1. 1 AACC WDI January 2010 St. Petersburg, FL Courses to Employment: Sector Approaches to Community College/Nonprofit Partnerships Examples from the Health Care Field

2. 2 Introductions Allison Gerber, Research Associate, The Aspen Institute 3 Case Studies: Carreras en Salud (Careers in Health): Instituto del Progreso Latino & Wilbur Wright College, Chicago IL Partnership in Health Sciences, Capital IDEA & Austin Community College, Austin TX Training Futures: Northern Virginia Family Service & Northern Virginia Community College, Fairfax VA

3. 3 Session Objectives Learn about the three partnerships collaborative work to help low-income individuals prepare for, gain entry to, and complete college credits in health care – related occupations. Learn about AspenWSIs demonstration project, Courses to Employment, which is supporting, researching and documenting collaborative sector strategies between community colleges and nonprofits.

4. 4 Whats a Sector Strategy? A systems approach to workforce development typically on behalf of low-income individuals – that: Targets a specific industry or cluster of occupations; Intervenes through a credible organization, or set of organizations; Supports workers in improving their range of employment-related skills; and Creates lasting changes in the labor market system that are positive for workers and employers.

5. 5 Capacities Needed Strong focus on a defined industry sector and/or set of related occupations to identify employment opportunity and develop appropriate education services High quality education & training that both meets industry-identified skill needs and is appropriate and accessible to underserved adults

6. 6 Capacities Needed (cont.) Support services (academic & non- academic) that meet special needs of underserved adults to learn successfully and progress to jobs that pay self- sufficiency wages Shared vision about the need to develop new ways of operating & ability to communicate this effectively to support innovation and institutional changes, as needed

7. 7 Courses to Employment Based on premise that, with rare exception, neither colleges nor non-profits have the resources needed to serve low- income, minority, and under represented adult learners effectivelyespecially over the long-term. Inspired by the outcomes and possibilities weve seen in collaborative work

8. 8 Community College – Non-profit Partnerships Supportive Services Education Strategies Industry Strategy Community & Sector Organizations College Innovation & Scale

9. 9 Courses to Employment Learning demonstration involving six community college-non-profit program collaborations Participants were selected competitively from 89 applications Substantial learning & research agenda, conducted 2008-2010 Funded by the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation

10. 10 What Questions is CTE Exploring? What specific services are provided? By which institution? Why? Which ones seem most important? Outcomes for participants? Compared to? Engagement and role of business in the initiative? Factors of successful collaboration? Policies, funding, governing and capacity issues? What does collaborative service delivery cost? How is it financed?

11. 11 Fairfax, VA: Northern Virginia Family Service and Northern Virginia Community College Austin: Capital IDEA & Austin Community College Seattle: Workforce Development Council of Seattle-King County & Shoreline Community College Chicago: Instituto del Progreso Latino & Wright Colleges Humboldt Park Vocational Education Center Flint, MI: Mott Community College & Flint STRIVE Los Angeles: Community Career Development, Inc., Los Angeles Valley College, East Los Angeles College & Los Angeles City College CTE Partnerships

12. Instituto del Progreso Latino & Wilbur Wright College Objective: Move low-income Latinos into career path opportunities in nursing and help them advance; develop bi-lingual health care practitioners to serve community. Students Served: Low-income Latinos, mostly women; comprised of both new immigrants and longer-term residents; wide age range. IDPLs Role: Delivers pre-college contextualized curriculum targeted towards several entry points along the health care career ladder (e.g., Pre-CNA and Pre-LPN); pays for tuition, fees, and books; provides career counseling and case management; offers assistance accessing support services. 12

13. Instituto del Progreso Latino & Wilbur Wright College, cont. Wright Colleges Role: Provides dedicated CNA, LPN, & RN slots to Carreras en Salud students meeting entrance requirements; provides flexible scheduling with night and weekend options; delivers specialized tutoring & academic supports. Partnership Areas & Innovations: Career pathway model provides students with a number of on-ramps and off-ramps for varying skill levels and employment needs; partners work as a team to develop employer relationships and garner employer input; joint fundraising for Carreras program; partnership team meets regularly to discuss student success, coordinate academic and non-academic supports. 13

14. Capital IDEA & Austin Community College Objective: To prepare students to enter college and earn a degree in the health care field. Students Served 80% minority; 80% women; average age 30; average 7 th grade reading & math at entry; 30% ESL; 66% parents (26% single parents). Capital IDEAs Role: pays for tuition, books, fees and childcare; provides case management and career counseling; pre-employment skills development; referrals to additional supportive services; emergency financial assistance. ACCs Role: Delivers all education and training, including ESL, GED, College Prep Academy, & Tutorials 14

15. Capital IDEA & Austin Community College, cont. Partnership Areas & Innovations: Weekend cohorts;, selection of instructors; customized training via College Prep Academy; RN tutor for bilingual students; scholarships/financial aid; progress reports & electronic transfer of grades; joint counseling. 15

16. Northern Virginia Family Services & Northern Virginia Community College Objective: Prepare students for office/ administrative positions in health care field; guide students through half of coursework in Business Administration certificate. Students Served: Low-income adults (avg. $10.55/hr at entry); 57% employed at entry (12% full-time); 2/3 foreign-born/bilingual; 75% women; 30% single parents; median age in 30s (range from 20-50+). NVFSs Role: Provide 25 weeks of training (500+ hours) in keyboarding, computers, customer service, filing, & professional development; provide career counseling, case management, coordinate referrals to supportive services; coordinate 3-week internships. 16

17. Northern Virginia, cont. NOVAs Role: Validate curriculum; certify instructors as college faculty; provide students with 17 college credits; leverage federal financial aid to support non- profit. Partnership Innovations: Imaginal educational philosophy; approach replicated with two other non- profit partners. Outcomes: Approximately 200 enrolled 2007-2009; 93% completed program; on average 80% employed full-time w/in 6 months; hourly wage gain at first job (average 25% increase for those employed prior to program). 17

18. 18 The Aspen Institute One Dupont Circle, NW, Suite 700 Washington, D.C. 20036 (202) 736-1071 E-mail: wsi@aspeninst.org http://www.aspenwsi.org To Learn More