1. The Kentucky Experience: A Public Policy Approach to Building a Statewide CRC Initiative May 5, 2006

2. HOUSE BILL 1 Postsecondary Education Improvement Act of 1997 enacted May 30, 1997 established the Kentucky Community and Technical College System Access to certificate, diploma, and degree programs Training a workforce to meet the needs of new and existing industries Remedial and continuing education Kentucky’s 2020 Goals for KCTCS

3. KCTCS 16 Colleges Ashland Big Sandy Hazard Maysville Northern Kentucky Jefferson Bowling Green Henderson Hopkinsville Somerset Elizabethtown Southeast Owensboro Bluegrass West Kentucky Madisonville

4. The Kentucky Employability Certificate (KEC) -- A Public Policy Approach

5. Three Approaches zPublic Policy- Lead at state level by Governor’s office or other key leaders zLocal Initiative Driven- Local initiatives are successful and lead to statewide approach (California) zBusiness champion(s) driven- State and local policy discussions are initiated

6. If only you would send me applicants that have good math and communication skills, the ability to learn, and a good work ethic, I’ll train them… Slide courtesy of The Pawleys Group

7. Goals of the KEC  Kentucky employers recognize the KEC as a meaningful credential  Kentucky citizens recognize the value of the KEC in terms of making them more employable  Public agencies develop a “pool” of certified workers

8. Policy Origins 1999 Policy Origins Kentucky Chamber of Commerce Workforce Development Summit Common Language Common Metric

9. Original Major Kentucky Players  Kentucky Community and Technical College System  Cabinet for Workforce Development  Adult Education (KYAE)  Kentucky Workforce Investment Board

10. Additional Policy Consensus – Kentucky General Assembly 2000 Additional Policy Consensus – Kentucky General Assembly Senate Bill 1 – Adult Education Reform  Moved Adult Education to the Council on Postsecondary Education  Called for a statewide competency-based certification for workforce skills

11. Operational Origins 2000 Operational Origins  $400,000 Empower KY funds for 7 Local Pilots  1,500+ Participants  Partners: Cabinet for Workforce Development Adult Education KCTCS One Stops Community Based Organizations Job Corps Business & Industry

12. Building Capacity 2000 Building Capacity  KCTCS Profiling Project to profile all occupational and technical programs  $300,000 in KYAE funds allocated for WorkKeys assessments & $40,000 for Kentucky Employability Certificates  Utilizing WIA incentive funds to build curriculum infrastructure in one-stops

13. Primary Sponsors Identified Kentucky Workforce Investment Board ACT, Inc. Signed by Governor

14. KEC Original Endorsers Kentucky Community and Technical College System Cabinet for Workforce Development Kentucky Adult Education Council on Postsecondary Education Kentucky Chamber of Commerce Kentucky Society for Human Resource Management Associated Industries of Kentucky Kentucky State District Council of Carpenters

15. Kentucky Employability Certificate… The Basics  Based on 3 WorkKeys skill areas: Reading for Information, Applied Mathematics and Locating Information  Three types Gold (Level 5) Silver (Level 4) KCTCS Program Specific

16. Building Infrastructure 2002 Building Infrastructure Regional Training Sessions throughout the Commonwealth for local staff KCTCS Colleges Kentucky Adult Education One Stop Partners

17. The KEC Officially Rolls Out 2003 The KEC Officially Rolls Out  March – Issued 1,200 KEC’s to individuals in Owensboro  May – Statewide KEC kickoff in Owensboro featuring Unilever and Owensboro Mercy Health System

18. Additional Policy Consensus 2005 Additional Policy Consensus Kentucky Long Term Policy Research Center Further develop a “certified workforce” initiative utilizing a statewide approach to certify competencies for both adults and high school students Business Forum on Kentucky Education Promote and institutionalize the use of industry-based credentials, such as the KEC…

19. Additional Policy Consensus 2006 Additional Policy Consensus Senate Bill 130 ACT College Entrance Test and WorkKeys assessments for high school students WorkKeys assessments focused on Applied Math, Reading for Information and Locating Information (KEC focus areas)

20. National Level Policy zMonday press conference on ACT report on Act and WorkKeys – same skills needed for success in postsecondary education and jobs that pay a living wage zData supports CRC concept

21. Building Infrastructure Searchable Data Base 2006 Building Infrastructure Searchable Data Base www.e3.ky.govwww.e3.ky.gov (Rolled out in 2006) Statewide Database All statewide partners involved Employ Kentucky Operating System (EKOS) Designed for employers and individuals Interactive, searchable database

22. KEC – By the Numbers Issued 7,321 certificates 2,007 Gold 4,275 Silver 1,039 KCTCS Occupational Specific

23. KEC - By the Numbers  180 WorkKeys profiles conducted for 74 KCTCS program areas  Over 375 companies or organizations were represented by participating as Subject Matter Experts in the profiling process

24. Highlights of KCTCS Initiatives KCTCS Integrating WorkKeys into workforce training programs Leveraging funds Career Pathways $12M Trust Fund “Push” Profiling for companies for targeted selection Bellwether Award Recipient, 2005 Five Value Added Resale Centers

25. Highlights of KYAE Initiatives Kentucky Adult Education Educational and Career Advancement Projects (ECAP) $340,000 IN KYAE funds allocated for adult ed eligible students 11 pilot projects Provided targeted training and instruction leading to the issuance of the KEC 10,776 WorkKeys Assessments administered 1,170 KEC’s issued

26. Highlights of Local Initiatives Owensboro Community and Technical College City/County Initiative – Skills, Inc. Owensboro Medical Health System (OMHS) Partners include Kentucky Adult Education and Kentucky Community and Technical College System OMHS has seen its turnover rate drop by 32% Over 600 employees have participated in the program

27. Highlights of Local Initiatives Gateway Community and Technical College Served over 1,000 local high school students First college in the state to collaborate with secondary partners in issuing the KEC Integrated into the Expanding Horizons Initiative

28. Highlights of Local Initiatives Madisonville Community College  Profiled seven jobs in the coal mining industry  Companies requiring new employees to submit WorkKeys scores with their job applications  DACUM profile used to develop curriculum

29. Key Principles and Steps for Success  Must have leadership from the top  Must fully train staff who will promote and deliver services  Develop partnerships with critical influencers/impression makers on the demand side (Chambers,etc.)  Demand Driven- Develop and nurture long term relationships with businesses and sector partners (clusters)

30. Key Principles and Steps for Success  Public partners must collaborate…collaborate… collaborate  Identify business champions and facilitate business to business exchanges  Do not sell the CRC or WorkKeys… sell solutions to workforce challenges

31. Outcomes……  Effectively maneuvered political/administrative transitions  Elimination of many of the ‘turf issues’ with service delivery agencies  Service delivery agencies have a better understanding of respective programs  Developed more partnerships/collaboration among all service delivery agencies resulting in better services to business and industry

32. Future Plans zEstablish Policy and Users Group (to include secondary partners as a result of SB 130) zEstablish business and industry advisory board zEnhance marketing efforts zWork with employers to develop ROI analyses and case studies

33. The Kentucky Journey “Random Acts of Progress” “Best Practices” “Strategic Systems”

34. Dr. Keith Bird keith.bird@kctcs.edu 859-256-3100