Back in April, I wrote a blog indicating the Deaconess Foundation was commissioning a report from our partner, The Center for Community Solutions, about the flow of public and philanthropic funds into the Cuyahoga County workforce development system. The objective of this report was to provide more visibility as to the overall sources and uses of public and philanthropic funds, and to suggest ways we could make the system and its funding work even harder for employers and job seekers alike.
The report is completed, and it’s here. Please take the time to read it! And, for even more illumination and clarity, attend a webinar hosted by the Center for Community Solutions on Friday, July 23 at 10:30 am. Register now!
I’m interested in your takeaways; here are three of mine:
- Federal funding is incredibly important to making progress in our workforce system. With over 50% of the system’s funding coming from Federal sources, the Feds have the largest impact on helping people prepare for and secure jobs. The largest, called the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), provides about 75% of the $21.6M in (trackable) federal dollars in Cuyahoga County’s workforce supports, will be reauthorized by the federal government this year. This reauthorization, and continued work to expand eligibility and evolve other limiting aspects of the authorization, are the foundation for the activity we want to build upon.
- The State’s focus on Education plays a critical complementary role. It’s obvious that having a better workforce starts with strengthening overall education, from improving literacy and numeracy of individuals leaving the K-12 school systems to providing career technical education (which is hosted at career prep centers and community colleges) to helping individuals pay for technical training (whether at a university or a company directly.) In fact, 75% of the State of Ohio funds have historically focused on strengthening these aspects of the system. On a positive note, the current legislature has increased the workforce funding side of the equation in recent years. With the budget about to be finalized, we’ll see where this lands for FY22 – FY24.
- We have opportunities to make our system even stronger in greater Cleveland. Thanks to the Center for Community Solutions, who leveraged their expertise to both capture the data and put together “so what’s” at the end. There are advocacy opportunities across the public system for additional funds which make the system work for more people. Read the report starting on page 29 and then give me a call with your thoughts!