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  • III. Operational Planning Elements
    The Unified or Combined State Plan must include an Operational Planning Elements section that support the State’s strategy and the system-wide vision described in Section II.(c) above. Unless otherwise noted, all Operational Planning Elements apply to Combined State Plan partner programs included in the plan as well as to core programs. This section must include—
    • a. State Strategy Implementation
      The Unified or Combined State Plan must include—
      • 2. Implementation of State Strategy
        Describe how the lead State agency with responsibility for the administration of each core program or a Combined Plan partner program included in this plan will implement the State’s Strategies identified in Section II(c). above. This must include a description of—

III. a. 2. H. Improving Access to Postsecondary Credentials

Describe how the State’s strategies will improve access to activities leading to recognized postsecondary credentials, including Registered Apprenticeship certificates. This includes credentials that are industry-recognized certificates, licenses or certifications, and that are portable and stackable.

Current Narrative:

The Indiana Career Council, through its Strategic Plan, has a goal that at least 60 percent of Indiana’s workforce will have the postsecondary knowledge, skills, and credentials demanded within Indiana’s economy by 2025. The strategies laid out in that plan and adopted in the WIOA State Plan support this goal, including strategies around career pathways, career counseling, work and learn, and sector partnerships.

One of Indiana’s strategies is to improve and expand the WorkINdiana program. This program enables adult education students working toward their high school equivalency or improving their basic skills to simultaneously earn an industry-recognized occupational certification. Students may select certification training from a list of approved certifications (see below). To ensure success, WorkINdiana requires regional partnerships between WorkOne Centers and Adult Basic Education centers, career and technical education centers, community colleges, and local economic development representatives. Together these partners determine which careers from the certification framework are most relevant to their regions and then implement the requisite training programs. Students are encouraged to co-enroll in Title I programs to ensure a full range of supports and financial services are made available.

Another strategy is to elevate the importance of work-and-learn models so that youth and young adults have access to high-wage, high-demand employment opportunities in the state, most of which will require an industry recognized credential. Here are four ways that the state is supporting work and learn opportunities in Indiana.

  1. As the work with the National Governors Association (NGA) Policy Academy on Work-Based Learning continues, a cross-agency core team including partners from the Commission for Higher Education, the Department of Education, the Department of Workforce Development, the Indiana Chamber of Commerce, the Indiana Economic Development Corporation and Ivy Tech has been pulled together and a State Workforce Innovation Council taskforce group has been created to discuss and formalize the work. Best practices and models of successful work and learn opportunities were shared at the Sectors Summit this October 19and 20, 2016.
  1. The Innovative Work and Learn Grant opportunity awarded almost $400,000 to ten Indiana Regional Works Council to foster and scale the most innovative and effective work-and-learn models in the state. In July 2016, Innovative Work and Learn grants were awarded to ten regions totaling nearly $400,000 to foster, support and scale effective work-and-learn models in Indiana through the Indiana Regional Works Councils. Best practices and resources developed include three regional work and learn asset white papers, one regional directory of work and learn programs, development of a youth employability skills curriculum, a regional internship toolkit, employer tours, and new work and learn opportunities created through apprenticeships, internships, and externships. For more information and links to the resources developed, please visit the grant website: https://www.in.gov/irwc/2726.htm. .

  1. On June 2, the Indiana Department of Workforce Development (DWD) received a U.S. Department of Labor $200,000 ApprenticeshipUSA State Accelerator Grant and will pursue other opportunities such as the ApprenticeshipUSA State Expansion Grant in order to grow and expand apprenticeships throughout the state. Work is focusing on building apprenticeships in the priority sectors of information technology and health. The Accelerator Grant was used for planning with partners across the state to expand apprenticeship across the state. The Expansion Grant was used to award over 1.1 million to of programs and organizations to expand apprenticeships in Indiana.
  2. DWD continues to support work and learn initiatives statewide through the Skill UP! Indiana grants. Nearly $19 million was awarded for Round 1 and 2. Round 3 awardees will be announced in spring of 2018. Multiple Skill UP! programs have/are offering work and learn programs around the state.

Additional priority activities aligned with the work and learn example initiatives above include:

  • Creating an Indiana-specific framework for quality work and learn opportunities and educate stakeholders on the framework.
  • Defining work-based learning continuum by grade and age band across a career pathway (by industry sector) to integrate experiences with academic progress an education outcomes.
  • Identifying benchmarks for employers and educators to meet to be considered a high quality, demand driven, work-based learning programs and develop a recognition program.
  • Identifying through projections data the top 40 careers with little to no supply. Map existing work-and-learn programming and educational constructs to maintain relationships with employers.
  • Incorporating DWD’s demand perspective into Indiana Career Explorer (Indiana’s career counseling tool).

The Department of Workforce Development is also working closely with the Department of Education to ensure that secondary school accountability grades and student assessment take into consideration career readiness and promote industry recognized credentials as developed or supported by business and industry. The State Board of Education adopted Indiana Graduation Pathways in 2017 that will be implemented in the coming years.

The state also has a comprehensive counseling initiative with the following goals: Pre-K through Adult counselors and advisors will know current and projected occupational demand in their region, along with the skills, education and training associated with each occupation; current occupational demand data will be used to inform decisions made by parents, students, clients, educators and training providers; and educational programs and services will be mapped to jobs in demand.

Some counseling activities will include:

  • Integrate demand for occupations in ICE and ICR
  • Market via social media, TV, print, IBJ, IIB
  • Create advisor and counselor listserv
  • Add demand content to counseling/advising degree and training programs
  • Develop curriculum support materials: lesson plans, assessments and resource list
  • Upskill JAG counselors, CTE teachers, transition coaches, WorkOne career and academic advisors through online professional development
  • Embed employability skills in general education core and develop rubric to measure
  • Incentivize work and learn opportunities for Hoosiers ages 16-29 to focus on high-demand occupations
  • In 2017 piloted a career exploration and awareness course utilizing the Indiana Career Explorer tool in 15 middle schools in the 8th grade space.