1. University Talent Alliance:
Career Development through Community Engagement

2. The Vision: Cultivating Homegrown Talent
Carlow University, Chatham University and the University of Pittsburgh in collaboration with the Community College of Allegheny County, Partner4Work, and PCHE - Pittsburgh Council of Higher Education will launch a workforce development pilot program aimed at serving economically disadvantaged populations in neighborhoods proximate to the Forbes/Fifth corridor.
Target neighborhoods: Homewood, Hill District
Pittsburgh Admissions Collaboration
Career Building Expo
Opportunities for long-term unemployed
- job training
- upskilling
“Doing Business at Pitt”
Construction Management Building Blocks
Place-based research – impact of Everyday Café in Homewood
Urban entrepreneurship program

3. The Opportunity:
Oakland accounts for 3% of city’s land mass, 10% of residents, and constitutes over one third of PA’s research output.
Brookings Institution Report “Capturing the next economy: Pittsburgh's rise as a global innovation city” findings -
Recommendation: Build and support Pittsburgh’s innovation clusters in advanced manufacturing, life sciences, and autonomous systems
Recommendation: Define, grow, and connect the Oakland innovation district
Recommendation: Improve the pipeline of high-growth entrepreneurs
Recommendation: Create a talent alliance coalition within the Oakland innovation district
Pittsburgh Admissions Collaboration
Career Building Expo
Opportunities for long-term unemployed
- job training
- upskilling
“Doing Business at Pitt”
Construction Management Building Blocks
Place-based research – impact of Everyday Café in Homewood
Urban entrepreneurship program

4. The Current State:
32,000 Long-term unemployed in the Pittsburgh region
Homewood North’s poverty rate is 56%
Bedford Dwellings (Hill District neighborhood) poverty rate is 49%
Poverty rate for city is 22%
68% of job seekers in Homewood have a high school diploma or less
75% of job seekers in Uptown/Hill have a high school diploma or less
City average for job seekers with high school diploma or less is 47% .
25% unemployment rate for Homewood
18% unemployment rate for Uptown/Hill District
9% unemployment rate for city
Poverty rates are for some of the deepest pockets of poverty in the city.
Sources: 2015 Pittsburgh Neighborhood Distress Study by the University of Pittsburgh School of Social Work,
Partner4Work March 2017 Job Seeker Trends Report

5. The Method: This pilot focused on one job category:
Administrative Assistants
By providing access to training, mentoring, and wraparound services, program participants will gain the technical, functional, and interpersonal skills required for professional success. 
Individuals who are admitted to the 4-week program and graduate will be eligible to secure a job full-time position at one of the three participating institutions. We are targeting 35 positions to be filled over 18 months.
Goals for years out.

7. The Planning & Implementation
Community leadership buy-in and partnering
Pulling all job category data
Standardized job description
Pre-screening and participant prepping
Four week curriculum course – content, job shadowing, testing and benchmarking, mock interview panels
Recruiting internal hiring managers
Case management
Pittsburgh Admissions Collaboration
Career Building Expo
Opportunities for long-term unemployed
- job training
- upskilling
“Doing Business at Pitt”
Construction Management Building Blocks
Place-based research – impact of Everyday Café in Homewood
Urban entrepreneurship program

8. Onboarding & Case Management
Building relationships with participants
Strong case management along with financial literacy structured programing
Transferable skills and soft skills

9. Partnering & Placement: What we need from current employers
Connecting participants to companies that having open employment opportunities
Employers are willing to look at the diverse talent without degrees but professional skill sets
Creating long lasting relationships with employers

10. Goals
Create transformative career opportunities for unemployed city residents
Establish robust, community engagement focused partnerships
Develop a neighborhood-focused recruitment and screening model that is successful and replicable
Ensure the case management model offers wrap-around services geared for employee success
Achieve higher than average retention rates
Reflect local community via employee makeup
Diversify employers and job categories upon completion of pilot