WIOA

WHAT is WIOA? Is that a fruit? 

NO... a WIOA is not a fruit, or vegetable or weird science experiment.  Since WIOA, Workforce Investment Opportunity Act, legislation was first passed in 2014, I have spent a great deal of time listening and investigating WIOA.  Since you are still unsure what it is...WIOA is legislation aimed at updating the United States workforce development system. It is a federal piece of legislation that requires each state to develop a state implementation plan.  The federal government is trying to upgrade our country's workforce through post secondary education and training. Since our country is very diverse, legislators decided it is a better plan to allow a detailed implementation of this policy by each state based on that state's workforce needs.

WIOA includes legislation and funding policy that concerns adult educators since we prepare students to enter the post secondary training or the workforce. Adult educators are accountable to the new type of integrated college and career readiness standards this policy requires.  We are being asked to prepare more people of various  levels for post secondary training than ever before to help achieve more equity in post secondary training and ultimately a more skilled workforce.   Adult Educators must continue to teach low skilled adults with limited budgets, and we are also asked integrate skills that can be used in the workplace on daily basis in this legislation.  This makes it a challenging transition for many teachers who take a part time job in adult education.  As a new adult educator you need to know that it affects a large portion of your job. My hope is to give you more info on the basics of this policy and why our calls to action are so important!

WIOA, focuses on strategies developed to retrain and retool our workforce to assist in making our country's workers more competitive in the worldwide economy. This is an ongoing process since many of our workers are not able to access jobs because they have low or no skills, and less than enough training to obtain a job which pays a living wage. A recent report by Bird, K., Foster, M., & Ganzglass states, "By the year 2020 two-thirds of the jobs in the United States will need a post secondary credential for employment"( n.d., p.6). Later, the same author reinforces this point by stating a post secondary education such as a degree or industry recognized credential is the largest factor in determining a workers overall lifetime income and earnings (n.d., p.6). A great example of this comes from the report state of Texas and was mentioned by Johnson and Stevens when they asserted in 2008 roughly 80% of the jobs did not require a college degree, but now the story is different (2012. p.194). The growing jobs are in energy, technology, and health care, and they also require post-secondary training (Johnson and Stephens, 2012, p.194).

How did WIOA develop?

WIOA was signed into law on July 22, 2014 by President Obama,  and it replaces an older law known as Workforce Investment Act or WIA which congress reauthorized repeatedly from 1998 to 2014 (WIOA OverView, n.d.). This change from WIA to WIOA was a result of at least 10 years of trying to change the former WIA act and resulted in the birth of completely new legislation (Hoff, 2014, p.1). WIA focused mostly on helping people find a job and had very little to do with training.  According to LaRose, this policy saw training a "'last ditch' effort to get this person employed" (LaRose, 2015 p. 59).  With the old WIA policy our workforce became less trained prepared for jobs (LaRose, 2015, p.59).  Then an economic downturn hit the country, and this caused further problems.

 During this time, the great recession took place and forced president, congress and legislative aides to push the creation of stronger workforce to the forefront. People in the country were unemployed or underemployed and workers were not prepared for jobs that were available.  Under WIA if a worker reached the point where they qualified for training, they received an Individualized Training Account. They were then eligible for training in a high growth area (LaRose, 2015, p.60).  This concept along with some others developed into a major facet of the WIOA legislation.  Each of the state plans were to develop a plan based on what business sectors are most important to a that state's economic growth and future (LaRose, 2015. p. 61).  The main difference now that a individual adult could qualify for training at any point along the way.  WIOA allows or more training for the low-skilled workers and at various points (Bransberger n.d., p.4).

These plans are are all required to meet certain performance indicators and each state plan must also follow a set of requirements (Bransberger n.d, p.4).  WIOA is written this way to allow for state higher education offices to work in conjunction with local Workforce Investment Boards ( Bransberger n.d, p.4).  This should allow some  of the previously disadvantaged populations to obtain more post secondary certifications and lead to a better workforce.  The accountability written into the performance indicators will only allow for programs with completions and then employment after to continue to receive funding.

The problematic part of this process is funding.  Adult Education and workforce training faced continued funding cuts throughout this development process.  For example, since 2006 there has been a 16% decrease in adult and dislocated worker programs (Bransberger, n.d., p.2) .  This same level of funding to help some of  the most disadvantaged workers and learners is continued in the first round of WIOA funding planned for 2016-2020 (Bransberger n.d., p. 2).  It leaves adult educators and state leadership with a large job and very little funding available for the needs of students.

What is the main value in WIOA?  

• Students transitioning  from High School with disabilities  

The core value of equity is the foundation of this legislation. It seeks to help those people who are least likely to obtain a post-secondary credential gain support as they move away from the safety of high school. Students with disabilities often struggle to obtain work and keep it.  In Delaware the numbers RespectAbility gives are staggering. They state the employment gap between Delawareans with a disability and without is 38.7% (Respectability, 2015 p.2).  WIOA contains provisions to help decrease that number by using 15% of the funds for Vocational Rehab to support those transitioning from high school. They can receive "job exploration counseling, work-based learning experiences, counseling on post-secondary opportunities, workplace readiness training, and training on self-advocacy" (Hoff, 2015, p.2). Provisions that create more opportunities for students with disabilities will have a positive affect on the workforce since these students will be more likely to complete a credential and will be able to get better jobs and keep them.

