Twin Cities Greater Metro Workforce Council ~ Assessment of Current Activities, May 2010 Note: Grey rows indicate initiatives that have recently been concluded or are currently dormant.
Sector	Brief Background	Initiative	Mission/Objective	Timeframe	Leadership & Key Players	WIB Engagement	Current Status
Health Care	Metro area WIBs have been engaged in health care sector training efforts for at least a decade, dating back to the Hennepin County partners for Progress initiative that began in 2000. That effort, and other since, have focused on different elements of the nursing continuum, recognizing the ongoing shortage of nurses and other direct care providers. More recently, area WIBs have tried to meet industry need in other clusters, in partnership with area colleges and community-based service providers. In 2010, some community-based organizations received funding for nursing and related training through federal ARRA funds.	Allied Health Care Training	Expand enrollment and completion of skilled professionals in the Medical & Clinical Laboratory fields.	Projects begun in 2008 with expected completion in 2010	Led by Saint Paul College in partnership with Allina.	Supported by several area WIBS.	Funding from USDOL obtained by Saint Paul College in 3-08, with closeout expected later in 2010.
		Universal Health Care Worker for Older Adult Services	An innovative training model designed to prepare entry-level, low-income health care workers for a more diversified role in community and assisted living settings.	MJSP funded training which began in the summer of 2006 and will continue through June 2010.	led by the Anoka County Job Training Center with Anoka Ramsey Community College and Anoka Technical College providing the training. Minnesota Family Investment Program staff at the Job Training Center provide referrals and ongoing management to the project.	WIB approved grant application and supports the project.	Local partners and business partners received an MJSP grant which ended June 2010.
		Health Care Careers Matrix	Share detailed information from area health care providers about job openings and training required to successfully fill those openings.	Begun in 2006, an ongoing effort.	Discussion among GMWC leaders, HealthForce Minnesota, and others about expanding this from Minneapolis to metro-wide and/or statewide.	Minneapolis WIB supported this effort in its earlier incarnations. Most recently, healthForce MN has led efforts to expand and refresh this work with partners in the MN Hospital Association and with long-term care providers.	An expansion is being developed by industry partners, with support through HealthForce MN.
		Health Care Convening focused on Nursing Continuum	Two separate assessments began independently in area WIBs, both with emphasis on addressing nursing workforce needs and strengthening teaching approaches for occupations along the continuum.	Environmental scan, convening, and individual projects all initiated in late 2008, continuing through 2009. Major efforts in 2009 and 2010 to jointly secure federal funds through grant proposals.	Leadership from Anoka and Ramsey WIBs, key engagement by HealthForce Minnesota, SEIU, and others including Anoka Ramsey Community College, Anoka Technical College, Metro State University, and several leading industry partners.	Anoka and Ramsey County WIBs have each led elements of this effort.	Ongoing efforts to identify new resources to strengthen nursing continuum training for the region. Efforts underway to develop Scrubs Camps in the metro for adults and youth.
		FastTRAC Assessments for Occupational Skill Training	Using the National Career Readiness Certificate and the National Work Readiness Credential, county residents are being assessed and enrolled into appropriate occupational skills training, followed by job placement. The initiative is refining the assessment process among several partners and testing the use of these new tools.	Groundwork done in early 2009, FastTRAC funding available through 2010.	Ramsey County Workforce Solutions along with the St. Paul School District ABE and Metro East ABE Consortium and Goodwill/EasterSeals.	Ramsey County WIB	This is happening in other occupational areas in addition to health care, with a significant focus on health care related occupations.
		MNBEST	Led by the Dakota-Scott WIB, this is a training initiative leading to CPR certification, nursing assistant certification and clinical experience in a long-term facility.	Developed in 2009 and funded by FastTRAC through 2010.	Dakota Scott WIB, industry partners, and Inver Hills Community College.	Dakota-Scott WIB	One of the FastTRAC pilots.
