Day 3

Town Hall
Transforming Education

At this morning's Town Hall, Assistant Secretary Emily Stover DeRocco offered a succinct answer to the challenges faced by the education and workforce systems: "Educate from K through gray." The audience was encouraged to think of continuous education as the only way to keep moving forward. Transformation is not about fixing broken policies, but rather a necessary adaptation along a continually evolving educational landscape.

Several identifiable facets of change already are carrying education into the next phase of transformation: open entry/exit programs, competition from community colleges, and instructors with real world experiences. Assistant Secretary DeRocco listed three key ideas at the root of this evolutionary process: accessibility, availability, and accountability. The educational system needs to be accessible (i.e., have distance learning programs, and programs tailored to workers' schedules). In addition, education should be available to all. Finally, accountability without the all too familiar finger-pointing is the key to cooperation among partners.

At the moment, employers are facing a talent "puddle" rather than a talent pool because too many workers enter the workforce without adequate foundational skills. Reforms are needed at early stages of education to equip future workers with sufficient foundational skills.

Assistant Secretary DeRocco urged attendees to use the American Council on Education's website, www.acenet.edu, as a resource on continuing education.

The Innovative Region - What it is; Why You Care; How to Build One

In this session Randall Kempner of the Council on Competitiveness discussed regional innovation and broke down the process by which innovation is achieved. At its core, innovation is the process of creating and implementing new ideas that add value. Successful innovation has five elements including: 1) building and retaining talent; 2) transitioning to advanced manufacturing; 3) leveraging knowledge assets; 4) energizing entrepreneurial pursuits; and 5) promoting regionalism.

Kempner said that though the need for innovation is expressed at the national level, innovation in action is found in regions. The geographic unit must be large enough to support growth but small enough to differentiate talent bases. The competitive products and services that can be created in a region are what enable it to compete in the global marketplace.

Alternative Education for the 21st Century

In this session, workforce and education system participants discussed effective strategies for engaging learners through alternative education. To meet the demands on workers in the 21st century, education systems must adapt. Though there have been instances of successful alternative education programs, alternative education models that can be implemented on a larger scale are lacking. Additionally, there is an overarching stigma surrounding the term "alternative ed." Daunting as these challenges may be, organizations like Job Corps-which reports 75% of its participants begin the program without a high school diploma-are adapting programs to meet new demands.

The Department of Labor is just beginning to get engaged in alternative education, but as the demands of technology evolve the need for education and skills training from "K to gray" will continue.

Plenary Session
Educate to Compete

The panelists provided engaging examples of how changes in the education system are being carried out successfully and innovatively. Representatives from Microsoft, Arizona State University and Anne Arundel Community College discussed strategies applied to meet the needs of today's students, workers, and employers. For example, Arizona State University has forged an identity as a New American University, which addresses rapid-fire workplace changes through expanding training capabilities. ASU links in every possible way to community colleges, creating an inclusive educational system accessible to all echelons of society and create mechanisms to allow everyone to succeed.

One highlight revolved around the importance of placing value in the skills attained rather than the piece of paper received upon completion. Another addressed the importance of making curriculum relevant and applicable to the "real world."

Town
Hall Faces of Success

At the last Town Hall Meeting of Workforce Innovations 2006, those gathered in Town Square were introduced to individuals who have taken advantage of services available through the workforce investment system. Each told stories about overcoming challenges to pursue careers of their choice. They represent the real reason for the hard work, innovation and collaboration underpinning the workforce investment system - finding human solutions to life's challenges. This year's Faces of Success included Kevin Bogan, Antoinette Lucero, Alec Vincent, Robin Pavey, Aaliyah Waajid.

Kevin Bogan, RN was a 25-year-old Patient Escort for the University of California at Davis Medical Center when he was selected by his employer for the Registered Nurse Support (RNS) project in Sacramento. In May 2005, Mr. Bogan became a licensed Registered Nurse and now works at Shriner's Hospital for Children in the Pediatric Burn Intensive Care Unit, at triple his earlier salary. Mr. Bogan completed courses at American River College for an Associate Degree and is preparing to pursue a Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing.

Antoinette Lucero is a recent graduate of TechReach-Albuquerque and is employed by Manpower to work as an electronic assembler at Senneheiser, a leading manufacturer in the Albuquerque area. Through her involvement with the Community Outreach Program for the Deaf, Ms. Lucero learned about the Manpower Inc.'s TechReach program that was implementing a certified electronic assembly training program for the deaf. Upon graduation, Ms. Lucero received J-Standard and IPC-610 Certification which allowed her to gain employment in Albuquerque's rapidly growing advanced manufacturing arena.

Alec Vincent serves as a Job Coach for the Way-to-Work Transitional Employment Program (TEP) of the District of Columbia Department of Employment Services. In 1993, Mr. Vincent was convicted of armed robbery and sentenced to 15 years to life. While in prison, Alec completed college courses in accounting and dental technology, and upon his release, he was referred to the District of Columbia's re-entry program, Project Empowerment Plus, where he completed job readiness training and was immediately hired as a driver for a mailing company. A year later, Mr. Vincent was hired by the Project Empowerment Plus team as a Job Coach. He is currently studying kinesiology and working to become a certified fitness instructor with the Aerobic and Fitness Association of America.

Robin Pavey has been an employee of Berger Health System since March 1999, moving from a nursing assistant role to full-time OB nurse. In pursuit of her dream to become a Registered Nurse, Ms. Pavey entered the three-year associate degree nursing training program at Berger Health System in collaboration with Ohio University-Chillicothe and the local high school. On March 17, 2006, she graduated from Ohio University-Chillicothe with the Associate of Applied Science degree in Nursing.

Aaliyah Waajid is one of the first youth to complete the DeKalb County Juvenile Court Youth Achievement Program. She obtained her GED, completed job readiness, and took advantage of a financial planning class to open up her first bank account. She has now finished her first year at Georgia Perimeter College where she is studying an interpreter for the deaf while working part-time at a local department store.

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