GWB update
October 2, 2015
Gina M. Raimondo, Governor   
Constance A. Howes, JD, FACHE, Chair 
Rick Brooks, Executive Director  
                              
Inaugural Real Jobs RI Planning Conference
Helping Employers Build Skilled Workforce
Jensen at RJRI conference
DLT Director Scott Jensen addresses Real Jobs RI planning grant conference.

On September 15, the RI Department of Labor and Training held a full-day conference for Real Jobs Rhode Island planning grant recipients to support their efforts to develop job training plans that will address the workforce needs of their industry sector.

Over 100 conference attendees heard from guest speakers about how to sharpen job-training strategies, strengthen sector partnerships, and create pipelines for workers with the right skills. Governor Gina M. Raimondo addressed the Real Jobs conference and emphasized the pivotal role that employers play in the state's workforce development system. She encouraged grant recipients to develop strong job training plans that are demand-driven.

"Real Jobs RI is moving at the speed of business by putting employers with open jobs at the center of the action," Governor Raimondo said. "This is a fresh idea that partners with businesses to accomplish our mission of putting people to work in well-paying jobs, while helping people build the skills they need to succeed."

The 21 partnerships that received Real Jobs, and any other groups interested in pursuing Governor Raimondo's demand-driven approach to job training, have until October 23rd to apply for Real Jobs RI implementation grants.

Read more....
________________________________
Interning with Local Businesses
Career and Tech High School Students Prepare for Their Future
young woman welding
Chariho Career and Tech intern Caitlin Wilson

This past summer, the GWB expanded its popular Work Immersion program, which has supported paid internships for college students and unemployed adults, to include high school students in career and tech programs.
  
A total of 34 RI businesses received a 50% wage reimbursement from the Work Immersion program to provide a paid internship to 59 career and tech students from 14 different high schools.
 
Donna Green, Human Resource Manager at Hi-Tech Profiles in Hopkinton, said that her company has had trouble finding skilled workers, especially for its manufacturing division. Hi-Tech provided paid internships to 12 Chariho High School career and tech students this summer.
 
Green, along with Career and Tech Center Director Susan Votto, and several Chariho students spoke recently about their experience to the GWB Board, and expressed enthusiasm for the benefits of hands-on learning and the chance to connect local businesses with future employees. Green noted that the program had been such a success that even though that program has ended, several of the students continue to work there part time.

Click HERE to read a Westerly Sun article about the Chariho Career and Tech Work Immersion program.
________________________________
$5 Million Federal Grant  Awarded
to Expand Apprenticeship Opportunities in Rhode Island
colorful gears

The State of Rhode Island, through a partnership between the RI Department of Labor and Training and The Providence Plan, has been awarded a $5 million American Apprenticeship Initiative Grant from the US Department of Labor to expand apprenticeships and make these proven training opportunities available to more workers and employers.
  
Governor Gina M. Raimondo applauded the state's success in winning this competitive grant, stating, "I hear often from employers who are looking for talented staff and who say that a skilled workforce is their number one priority. This apprenticeship grant marks another opportunity to invest in helping people build the skills they need to succeed. This will help people get jobs and also attract businesses to Rhode Island's 21st century economy."
  
Registered Apprenticeship programs are a core component of Raimondo's strategy to align the state's economic and workforce development actions with the needs of employers. Strong employer investment combined with good public policy has resulted in standardized training across many occupations. This grant will help expand and replicate the state's current apprenticeship model to new industry sectors.
  
"Our success in obtaining this grant is due to excellent coordination and support from our state's Congressional Delegation," continued Raimondo. "We greatly appreciate their continued advocacy on behalf of Rhode Island and getting people back to work."
  
In the past several months thanks to the continued advocacy of the Congressional Delegation, Rhode Island has received separate US Department of Labor grants of $5.2 million and $3 million to propel the Governor's employer-centered workforce development strategy.

________________________________
Students Join National Security Leaders
Second Annual Defense Innovation Days in Newport
students listening
Student ambassadors learn about skills required for the modern defense industry.

