WIOA State Plan Common Elements

(H) Improving Access to Postsecondary Credentials. Describe how the State’s strategies will improve access to activities leading to recognized postsecondary credentials, including RA certificates. This includes credentials that are industry-recognized certificates, licenses or certifications, and that are portable and stackable.

Maryland has established a strong record of implementing best practices related to improving access to education and industry-recognized credentials. The State continues to actively invest in a variety of initiatives that will drive the excellence of Maryland’s workforce today and well into the future. Going forward, Maryland’s workforce system partners will use the Benchmarks of Success for Maryland’s Workforce System to assess their effectiveness in working together to expand access to activities leading to industry-recognized postsecondary credentials. The Benchmarks include the strategic goal of “increasing earning capacity of Maryland’s workforce system customers by maximizing access to and use of skills and credentialing.”

The State’s workforce system partners intend to track four benchmark measures to assess progress towards achieving this goal:

1. Increase the annual percent of Maryland’s workforce system customers who obtain an industry recognized credential from X percent to Y percent by date.
2. Increase the annual percent of Maryland’s workforce system customers who increase in their Educational Functioning Level.
3. Increase the annual percent of Maryland’s workforce system customers who earn a High School Diploma.
4. Increase the annual percent of Maryland’s workforce system customers who obtain an occupational skills training completion from X percent to Y percent by date.

These benchmarks will enable Maryland’s workforce system to make data-driven adjustments, where necessary, to maintain a responsive system that meets job seekers where they are and prepares them with the in-demand skills Maryland’s employers’ need.

MI-BEST and ACE

Maryland has implemented two important programs structured around the concepts of team teaching and contextualized learning that have provided a solid foundation for the State’s strong career pathways program offerings. With leadership from the Office of Adult Education and Literacy Services within MD Labor’s DWDAL, Maryland piloted the Maryland Integrated Basic Education and Skills Training (MI-BEST) program with six community colleges located around the State. The pilot was implemented at six Maryland community colleges through a public-private partnership that included MD Labor, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, and Local Boards. MI-BEST provided accelerated, integrated learning opportunities for low-skilled jobseekers, including individuals with LEP and those with low reading, writing, and math skills.

Carrying forward principles and lessons-learned from the MI-BEST model, Maryland participated in the multi-state Accelerating Connections to Employment (ACE) initiative. The Accelerating Connections to Employment (ACE) program was a multi-million dollar USDOL evaluation grant designed to build on the success of the MI-BEST model and more fully quantify the model’s effectiveness that ended in 2016. The ACE program served ten Maryland jurisdictions, targeting the same populations served through the MI-BEST implementation. In addition to the suite of services included with the previous MI-BEST implementation, ACE incorporated a menu of enhancements, including internships, clinical placements, job placement support, and long-term career navigation.

The Maryland workforce system works closely with the Maryland Association of Community Colleges (MACC) as well as the Maryland Community College Association for Continuing Education and Training (MCCACET), meeting regularly to discuss best practices and system enhancements for co-enrollment of customers, the ETPL, etc.

RAs

Governor Hogan’s strategic vision for the workforce system is to provide businesses with the skilled workforce they need to compete in the global, regional, and local economies. A bedrock strategy within that vision is the expansion of RA opportunities. The State’s goal is to align RAs with the Maryland’s workforce system to ensure that traditional RA expand alongside the creation of new opportunities grounded in labor market demand.

Maryland’s Apprenticeship and Training Program registers three types of apprenticeships: time-based, competency-based, and hybrid models. Competency-based apprenticeships programs are a new addition to Maryland’s menu, introduced into State regulation in 2017. By expanding the menu of apprenticeship models, Maryland has created new opportunities for employers and prospective apprentices seeking alternatives to a time-based apprenticeship. Since the expansion to allow competency-based apprenticeships, four new RA Sponsors have been approved in Maryland along with five competency-based occupations.

Maryland has received over $6,800,000 in funding to expand RA from the USDOL since 2016.  The latest award comes in the form of the State Apprenticeship Expansion Grant in the amount of $2,854,797.39.  These funds will serve to align RAs with the Maryland workforce system and to provide Maryland's businesses with a sustainable pipeline in both traditional and non-traditional industry sectors.

