SkillWorks is an ambitious
effort on the part of philanthropy, government, community organizations, unions,
and employers to respond to Massachusetts' workforce crisis. SkillWorks' goal is to create a workforce
development system that helps low-skill, low-to-moderate income residents move
to family-sustaining jobs and helps employers find and retain skilled
employees. It is the largest public/private
investment in workforce development in Boston's history.
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Workforce Development Funding Opportunities
SNAP-ET Reimbursement SimplifiedSkillWorks, together with the Commonwealth Workforce Coalition, is sponsoring a series of workshops on funding available through this federal reimbursement program. The first workshop was held at the Boston Foundation on March 31. A second will be scheduled this spring. Please email rharris@cedac.org with "SNAP-ET" in the subject if you are interested in attending a future workshop. Workshop materials are posted on our website. Employment Partnership Grants
Commonwealth Corporation releases the Employment
Partnerships Request for Proposals. This program will support workforce development
partnerships that connect Massachusetts residents with jobs and will support
Massachusetts' companies by ensuring the availability of a skilled workforce to
meet their business needs . Lead applicants may include but are not limited to Workforce Investment Boards, post
secondary education and training institutions (including but not limited to
public Community Colleges), Career Centers, community-based training and
education providers, labor organizations and employers. Read more at http://www.commcorp.org/RFPemploymentpartnerships.html. The Employment and Training Administration (ETA), U.S. Department of
Labor (DOL, or the Department), announced the availability of
approximately $125 million in grant funds for Community-Based Job
Training Grants. These grants are awarded through a competitive process for
high-growth/high-demand industries through the national system of
community, technical, and tribal colleges. Eligible applicants are:
(1) an individual Community or Technical College; (2) a Community College
District; (3) a State Community College System; (4) a One-Stop Career
Center in partnership with its Local Workforce Investment Board and one or more community or technical colleges. A webinar is planned for April 6, 2010, and grant applications are due on April 29, 2010. Learn more at www.workforce3one.org. Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations (WANTO) Grant FundingDOL ETA's Office of Apprenticeship (OA) and the Women's Bureau (WB) today have announced the availability of approximately $1,800,000 to establish a grant program for the purpose of assisting employers and labor management organizations in the placement and retention of women in apprenticeship and nontraditional occupations. Unlike recent Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations grants, which were limited to the construction industry, this SGA expands the focus to include recruitment, training, placement and retention in apprenticeable and nontraditional occupations in a broader range of industries including advanced manufacturing, transportation, and construction, and "green'' jobs. Applications are due April 29. Click here for full background application requirements.Capacity Building Grants from the Boston Capacity TankThe Boston Capacity Tank, a partnership led by the Black Ministerial Alliance, is pleased to announce the Strengthening Communities Fund, an 18-month capacity-building project for 30 agencies that provide job training and other services to low-income residents in Dorchester, Roxbury, Mattapan, and Boston's Empowerment Zone. Selected agencies will receive 40 hours of technical assistance and the opportunity to apply for a capacity building grant of between $15,000 and $40,000. Orientations will be held on April 13 and April 23, 2010 from 10:00 to 11:30 am at the Twelfth Baptist Church, 150 Warren Street, Roxbury. Applications are due Tuesday, May 4 at 5 pm. Please contact Annette Campbell at 617-445-2737 x30 or acampbell@bmaboston.org. |
Advocacy Update
Workers Pathways to Self-Sufficiency--Take Action Today
The Workers Pathways to Self Sufficiency Act of 2009 (SB37), which includes the Educational Rewards Grants Program and Student Support Services for nontraditional, part-time working students, is now in Senate Ways and Means. Call your state representative and senator today and
ask them to support this important piece of legislation.
Learn more about the bill.
Community Health Worker Certification--Take Action Today
An Act to Establish a Board of Certification for CHWs in Massachusetts (H4130) is currently in committee and needs to be reported out favorably before this legislative session ends on June 30, 2010. Please call your state representative and senator today and ask them to support H4130. Learn more about the bill.
Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act Included in Health Care Reform
In addition to a range of amendments to the landmark health care bill signed into law earlier this week, the reconciliation
legislation also includes a scaled-back version of the Student Aid and
Fiscal Responsibility Act (SAFRA), which ends the Federal Family
Education Loan (FFEL) subsidy program for private lenders. By removing government subsidies currently given to financial institutions to
make student loans, the Pell grant program will be strengthened and
expanded, and community colleges will receive $2 billion in new funding over the next four years. These changes will enable an additional 5 million
Americans to earn degrees and certificates over the next decade by revitalizing
programming at community colleges, at no additional cost. Learn more here.
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Meet the Year Up Financial Services Workforce Partnership
In our last newsletter, we introduced you to the Hotel Training Center. This issue, we are
pleased to introduce you to the Financial Servi ces Partnership led by Year Up
Boston.
Year Up
Boston opened its doors in 2001 to a class of 22 students and today serves
over 280 students per year. Year Up's core program prepares urban young adults
to launch livable wage careers and begin the journey to a post-secondary
credential through a one-year, intensive pre-employment program. Key partners include Cambridge College, State
Street Corporation, and Bank of America.
In January 2010, SkillWorks awarded the Year Up Financial Services Partnership funding to implement their strategy to shift the focus of their program from placement in a first
job or college to advancement over the course of a career in the financial
services industry. Year Up plans to enroll
and serve 475 participants over the next four years, providing targeted
services suc h as career coaching, skills attainment, and college preparation. In
addition, Year Up will engage employer partners to map internal career pathways
and advancement steps within financial services and will increase the number of
post-secondary partners.
For more information on the Year Up Financial Services Partnership,
please contact Chris Minerd, SkillWorks Project Director, by e-mail at cminerd@yearup.org or by phone at
617-542-1533 x1551.
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Matthias McGuffie: A Rising Year Up Alumni
Matthias
McGuffie, a recent Year Up graduate, has made the most out of the skills he
learned through his experience at Year Up and his internship at State Street. A recipient of the
Chris Mello Award for Leader ship, given at the January 2010 graduation ceremony,
Matthias is currently employed full-time with benefits as a State Street Fund
Accountant.
Graduation was just the beginning for Matthias, who has already set new goals which include writing a book and going to school for entrepreneurship. He is excited to take advantage of future Year Up workshops that will help him prepare to continue his education.
Matthias' success is an example of how Year Up's
targeted services can empower low-income young adults to start and advance in good careers. "Year Up has done more than provide me with
college credits and an internship; it has shaped me into the man you see
today."
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Photos in this newsletter are courtesy of Year Up.
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| Director's Remarks
As always, there's a lot going on in the SkillWorks family, which I'm excited to share with all of you.
This issue is the second in a series focusing on the work of our grantees. This quarter we are pleased to feature the work of Year Up and the Financial Services Partnership.
I hope you enjoy learning more about this partnership, and I welcome your feedback and questions.
Happy Spring!
Loh-Sze Leung
Director
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Research and Publications
The Crittenton Women's Union recently released two reports: - The 2010 Hot Jobs report is CWU's triennial survey of the Massachusetts labor market to identify career pathways leading to economic self-sufficiency.
- The 2010 Economic Independence Index
reports what it takes for a family to make ends meet in Massachusetts without relying on public or private assistance.
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SkillWorks Helps Bolster Labor Force
SkillWorks director Loh-Sze Leung and Jerry Rubin, President and CEO of Jewish Vocational Service, recently co-authored an OpEd that was published in Allston Brighton TAB:
"It's an election year and jobs are on every candidate's agenda. In both Washington and Massachusetts, jobs bills are being debated. We hear talk about "green" jobs and the growing job sectors in health care, education and business and professional services. But, what we don't hear enough about is how to make sure that we have a workforce, trained and ready to take these jobs on...."
Click to read the entire OpEd.
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SkillWorks Funders
- Anonymous
- The Boston Foundation
- Chorus Foundation
- The City of Boston's Neighborhood Jobs Trust
- The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
- The Garfield Foundation
- The Hyams Foundation
- The Clowes Fund, Inc
- The Jessie B. Cox Charitable Trust
- Microsoft Corporation
- The National Fund for Workforce Solutions
- The Nellie Mae Education Foundation
- The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
- State Street Foundation
- Surdna Foundation
- United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley
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SkillWorks Partnerships
- Community Health Worker Initiative of Boston
- Emergency Medical Careers Partnership
- Healthcare Training Institute
- Hotel Training Center
- Workforce Solutions Group
- Year Up Financial Services Partnership
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