This past August, select high school student ambassadors from the 2015 Undersea Technology Apprenticeship Program were invited by the Southeastern New England Defense Industry Alliance (SENEDIA) to attend the second annual Defense Innovation Days conference in Newport, RI.  Exposure to and awareness of the various high-skill, high-wage, high-demand jobs of the defense industry could be a career changer for these innovative young minds.
  
Over the course of the three-day event, national leaders from the Department of Defense, industry, and Congress engaged in discussions delving into innovation from the technology, cybersecurity, and unmanned systems perspectives.
  
The highlight of the students' visit was attending the "Innovation from the Unmanned Vehicle Perspective" panel discussion.  By providing insight into just a small segment of the industry connected to their hands-on, three week long project, the students were able to learn about real world applications of the technology they developed.  Learning about the breakneck pace at which innovative new technologies emerge in this quickly evolving field, the students came away energized by the potential of contributing to the process. "I am so excited at the possibility of having a future opportunity to develop technologies that haven't even been thought of yet," said one student.
  
The students also had the opportunity to interact with industry and business leaders in the conference exhibition area. Here the themes of teamwork, communication, critical thinking, and innovation were repeated, regardless of the exhibitor. "We want young innovative talent. You are natives of technology. You are our future," one exhibitor told them.
                                                                                    
Read more... 
________________________________
Innovative Partnership Builds Hope & Homes
First-Year Report on Residential Construction Program
New homes on Audrey Street in Providence, RI.

2014-2015 was a very successful first year for GWB's Innovative Partnership in which Building Futures designed and implemented a residential construction program in collaboration with employer partner, ECI, Inc. and community partner, One Neighborhood Builders (formally Olneyville Housing Corporation). 
 
In this innovative workforce development initiative, graduates from the Building Futures pre-apprenticeship program learn all aspects of home construction as they build single-family, energy efficient homes on abandoned and blighted sites in Olneyville. 
 
Crews of 4-6 participants gain advanced construction skills and are supervised by Building Futures staff on an actual job site over a period of 10 weeks. The new homes that are constructed are made available to low-income, first-time home buyers through One Neighborhood Builders.
 
As this Innovative Partnership begins its second year, a crew of four new trainees is now working on pre-fabricating sections for the next house as we wait for the foundation to be dug for the third home on Audrey Street. 
                                                                                    
Read more... 
________________________________
Marine Pre-Apprenticeship Is Proven Model
to Open Doors for Entry-Level Workforce
painting boat hull
Preparing a ship's hull for the next season in the water.
 
The boating season may be winding down for most New Englanders, but for 10 graduates of the Marine Trades and Composites Pre-Apprenticeship Training Program, their involvement with recreational boating is just beginning.

Graduates of this seven-week program, coordinated by the RI Marine Trades Association (RIMTA) and made possible by support from the GWB, will head into jobs at marine-trades companies across the state in September.
 
This program, launched by RIMTA and the GWB in 2013, is not only providing job opportunity for Rhode Islanders. It has also proven to be a viable model for training the entry-level workers needed to fuel the state's marine trades. According to RIMTA Director of Programs Jen Cornwell, the program's success is due to many different parties working toward common goals
                                                                                    
Read more... 
________________________________
Re-think your ride with RIPTA EcoPass

RIPTA bus

Did you know that RIPTA offers a pre-paid smart-card to businesses that want to assist their employees with the cost of traveling by bus?
 
Now, job training providers can also take advantage of the EcoPass program to help their clients get to training programs, job interviews, and work placements.  
 

 

Letting off STEAM 

Attention RI business leaders:
  
You can help improve business-education partnerships to promote and expand science, technology, engineering, arts+design, and math (STEAM) education in Rhode Island.
   
Please take this 5-minute survey to help the RI College STEM Center identify current and potential education partnerships that meet the needs of RI businesses.

 

Director's Blog 

Rick Brooks portrait

Read Executive Director Rick Brooks'
latest post entitled"Making Plans."


 
About the GWB

The Governor's Workforce Board is the primary policy-making body on workforce development matters for the State of RI. The GWB is also responsible for investing the state Job Development Fund to support education and training initiatives that increase the skills of the RI workers and address the workforce needs of RI businesses. 
 
1511 Pontiac Avenue
Cranston, RI 02920
phone: (401) 462-8864
fax: (401) 462-8865