October 14, 2011 Sarah Miller
In response to an article posted online for the Wall Street Journal which picked apart the long history of government funded job training programs I thought it seemed appropriate to bring forward the true value that these programs can bring to a community. CAEL does, and has done for many years, work closely with workforce investment boards that develop community relationships with employers and education/training providers to develop job training programs. Through our work we have seen success in many areas of these programs – least of all in lessons on giving a proper hand shake as is mentioned in the WSJ article. Moreover the author references programs from decades past and seems to ignore the fact that the Department of Labor has had years of reform to include deeper engagement of employers, rigorous program measures and ensure these programs focus on the 21st century skill.
As an example of some current successful job training programs we can look to our friends in Michigan and Arkansas who have blazed the trail in developing programming that not only teaches the value of soft skills (proper dress codes, how to effectively interview, job search techniques, etc.) but also hard competencies in areas such as analytics, math and comprehensive reading. These programs not only enhance the learning of the program participants it also results in a Career Readiness Certificate which makes the job seekers far more valuable in the labor market than those who can’t prove to an employer their readiness to work. Additionally in Northern Cook county, in the back yard of CAEL’s corporate office in Chicago, there are youth programs funded through the Department of Labor that connect disadvantaged youth to career pathways in lucrative Health Care careers. Both programs have incredibly high success rates and have become staples of government funded training success in their regions.
I would hope that most of those in the power seats in Washington see the value that these programs bring to those that without such structure would be left out in the tough economy with limited support. We would hate to see these programs mired by biased opinion and not evaluated on their real life success.
Tell us your thoughts or experiences with job training programs. Where have you seen success? We need to share our “islands of excellence” stories with those that don’t live within our small workforce development realm.
Reference Wall Street Journal Article Here: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111904332804576538361788872004.html#articleTabs%3Dcomments