Personal journeys through education and career pathways are often filled with challenges and obstacles, making progress difficult and compromise frequent. Chelsea Williams of Reimagine Talent Co helps us discover the role of occupational identify for career pathway success with tips for job counselors, educators, and employers alike.ResourcesChelsea Williams on LinkedInReimagine Talent Co.Employability Targets from National Association of Colleges and EmployersViable EduACT's Holistic FrameworkACT Workforce SummitDpMdgT9F3NMhX7BvPfIw See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Unprecedented skill shortages in labor markets across the U.S. often intersect with a desire for Justice System reform that provides pathways for Returning Citizens to thrive. When optimized in a regional workforce ecosystem, Returning Citizens are a high-performing group of working learners to boost a regional talent pipeline. Episode 32 is the second in our two part series on Preparing Workforce Ecosystems for Returning Citizen Success. We’ll look at a five P’s framework of partnerships, planning, preparation, pathways, and performance with tips to launch or optimize regional re-entry initiatives.Guest ContributorsDr. Roderick Nunn, Executive Vice President of Concordance Academy in St. LouisNeil Volz, Deputy Director of the Florida Rights Restoration CoalitionCurtis Campogni, Founder of Speak4MCMichael Williams, Education Consultant, North Carolina Department of Juvenile JusticeWill Coppage, Executive Director of the Washington County, Mississippi, Economic AlliancePresiding Judge Charles Elliot, Morgan County, AlabamaResourcesSign up for the ACT Workforce Toolkit on Preparing Workforce Ecosystems for Returning Citizen SuccessEpisode 31 on Life Changing Asset and Skills-Based Solutions in Alternative SentencingEpisode 19 on Missouri Making the Most of Second ChancesEpisode 7 on Empowered Re-EntryACT Workforce SolutionsACT Work Ready CommunitiesACT's Monthly Workforce Newsletter See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Episode 31 of Ready for Work is the first of a two-part episode on Preparing Workforce Ecosystems for Returning Citizen Success. Charles Elliot is the Presiding Circuit Judge in Morgan County, Alabama. Partnerships with the community college and economic development leaders across their Work Ready Community help with the pillars of education and career. The drug court’s alternative sentencing model thrives on integrating mental health with a record-breaking positive impact.Judge Charles Elliot of Morgan County, AlabamaEpisode 32: Preparing Workforce Ecosystems for Returning Citizen SuccessSign up for the ACT Workforce Toolkit on Preparing Workforce Ecosystems for Returning Citizen SuccessACT Workforce SolutionsACT Work Ready CommunitiesACT's Monthly Workforce Newsletter See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Federally funded Adult Basic Education (ABE) helps more than a million and half adults each year earn a high school equivalency, increase basic and employability skills, or improve their English language proficiency. The National Reporting Service governs the College and Career Readiness Standards (CCRSAE) inside Adult Ed. Through an accountability and performance system of Educational Functioning Levels and Measurable Skill Gains, these standards guide learning and assessment in Adult Ed.A group of nine subject matter experts in Adult Education formed a panel to align the CCRSAE to the benchmarks of WorkKeys. The panelists represent four states across the South, Midwest, and Northeast regions of the U.S. Results of the study help demonstrate a crosswalk with the Educational Functioning Levels to help ABE programs optimize performance as working learners meet both career and education goals. The report is available now. Enhancing the detail of the crosswalk are best practices from the Mississippi Community College Board, Hagerstown Community College in Maryland, and Metropolitan Community College of Omaha, Nebraska. Each guest contributes their perspectives on the importance of the alignment work and how it helps improve ABE programming. The panelists share what they gained in unique insights from the research that also helps demystify Strength of Link. Episode 30 concludes with tips to read and interpret the crosswalk along with a briefing on the new Move Ahead with Adult Ed campaign.Guest ContributorsTammy Green, Metropolitan Community College of OmahaBronwyn Robertson, Mississippi Community College BoardDawn Shoenenberger, Hagerstown (Maryland) Community CollegeResourcesWorkKeys Crosswalk Alignment with Adult Ed Standards (CCRSAE) TABE-WorkKeys Data Relationships in MississippiACT Work Ready CommunitiesACT WorkKeys Job Profiling and Research See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

With increased investment in apprenticeship comes increased expectations. ACT joined forces with local apprenticeships successful in skills-based hiring and national thought leaders on what’s needed to boost quality and completions in apprenticeship. Coming out of this collaboration is a new toolkit from ACT. We packed the toolkit with resources and scalable options of good, better, and best to provide apprenticeship coordinators flexibility in how to organize their efforts. The toolkit is organized into nine elements to boost quality and apprenticeship, across the domains of learning, working, and thriving. Download the Apprenticeship ToolkitContributorsChristy Cheek, Mountain Area (NC) Workforce BoardRalph Emerson, Cummins, Inc.Tammy Green, Metropolitan Community CollegeTrudy Haszlauer, NV EnergyDr. Cindy Hill, ACT and WorkKeys ProfilingMary LeFebvre, ACT State and Federal ProgramsTrey Michael, Career and Technical Education - North Carolina Department of Public InstructionNeil Reddy, Manufacturing Skill Standards CouncilChristi Smiley, Northern Regional Hospital (NC)Dr. Jeffrey Steedle, ACT ResearchMarty Walsh, U.S. Labor SecretaryJohn Wensveen, Broward Center for Innovation at Nova Southern University See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

