Workforce Conference Presentation Handouts Now Downloadable Online

Presentation handouts for several of the sessions at the recent Missouri Governors Conference on Workforce Development are now available for download.

Wednesday, October 11th:

• Disability Program Navigator
• Lifelong Learning Accounts (LiLAs)
• Training Consortium - How to Make it Work
• Moving Beyond Just Business Services...Becoming a Business Champion
  

Thursday, October 12th:

• Transitioning to a Demand-Driven Workforce System
• Is America Falling Behind in Math and Science? And What Should WIBs do About It?
• Practical Tools for Workforce Professionals: The Latest in Missouri Labor Market Information
• Missouri Dept. of Corrections - A Philosophical Change in Business
• Operation Jumpstart: Entrepreneurial Opportunities for Non-Traditional Customers
• Missouri's CRC System, Why It Will Work!
• A Dialogue on Reaching and Serving People with Limited English Proficiency
• Healthcare Innovations: Expanding Nursing School Enrollment Through a Hospital-Employed Clinical Faculty Model
• Getting the Big Picture: Combining WorkKeys Foundational and Personal Skills Assessments to Find the Right Employees
• Matching Client Assessment to Career Options
• Achieving Partnerships and Performance with the Adult Common Measures
• Developing the Pipeline for Health Professions
• Rethinking Upgrading & Retention in Healthcare: The Universal Healthcare Worker
  

Friday, October 13th:

• Benchmarking WIBs: What Makes a Great Board? (This is the panel that featured SW MO WIB Exec Jasen Jones, and WIB Member Gary Little)
• State Administrators Forum

In addition to archives of conference handouts, the conference website operated by DWD has a photo gallery, a bank of press releases, and a participant survey.

Workgroup Advances One-Stop Chartering Project

Missouri’s Training and Employment Council, functioning at the state WIB, has officially adopted the standards of One-Stop Chartering at its October meeting. This means full speed ahead for a local One-Stop Workgroup of the WIB that is preparing Southwest Missouri to excel as one of the leading region’s in the state for One-Stop Chartering.

The Workgroup is leveraging local resources and energies with a One-Stop Enhancement Grant from the Missouri Division of Workforce Development (DWD) to make facility improvements and service upgrades at the Joplin Career Center, develop a policy framework for integrated management through a One-Stop Operator, and design an innovative business plan that meets and exceeds chartering guidelines.

Helping to consult the workgroup and steer the process in a strategic manner is Nina Babich and Donna Cruder from the Corporation for a Skilled Workforce. The consultants provide technical assistance to the workgroup and represents the workgroup in seeking ongoing policy guidance and clarification from DWD to successfully implement the group’s business plan.

Several members of the workgroup will participate in upcoming Business Plan training. The workshops by the Small Business Development Center at Missouri Southern State University is set for December 6th.

Southwest Missouri Highlights from State Workforce Conference

The 2006 Governors Conference on Workforce Development was held October 11-13 in Osage Beach. One of the Super Sessions for the conference profiled the WIB Benchmarking Project. Southwest Missouri was one of our leading edge WIBs in the Show-Me State selected for this research project, which is gaining national attention. WIB member Gary Little and WIB Executive Director Jasen Jones participated as panel speakers for the event.


The recent state workforce conference honored Individual Achievement Award nominees from each of Missouri’s fourteen workforce regions. The award recognizes a Missouri Career Center customer that successfully reaches employment and training goals while overcoming significant obstacles through extreme determination and use of the Center’s resources. The WIB’s One-Stop Workgroup nominated Peter Cowles of the youth program. Peter overcame underemployment, homelessness, and extreme family medical issues and now earns $12-$17/hour (based on output) at La-Z-Boy Manufacturing in Neosho. Peter noted, “They reached out their hands to me when I was in a desperate time of need. All I can say is thank you for all the people who believed in me.”