		Medical Coder Initiative	A program led by Health Partners and other area industry leaders to train residents for medical coding positions in the industry.	Grew out of the convening work done in late 2008 and early 2009. Funding to support the program is now available through 2010.	Led by Ramsey County WIB, with leadership from HealthPartners, Presbyterian Homes, and Saint Paul College.	Staffed by Ramsey County WIB and Workforce Solutions, with participation from GMWC staff consultant.	With financial support from GWDC and other sources, this program's first cycle is in process (expected to end Fall 2010).
Manufacturing & Engineering	Several efforts during the last few years were undertaken to boost training for area manufacturers, with particular attention to the metalforming sector. With the deep recession beginning late 2008, maany of those initiatives stalled and have not recovered as of yet. Renewed efforts, led by industry associations and workforce leaders together, may be underway beginning in mid to late 2010.	Central MN Manufacturers Association	To gather industry leaders in the northern/western metropolitan region to strengthen the pipeline of trainees/new entrants into the field.	This effort was begun in late 2007 as a "roundtable" among metalforming businesses.	Led by Central MN WIB.	Initiated by Central MN WIB at the request of area manufacturers.	Growing steadily in the Wright/Sherburne area.
		Metropolitan Manufacturing Sector Initiative	Expand successful M-Powered metalforming program o east metro sites.	Begun in 2007 and expected to continue through 2010.	Originally led by Ramsey WIB with Anoka County WIB, Washington County WIB, Saint Paul College, Hennepin Technical College, HIRED, industry leaders. With MJSP funding in second phase, leadership shifted to Saint Paul College.
		M-Powered Plastics Expansion	Expand successful M-Powered metalforming program to plastics industry.	begun in 2007 and expected to continue through 2010.	M-Powered leaders with Minneapolis and Hennepin-Carver WIBs interested in expansion.
		Soldering Training program	Offering WIA-certified training for soldering skills in manufacturing settings, targeted to low-skilled, low-income job seekers.	Begun in 2009, continuing through 2011.
		Robotics Academy	The award-winning Robotics Academy is now fully integrated into the curriculum in Stillwater school district 834. The curriculum has been expanded to inlclude grades 8-12.	This is a continuing program offered through the schools.
		MACCE "Communicating with Manufacturers" Initiative	Shape comprehensive information sources about metro training opportunities at MnSCU (and elsewhere) in manufacturing.	Beginning Fall 2008, through Spring 2009.
		Twin West Workforce Ready!	Gather industry leaders in the northern/western metropolitan region to strengthen the pipeline of trainees/new entrants into the field.	This initiative began in 2008 and continues now.
Construction		Twin Cities Coalition for Constuction Diversity		Initiated in Saint Paul with Saint Paul Human Rights several years ago. Ramsey focus on construction began in 2006. in late 2007, efforts were combined to form a joint task force. Originally, expected a focal point of activity in 2008-10 to coincide with stadium construction.
Green Jobs	Foundational activities during the last four years, including the Mayors' Initiative on Green Manufacturing, Legislative Task Force on Green Jobs, and engagement in philanthropic efforts focused on green jobs, all laid the groundwork for major USDOL investments now operating in this arena.	Mayors' Initiative on Green Manufacturing
		RENEW MN
		Living Cities Green Boot Camp
		GreenPOWER
Information Technology	There have been various efforts during the past decade to capitalize on the significance of information technology-related occupations and industry presence in the region. the initiatives highlighted her are two of the most current efforts in which WIB leadership is involved.	Dakota Future Telecom Initiative
		Advance IT Minnesota
Other	During the last several years, the metro area WIBs, together with business, ABE, education, and economic development partners, have worked collaboratively in a number of ways outside of specific sector initiatives. This section highlights a selected number of those endeavors.	Greater Twin Cities Prosperity Partnership
		Youth Transition Program (Building Lives)
		Streamlining regional literacy & job readiness assessments