WIOA State Plan Common Elements

Several state policies have been issued or updated to ensure successful implementation of WIOA, and others will be developed to support the strategies identified in this Plan:

• Data sharing: Data sharing is the basic first step we must take to understand the correlation between our programs and improvements for Hoosiers. Amongst those agencies on the GWC, we will institute a data charter, allowing data to be cross-referenced and analyzed by the Indiana Management Performance Hub (MPH). One critical piece of this step is MPH determining the overlap of populations between the Combined Plan programs (as well as other related programs, like child support through the Department of Child Services, subsidized housing through the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority, and Medicaid through the Family and Social Services Agency), we will understand who we are serving, where we are serving them, and through what programs. These data will then be shared with our local Boards. We will begin with correlating state-level data across our agencies, with a longer term step of including county-level data. One barrier Indiana faces in creating interagency data charters is federal restrictions around data sharing. We hope to leverage Governor Holcomb’s work and leadership on the White House’s American Workforce Policy Advisory Board to address the federal challenges and facilitate greater data sharing between our agencies.
• Co-enrollment. Based upon an individual’s eligibility criteria and services they qualify for, WorkOnes, through the support of state common intake and case management systems, will offer Hoosier a package of potential programs and services. Frontline staff will work with the in individual’s aspirations to figure out which programs it is best to enroll them into, which may include more than one or two programs.
• Co-location: As Indiana works to increase the co-location of its services by physically and virtually embedding local program managers and staff into various offices and community hubs, we can begin to understand and improve the effectiveness of our customer service. We can track: wait times, waitlists, enrollment increases, speed of referrals, and quality of referrals and case management (e.g., scheduling appointments, co-enrollment in multiple programs, and persistence and completion rates of co-enrollment). We can also correlate these data with various models of co-location: physical, embedded or itinerant staffing, and mobile or temporary sites.
• Cross-training: To facilitate co-enrollment and enhance co-location, we must increase our cross-training professional development of state, local, and frontline staff. This strategy is central to successful integration of our programs across agencies. To begin, we will prioritize cross-training SNAP, TANF, all core WIOA programs, and federal and state financial aid opportunities, focusing on eligibility requirements and allowances. We want to start cross-training our staff from the state-level to those on the front lines in these programs first because these present the biggest opportunity to address and coordinate overlapping programs and funding. These efforts will be led by the administrative agencies as part of the implementation of the Combined Plan. A project team comprised of cross-agency staff will development strategies, materials, timelines, and rollout for each program’s cross-training module, as well as inform the instructional methods of how to connect this program with others. Each agency will track the availability of professional development opportunities, including in-person, successive modules, webinars, and workshops for each program. Additionally, they will track the completion of those opportunities. Completion data will then be cross-referenced through co-enrollment rates in the various programs. We will also increase cross-training and onboarding for members of local Workforce Boards regarding Core and Partner Programs for them to better understand the talent development ecosystem. Cross-trainings for Boards may also encompass community programs and partners that are critical to addressing the barriers of our target populations.
• Partner Shared Costs: DWD issued guidance and technical assistance in the development of partnership and infrastructure funding agreements (IFAs) between local workforce development areas (LWDAs) and partners of the one-stop delivery system. This guidance promotes a locally-driven, locally-negotiated process for partnering and sharing costs within each LWDA. (See DWD Policy 2018-04, which can be found at:https://www.in.gov/dwd/files/3511/2018-04-P_MOU_IFA_Guidance.pdf
• Priority of Service: DWD will continue to review its WIOA Priority of Service guidance to better align with the federal vision and the strategies outlined within this Plan. DWD expects to publish updated guidance in early 2020. Additionally, local areas must have written policies that delineate how they will give priority of service and must adhere to these policies. DWD will review data and local policies to ensure priority is being carried out appropriately and will provide technical assistance as needed.