[Mwa] MWA Update: Economic Stimulus Bill, PEER Project, Network 2005

[Deborah Mutschler]

Hello Mass Workforce Alliance listserv members:

This email includes the following:

1. Details on the workforce development aspects of the Economic Stimulus Bill which just passed the House and is now being considered by the Senate.

2. Information on the Mass Workforce Alliance PEER Project (PEER = Policy, Education, Engagement, Response), a no-cost policy advocacy training for workforce development staff and organizations. 

3. Information on the Upcoming Mass Workforce Alliance workshop at the Network 2005 Conference in Marlborough, MA on Wednesday, October 26.

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1. ECONOMIC STIMULUS BILL:The House passed an Economic Stimulus Bill last week that brings new resources to workforce development in Massachusetts:

**$11 million in new money for a Workforce Competitiveness Trust Fund. (More information on the trust fund can be found at the bottom of this email.) 

**$3 million in additional money for Adult Basic Education 

**$3 million for an Educational Rewards Grant Program Fund, that would provide grants to students in accredited post-secondary certificate or vocational technology programs or associate degree programs in targeted high-demand occupations. 

** A Workforce Accountability Task Force charged with identifying unmet needs in the workforce development system and working to ensure that those needs are met efficiently and effectively. 

**Mass Workforce Alliance has a seat on the Task Force in the House bill, as does MCAE and MACDC. (More detailed information on the Task Force is included at the bottom of the email.) 


The Mass Workforce Alliance is very pleased with most of this bill and worked with our ten member coalitions and other organizations to develop aspects of it and shepherd it along. 
The Senate version of the bill should come out this week, and the expectation is that it will go to Conference Committee near November 1st. 

Right now, you can thank your reps for their work on the bill. You can find their contact information at:  http://www.mass.gov/legis/memmenuh.htm   

You can also call or email or call your senators to support them in including the provisions above in the Senate version of the bill. Tell them why this bill would make a difference tot he participants in your program. Contact information for the senate is: http://www.mass.gov/legis/memmenus.htm  

2. THE MASS WORKFORCE ALLIANCE PEER PROJECT: More and more people are becoming familiar with the innovative PEER project. Past participants in PEER trainings have 

**gained a full picture of the current workforce development system (its funding and structure),  

**worked with colleagues from other sectors of the system and identified and articulated policy changes to improve services and outcomes for participants, and   

** developed and begun to implement advocacy to move toward those policy changes. 
To learn more about participating in or hosting a PEER training, be in touch with Alex Risley Schroeder, PEER Project Coordinator, at alex at massworkforcealliance.com or 413-586-1683.  

3. LOOK FOR MASS WORKFORCE ALLIANCE AT THE NETWORK CONFERENCE: 

The Mass Workforce Alliance will be facilitating a panel presentation: ABE and Skills Training CBOs as Advocacy Partners at the Network 2005 conference on Wednesday, October 26 from 3 - 4:30 p.m.. In addition, you can help to solve the workforce development puzzle and participate in a free raffle of gift certificates to Staples. Come by the MWA table to learn more. To register for the conference go to: http://network.mcae.net/



SOME DETAILS ON THE ECONOMIC STIMULUS BILL 

WORKFORCE COMPETITVENESS TRUST FUND-- The objectives of the fund include: 

(i) supporting the development and implementation of programs to enhance worker skills, incomes, productivity and retention; 
(ii) training and helping the unemployed find suitable employment; 
(iii) improving employment opportunities for low income individuals and low wage workers; 
(iv) improving wages to a level sufficient to support a family or place individuals on a career path leading to such employment and wages; 
(v) training vulnerable youth to master basic academic skills and encouraging students to advance educationally and receive post-secondary degrees at colleges or post-secondary vocational schools, or beyond; and 
(vi) training older workers for new occupations.


THE WORKFORCE ACCOUNTABILITY TASK FORCE IS CHARGED WITH:
(i) maximizing skills gained, number of people served, and quality of outcomes achieved through the workforce development system; 
(ii) increasing services and resources for those most in need and for the purpose of moving individuals and families out of poverty; 

(iii) identifying professional development and technical assistance needs and resources to strengthen workforce development programs and the skills of staff who deliver workforce development services; and 

(iv) evaluating and analyzing current local and state policies for the governance and coordination of workforce development agencies and programs in Massachusetts and making recommendations for improving coordination, oversight, performance standards, streamlining bureaucracy and maximizing resources. 

The task force shall design and conduct an evaluation and analysis of the present governance and coordination of workforce development agencies and programs in Massachusetts. On the basis of that study the task force shall recommend to the general court, and other appropriate agencies, policies and changes to policies likely to improve the results of workforce development efforts in the Commonwealth. Said recommendations shall address improving coordination, oversight and maximizing resources. The goals of the study shall include assisting Massachusetts citizens in making better use of the state's workforce development system, defining clearer lines of responsibility and accountability, and analyzing the management of the system in an effort to both improve service delivery and supplementing the resources available for education and training. The task force shall publish a resource guide of all the workforce education and training resources in the Commonwealth. 

__________________________________________________
Deborah Mutschler
Executive Director
Massachusetts Workforce Alliance (MWA)
617-780-1770
deborah at massworkforcealliance.com 
www.peer.mwapolicy.org
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