green means the set goal was met or exceeded
- Yellow means at least 50% of the goal was met
- Red means less than 50% of the goal was met
- Served is all participants accessing the program during the actual program year (real-time) July 1, 2022 – March 31, 2023
- Getting a Job results based on exiters July 1, 2021 – March 31, 2022 except those exited with exclusion. This indicator measures each exiter's employment status during the 2nd quarter after exiting the program. Formula: Percent of employed exiters divided by all exiters during the reporting period.
- Keeping a Job results based on exiters January 1, 2021 – September 30, 2021 except those exited with exclusion. This indicator measures each exiter's employment status during the 4th quarter after exiting the program. Formula: Percent of employed exiters divided by all exiters during the reporting period.
- 2nd Quarter Median Earnings results based on exiters July 1, 2021 – March 31, 2022 except those exited with exclusionary reason and those showing zero earnings. This indicator measures the median earning during the 2nd quarter after exiting the program.
- Credential Attainment results based on exiters January 1, 2021 – September 30, 2021 except those exited with exclusionary reason and those who did not attend credential type training. This indicator measures the percent of participants who received a credential after attending training.
Should you have any performance or data entry questions, please contact the State Program Administrator Coordinator for ETP Adult programs, Amy Carlson, at amy.carlson@state.mn.us.
 Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA)
Department of Labor Monitoring Visit
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) will conduct a review of Minnesota’s Trade Adjustment Assistance and Trade Readjustment Allowance programs. According to DOL, the review is scheduled for August 28 – September 1, 2023 and will include on-site visits to Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) offices and American Job Centers. The review will encompass all program and fiscal activity from July 27, 2019, to August 27, 2023.
Program Status and Outreach Efforts
The TAA program has funding and continues to serve customers. TAA must be the primary source of funding for customers who are eligible. Previous Partner Express newsletters include articles related to the phased termination that the TAA Program entered on 7/1/22. The U.S. Department of Labor recently released TEGL 14-22 - Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) for Workers Program Phase-out Termination Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), and it has been added to the ETA Advisory database and is available at https://www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/advisories/tegl-14-22
TAA will perform various outreach efforts this summer and fall to ensure those who are eligible for TAA are aware of the benefits available. Contact TAA with outreach suggestions or to ask about an individual’s eligibility.
Virtual Informational Sessions
Minnesota TAA is hosting virtual informational sessions for people who may be eligible to apply for TAA benefits. The team will be inviting people based on their petition and layoff dates. As always, TAA will refer attendees to enroll in the DW program to access their TAA benefits. Thank you in advance for your work to serve these shared customers, some of whom may have been laid off under a TAA petition years ago. An upcoming session is scheduled for July 18 from 6:30pm-7:30pm. Links to the live virtual Microsoft Teams meetings are posted here: https://www.careerforcemn.com/TAA
Petitions
Petitions can still be filed, but DOL’s investigation is paused until program restoration or reauthorization. Here’s the link to check the status of petitions with U.S. Department of Labor: https://www.doleta.gov/tradeact/petitioners
Filed after July 1, 2022
- Torax Medical, St Paul
- Turck, Inc., Plymouth
- Ball Corp, St Paul
- Nordson Medical, Eagan
- Banner Engineering, Huron, SD (HQ in Minnesota)
- Optum, Hopkins
- Puris Proteins, LLC, Turtle Lake
Please email all questions and customer applications to the Trade Adjustment Assistance general email at deed.taa@state.mn.us.
 Monitoring
We are hiring multiple Program Monitors!
Click here to apply: Workforce Development Specialist 3 - Program Monitor- Job ID 66485. Interviews will occur on a continuous basis until positions are filled.
About the Job:
Position Title: Program Monitor
Help to support and enhance the quality of workforce readiness programs in Minnesota by monitoring grant programs for fiscal and programmatic compliance with applicable federal and state rules and regulations, as well as DEED guidelines. Apply attention to detail and technical expertise in the areas of accounting, audit, program management and continuous improvement.
DEED is committed to moving diversity, equity, and inclusion in the workplace and across all aspects of life in Minnesota forward. We’re dedicated to a Minnesota that welcomes everyone. Preferred candidates for this position will have experience working effectively with individuals from a variety of backgrounds and cultures.
Duties and Responsibilities
- Monitor federal and state-funded workforce development grants across a diverse array of Employment and Training Programs (ETP). Monitoring portfolio may include a variety of youth, adult, and workforce development area grantees (Dislocated Worker, Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Adult, Adult Career Pathways, WIOA Youth, Youth at Work, and other programs).
- Analyze and compile program data to develop written summaries and reports of monitoring findings for applicable grant programs.
- Identify any potential areas of non-compliance, vulnerability, and risk, then recommend mitigation strategies.
- Provide technical assistance to grantees to resolve compliance findings.
- Interpret legal and regulatory requirements for grantees and provide authoritative advice.
- Embrace a continuous improvement mindset by identifying opportunities to improve or streamline monitoring processes to enhance performance.
- Serve on work groups tasked with developing and/or revising guidelines, policies, and processes on program delivery, monitoring, compliance, performance management, risk assessment, and related operational goals and objectives.
- Identify and participate in training opportunities to improve knowledge, skills, and abilities
If you have questions about Monitoring content, please email shannon.rolf@state.mn.us.
CareerForce
Follow Your Heart to a Caring Career
The Follow Your Heart to a Caring Career (Caring Career for short) campaign aims to connect people with employment in home-, community- and facility- based care. The focus is on entry level positions with a potential for career growth. We are hoping to reach young people, New Americans, people who need employment now – and most of all people looking for work where they can make a real difference in the lives of others! Could you please share information – available in multiple languages – with your job-seeking customers?
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Note to partners: it is essential to use #CaringCareerMN when you post related to this campaign so that CareerForceMN, DEED and others can find and share your posts!
Promoting your related training programs: If you nursing assistant, medical assistant or other health care or social service related training programs that could help people prepare for a Caring Career, please make sure they are listed on the CareerForce Training Program Finder.
Have questions about this campaign or ideas to make it successful? Please share your ideas with CareerForce@state.mn.us and note Caring Career in the subject line.
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Contact the CareerForce Information and Assistance line at 651-259-7500 or careerforce@state.mn.us if you have questions.
 Labor Market Information
June is the kick off for the Follow Your Heart to a Caring Career campaign, including a proclamation from the Governor explaining the benefits of working in Health Care & Social Assistance. DEED’s Regional Analysts put together a series of blogs focused on Health Care employment and opportunities in all 6 planning regions:
Central | Northeast | Northwest | Southeast | Southwest | Twin Cities
As detailed in previous articles, the Health Care & Social Assistance industry has been under stress since the pandemic, but remains a great long-term career opportunity as it is projected to be the largest growing industry over the next decade. The goal of the Caring Careers campaign is to help jobseekers find their fit in health care employment that makes a real difference in the lives of others. Jobseekers that are interested can begin an in-demand career path with great growth potential and no training beyond high school required to start in many positions. Employers even pay for initial training in many cases – and they may also pay for future training to help workers grow their career and earn more money. Many employers also welcome employees who are learning English.
If you have questions about Labor Market Information, please email deed.lmi@state.mn.us.
This newsletter is meant for DEED Grantees, Providers, and Employment Counselors. We want this e-Newsletter to meet your needs! We encourage you to send your comments and suggestions to deed.taa@state.mn.us.
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