Maryland has devoted the majority of funding from the State Apprenticeship Expansion grant directly into programming that will enable existing RA programs to increase in size while also allowing for significant investments in new RA programs.  To capitalize on the success of the 2017 Apprenticeship Innovation Fund (AIF) (over 30 AIF awards have been made) funding for $1.75 million dollars will be devoted to competitive awards.  Seven awards of $250,000 each will enable entities to create new RA programs, scale existing programs and enhance strategies to connect Maryland's WIOA target populations to RA opportunities.  Additional funding of nearly $700,000 will be allocated in a Related Instruction Reimbursement Fund.  This fund will expand RA opportunities for businesses and job seekers by offsetting the cost of registering and training new apprentices. 

MD Labor has increased its RA staff to integrate apprenticeship into the Workforce System Maryland by adding Apprenticeship Navigators. A primary area of focus for the Apprenticeship Navigator role is to conduct outreach to the business community, existing sponsors, inactive sponsors, and other potential stakeholder groups. These outreach activities have resulted in the registration of 60 new sponsors and the reactivation of 24 RA Sponsors since September 2016.  Additionally staff have worked to expand the Youth Apprenticeship Pilot Program into the AMP.  The AMP program provides youth apprenticeship opportunities to participating school systems throughout the state.  Originally, a two county pilot program, the AMP has now expanded to 15 total school systems. Presently available to high school students in 15 Maryland counties through their school system, youth apprenticeships are “earn and learn” work opportunities focused on high-growth, high demand industries including occupations related to the manufacturing, science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) industries.  A youth apprentice participating in this program receives paid, supervised, structured, OJT from a mentor in a specific in-demand occupation with the related instruction being provided by the school system, community colleges, union training center, association or online.  Youth apprenticeship students work a minimum of 450 hours with a certified employer, while receiving related educational training through their high school. Participating students typically work during the summer after their junior year and during their senior year with a state-approved employer. They work with a mentor to learn valuable skills and earn industry credentials and high school credit. Students also receive training in employability skills, interpersonal/social skills, and general knowledge of the world of work. In the first full year of the AMP expansion the number of youth apprentices has climbed to over 60 with 136 businesses being approved for the program.

MD Labor will increase opportunities for engagement with the business community, jobseekers and RA Sponsors by utilizing a cross training strategy of the Business Solutions, Reentry Navigators, Local Veteran Employment Representatives (LVER) and Apprenticeship and Training staff.  This strategy provides RA strategies be provided by all business facing staff creating an efficient outreach effort for Maryland businesses.

Competitive Grant Proposal (CGP) for Local Areas for Demonstration Projects in Career Pathways and Co-Enrollment of WIOA Title II Students into Title I Programs

Developed by MD Labor, the Career Pathways grant program offers expanded opportunities for adult learners throughout the state. It is a part of Maryland’s implementation of the federal WIOA, which serves both jobseekers and businesses. WIOA addresses the needs of jobseekers by establishing a workforce system that helps them access education, training, and support services to gain employment and succeed in the labor market, and employer needs by matching them to the skilled workers they need to compete in the global economy.

These solicitations (three rounds in total), gave all of Maryland’s WIOA Local Boards (Title I providers) and Adult Education organizations (Title II providers) the opportunity to participate in grants funding up to $250,000 in funding to develop innovative demonstration projects with a consortium of local partners, including adult education providers and business partners. Eligible applicants were provided a range of recommended interventions that were selected by the department after careful consideration and a review of national best practices. These interventions include:

• RA or pre-apprenticeship,
• Integrated education and training,
• Integrated English literacy and civics education,
• Transition support specialist between local workforce and adult education entities,
• English language acquisition, and
• Distance learning.

During all three funding rounds, a total of $1.5 million in grants have been awarded.  First and second round grants were awarded to Local Boards in Anne Arundel, Baltimore City, Mid-Maryland (Howard and Carroll counties), Prince George’s County, and Western Maryland (Garrett, Allegany, and Washington counties). Third round grants were awarded to the Local Board in Anne Arundel and Howard Community College.  Through innovative strategic investments, the department is changing the way the state approaches workforce development.

ETPL

To expand the number and diversity of high-quality training providers on the ETPL, the State conducted a highly collaborative process to develop a new ETPL policy and processes. The WIOA Title I Training & Maryland’s ETPL policy,[1] issued in 2017, was designed to encourage the participation of the education and training institutions that play such a pivotal role in building a highly qualified workforce. Outcomes of the new policy indicate the inclusive development process was successful in communicating the value of the list to stakeholders. Applications from community colleges have seen a sharp increase, and in the short period of time the new policy has been in force, the 55 RA programs have been added. In order to include additional providers on the ETPL, Maryland is requesting a waiver related to the ETPL mentioned in a subsequent section of this Plan.

[1] MD Labor DWDAL’s policies can be found at the following link: http://www.dllr.state.md.us/employment/mpi/.