Return-Path: <nifl-workplace@literacy.nifl.gov> Received: from literacy (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by literacy.nifl.gov (8.10.2/8.10.2) with SMTP id f3UHU7f03293; Mon, 30 Apr 2001 13:30:07 -0400 (EDT) Date: Mon, 30 Apr 2001 13:30:07 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <a0501040db7134d13c95b@[146.186.96.52]> Errors-To: listowner@literacy.nifl.gov Reply-To: nifl-workplace@literacy.nifl.gov Originator: nifl-workplace@literacy.nifl.gov Sender: nifl-workplace@literacy.nifl.gov Precedence: bulk From: "H. A. C. Watson" <haw6@psu.edu> To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-workplace@literacy.nifl.gov> Subject: [NIFL-WORKPLACE:160] PAWIN Final Answers- Working with State and Federal Systems X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c -- ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="============_-1223470938==_ma============" Status: O Content-Length: 11180 Lines: 208 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" ; format="flowed" Working with State and Federal Systems 1. Is the WIN system part of the one-stop system? If so, in what ways? If not, why not? PA WIN is a Team PA CareerLink Partner. Several of the affiliates are even located in the one-stop centers. All of the state agencies implementing the WIA objects are part of the PA WIN Advisory Team. There is still room for progress to be made in the relationship between PA WIN and the TeamPA CareerLink system. We look forward to the day when CareerLink Operators are talking to employers about the resources available for their incumbent worker needs as well as their hiring needs. 2. How do we currently link with and relate the role of the WIBs and to other WIA initiatives? Fortunately, PA WIN has been a part of the state WIB's incumbent worker subcommittee. This has fostered a very positive and pro-active relationship between the state system and WIN. PA WIN is currently doing something very exciting with the Central PA WIB. We are co-sponsoring a Foundation Skills Forum for employers on April 16. This will be a 2 hour training session for employers interested in addressing the foundation skills issues in their workplace. PA WIN affiliates will present an introduction to foundation skills and will feature the training plan components needed address foundation skills. PA WIN affiliates will be on hand after the presentation for private consultations with employers. We are looking forward to repeating this model through out the state. 3. Is there a relationship between the WIN system and the Dept of Labor's workforce development initiatives? If so, how does it work? What are the challenges? How are you getting through them? The Department of Labor is represented on the PA WIN Advisory Committee and the relationship is positive. Many of the employers who have benefited from other government workforce development support have inquired about PA WIN assistance as well. PA WIN asks on each mini-grant application to describe what other support the company has received. Because the other forms of support do not cover literacy, PA WIN fits well into the system and agencies have been generally supportive. One area we could improve is the system for referring grants that don't fit to a funding stream that might accommodate them more readily. This will require a more formalized system of communication between funding sources. 4. Should the Federal Government fund a program to initiate statewide efforts like WIN? It is certainly succeeding in Pennsylvania and more support would always be welcome. One area the federal government could help is in the area of documenting learners. The NRS is currently not helpful enough in capturing what really happens in customized workplace education programs. 5. If yes, what should be components and expectations? What would be the advantages and disadvantages of taking this approach in other states? There must be a structure of support for professional development for the adult ed providers. This should include support for capacity building within their programs. There must be a system to ensure quality of training is consistent across the board. It has been so positive here in Pennsylvania that I really can't see a disadvantage to other states adapting the model for themselves. A national system would need to have rigorous quality standards and support for programs to meet those standards while still allowing for diversity of needs throughout the country. 6. What would a National Workforce Improvement Network look like? What would be the advantages, disadvantages of a national WIN? As we have become a global economy, it seems antiquated to address workplace foundation skills in such a fragmented fashion. The advantages would be a resource of support and data that someone from Seattle, Phoenix, Tampa, or Erie could benefit from. I think this would take us to a "higher plane" of professional development and ultimately improve the product we deliver. There is the potential that a national network could reduce redundancy and encourage the distribution and application of best practices in the field. 7. What would be needed to sustain a national network? What would be its value? Money, time, and talent. It takes a great deal of vision and support to make a collaborative network actually work. We are so focused on getting done what needs to be done in the moment (surviving) that we often lose sight of the big picture that connects us to the economy, to society, and to the world. A network of organizations and individuals focused on foundation skills in the workplace does that very well. 8. What is your vision for the future of learning at work? I see learning at work intensifying. It will increasingly replace seniority as factor for moving forward in one's career. It will follow all other trends in our society of becoming increasingly customized to the needs of the individual client while being tied into the larger needs of the organization.
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