One part humor, one part inspiration! Episode 28 kicks off our third season of Ready for Work with a fun perspective on the role of humor in workforce development. Our guest is comedian Roy Wood Junior, a correspondent on Comedy Central's hit, The Daily Show, and host of Roy's Job Fair, a podcast that explores the human condition through the prism of employment. Roy's famed humor is matched by his true empathy and curiosity for people. Roy helps us share the very serious topic of unemployment with an injection of comedy so the workforce ecosystem can be as relatable as possible to working learners.Show Notes and ResourcesRoy's Job Fair PodcastACT Workforce SolutionsACT Work Ready CommunitiesACT Workforce Summit See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

One of the nation's deadliest tornados struck Joplin, Missouri ten years ago this week. On episode 27 of Ready for Work, we take a closer look at Joplin's recovery through the lens of the workforce ecosystem and the nation's first ACT-certified Work Ready Community.A recurring theme is the priceless value of partnership connectivity and innovation. The workforce ecosystem was fortunate to have integrated partnerships with education and economic development that helped respond directly to the needs and urgency required. Check out interviews with a few of those partners, such as Dave Rockers from Franklin Technology Center, Julie Gibson, a former state workforce development director, and Rob O’Brian, the developer at the helm of the Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce during the recovery effort. This edition showcases clips from participants and leaders in Joplin's Disaster Recovery Jobs Program. Guests and Featured ResourcesRob O’Brian, O’Brian and Associates, former President of the Joplin Area Chamber of CommerceDave Rockers, Director, Franklin Technology CenterJulie Gibson, GPS Impact, former director of Missouri Workforce DevelopmentCitizens Advisory Recovery TeamSouthwest Missouri Workforce BoardACT Press Release on Joplin Tornado 10th AnniversaryDisaster Recovery Jobs Program Statewide Video JournalDisaster Recovery and Resiliency Series – Ready for Work PodcastResiliency Toolkit and Disaster Recovery Resources from ACTACT Work Ready Communities See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The region's workforce ecosystem is only as strong as its leadership. Joining us on episode 25 of Ready for Work, author and consultant Dr. Anthony Edwards helps guide us from new book, Building a Winning Workforce: A Playbook for Employers, Government Entities; Colleges & Schools; Workforce Development Agencies, Economic Development Organizations ... & Chambers of Commerce; & Nonprofits. Later in the podcast, we'll listen to this leadership in action as Missouri's governor celebrates job creation and growth in Certified Work Ready Communities. Guests and Featured ResourcesDr. Anthony Edwards, author of Building a Winning WorkforceGeneral Manager at ETX Innovation CenterLinkedInTwitterRay McCarty, Associated Industries of MissouriMardy Leathers, Missouri Department of Higher Education and Workforce DevelopmentMissouri Governor Mike ParsonWork Ready Communities at ACT See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Keeping the future in mind is a necessary function for persisting through disaster recovery. As regions continue to overcome the pandemic, there is a balance in preparing for future opportunities and obstacles at the same time. Episode 25 features Chad Chancellor, Co-Founder and CEO of the Next Move Group.Listeners can gain insight on the ever-changing skills marketplace in economic development and how that translates to expectations for workforce development and career education leaders. Chad explains how smaller markets and rural areas could see increased viability.Prospects and investors appreciate a simple, user-friendly approach with the buckets of recruit, screen, and train. Chad helps listeners find the right balance in wage competitiveness as well.Rounding out episode 25 are recaps from Mark Arend of Site Selection magazine as new rankings are out for 2021. Preble County, Ohio’s economic development chief, Brenda Latanza, shares her experience in the site selection process as a Work Ready Community.Guests and ContributorsChad Chancellor, Next Move GroupMark Arend, Site Selection MagazineBrenda Latanza, Preble County (OH) Development PartnershipResourcesNext Move Group2021 State of the States and Regional Workforce Rankings from Site Selection MagazineEpisode 18 with Mark Arend of Site Selection MagazineEpisode 10 Work Ready Communities OverviewEpisode 1 Using Work Ready Communities for Economic DevelopmentACT Workforce NewsletterACT Workforce SolutionsACT Work Ready Communities See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In our third of three episodes dedicated to Skills-Based Recovery and Resiliency, episode 24 brings us to the Deploy and Analyze phases in the five-part ALEDA framework. Sean McCoy from Public Consulting Group shares some factors worth considering in the deployment of recovery services remotely.  We’ll check out some best practice examples in remote work-based learning with Kelly Dyer in Missouri, and remote instruction with Brownwyn Robertson in Mississippi. Mike Longo and Mary LeFebvre are back with us to share tips and perspectives in analyzing recovery and resiliency efforts. Episode 22 covers the Adapt phase while 23 explores the Lead and Engage phases. Guests and ContributorsSean McCoy, Public Consulting GroupKelly Dyer, Missouri InternConnect and ApprenticeConnectMike Longo, Lorain County Workforce Agency and OhioMeansJobs CenterBrownwyn Robertson, Mississippi Adult Education Smart StartMary LeFebvre, ACT Governmental Affairs ResourcesSign up for the ACT Toolkits on Skills-Based Hiring for Recovery and ResiliencyPublic Consulting Group and VERA SolutionMissouri InternConnect and ApprenticeConnectEpisode 11: Next-Level Apprenticeship and Work-Based LearningACT Case Study on Ohio Re-Employment Success in Lorain County/Northern OhioACT Case Study on Ohio Statewide Re-Employment SuccessEpisode 20: Adult Education Success in Mississippi with WorkKeys CurriculumMississippi Adult Education Smart StartWorkKeys CurriculumEpisode 22: Adapt Phase of ALEDA Framework (Part 1 of 3)Episode 23: Lead and Engage Phases of ALEDA Framework (Part 2 of 3)ACT Workforce NewsletterACT Workforce SolutionsACT Work Ready Communities See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.