• Out of school youth between the ages of 16- 24 without a high school credential,

 Out of school youth are served at a higher percentage under WIOA legislation. This again shows the value placed on equity and increasing services for disadvantaged youth. The investment here will provide increased support these young adults need  to attend and obtain a secondary degree and then enter an institution of their choice. 75% of WIOA funding must be used for out of school youth (Bird, K., Foster, M., & Ganzglass, n.d., p.8). This population is often missing parental support or community expectations that make obtaining a post-secondary degree or certificate difficult.

• Students who are justice involved

WIOA reaffirms commitment to equity and opportunities for those who have a criminal history. First, by providing funding for students not eligible to access the Pell Grant as tuition and secondly by respecting that many former inmates also have a disability. RespectAbility gives the information in a nutshell stating that 32% of inmates have at least one form of disability (Respectability, p.5).  This population has many difficulties upon re-entry and continued support is very important.

• Students with an ELL or ESL background 

Students who are ELL are less likely to have college prep classes, and less likely to have opportunities to access financial aid (Cook, 2015, p. 20).  They may have issues enrolling or applying for programs due to immigration status (Cook, 2015, p.20).  These learners do not have to prove income need to qualify for classes in English that could ultimately help them enter college programs (Bird, K., Foster, M., & Ganzglass, n.d., p.9).  It is important to support the education of individuals who need extra help with the English language and other supports to attend college.

Why is WIOA important?  

Providing greater access to post-secondary training is important. As budgets are being reviewed, our congressmen and women are under pressure to make "some cuts to discretionary programs, including training services authorized under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA)..., despite the strong bipartisan support for these critical programs" (Kaleba, 2017).  These are the same programs created to insure the equity mentioned previously and need funding to be successful.  WIOA programs are now struggling and facing cuts of up to 40% in their grants (Keleba, 2017).  This would devastate the implementation of these new and progressive supports for post-secondary completions.  

Our workforce needs change! Training and education are the path to these improvements. When a homeowner upgrades his house, he needs to make an investment which brings returns later.  The same will be true of our investment into our workforce.  We know that higher education and training leads to  higher wages and more stability in employment (Bird, K., Foster, M., & Ganzglass n.d,.p. 6).  There are additionally better outcomes in children's educational futures when their parents are more educated (Bird, K., Foster, M., & Ganzglass n.d., p. 6). The completion of post-secondary education, certificate of internship will benefit the whole family and our economy.  It can be seen as the investment in our house and the reward will come later and add overall value to our society.  WIOA must be fully funded and is an important program.  

References

About. (2017). Retrieved from National College Access Network: http://www.collegeaccess.org/about

Bird, K., Foster, M., & Ganzglass, E. (n.d.). New opportunities to improve economic and career success for low-income youth and adults: Key provisions of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA. Washington D.C.: Center for Law and Social Policy.

Bransberger, Peace (n.d.). Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education pub.  Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED573101

Cook, Amy and Rojasm Eliana.  (2015) Promoting College Access Among Latina/o English Language Learners:  Implications for Professional School Counselors. Journal of School Counseling, v13 n18.  Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1076446

Hoff, David. (2014). WIA and Rehabilitation Act Reauthorization: Finally Done! (Memo). Retrieved from apse.org

Johnson, Michele A, and Stephens Mattyna L. (2012).  Race to the Top and the Exclusion of Welfare Recipients From Educational Policy Discourse.  Retrieved from http://journals.sagepub.com.udel.idm.oclc.org/doi/abs/10.1177/1045159512458261

Kaleba, Kermit.  (May 23,2017). Trump FY 2018 Budget Slashes Funding for Key Workforce, Education, Human Services Programs [Blog Post].  Retrieved from http://www.nationalskillscoalition.org/news/blog/trump-fy-2018-budget-slashes-funding-for-key-workforce-education-human-services-programs

LaRose, C. (2015). THE NORTH EAST REGIONAL EMPLOYMENT and TRAINING ASSOCIATION TAKES A LOOK at the NEW PUBLIC WORKFORCE SYSTEM UNDER WIOA [the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act]. Career Planning and Adult Development Journal, 31(3), 59.  Retrieved from Ebsco host.  

RespectAbility – Public Comments Delaware’s Demand Driven Four Year Workforce Development Plan (Public Comment).  (January 26, 2016).  Retrieved from https://wib.delawareworks.com/wioa.php

What to know about WIOA [ Journal Article].  (December2015/ January 2016). Community College Journal.  Retrieved from http://web.b.ebscohost.com.udel.idm.oclc.org/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=2590fe5c-4290-4fbc-afbd-61140e77abe5%40sessionmgr101&vid=3&hid=101

WIOA OverView. (n.d.). Retrieved from United States Department of Labor: https://www.doleta.gov/wioa/Overview.cfm