TANF/WIOA Coordination – Building Better Programs https://www.buildingbetterprograms.org Resources for Improving TANF and Related Work Programs Fri, 15 Jan 2016 23:01:54 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.5.2 CLASP: Opportunities Under WIOA for Low-Income Youth and Adults https://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/2015/02/11/clasp-opportunities-under-wioa-for-low-income-youth-and-adults/ Wed, 11 Feb 2015 15:15:41 +0000 http://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/?p=925 Read more]]> The two reports from CLASP examine the provisions and opportunities under the new Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). The new law strengthens existing workforce development and adult education programs in four ways that can benefit adults and youth with barriers to economic success. The law:

  1. Increases the focus on serving the most vulnerable workers—low-income adults and youth who have limited skills, lack work experience, and face other barriers to economic success;
  2. Expands education and training options to help participants access good jobs and advance in their careers;
  3. Helps disadvantaged and unemployed adults and youth earn while they learn through support services and effective employment-based activities; and
  4. Aligns planning and accountability policies across core programs to support more unified approaches to serving low-income, low-skilled individuals.

These positive policy developments create an opportunity for leaders, human service agencies, and advocates in states and local communities to rethink, reshape, and expand workforce systems, policies, and practices that are grounded in research and experience to improve the education and employability of low-income people. To bring these opportunities to fruition, policymakers, advocates, and practitioners must take advantage of what is available through WIOA.

WIOA: What Human Service Agencies and Advocates Need to Know

New Opportunities to Improve Economic and Career Success for Low-Income Youth and Adults: Key Provisions of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA)

 

]]> Mathematica: Coordinating Employment Services Across the TANF and WIA Programs https://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/2015/02/09/opre-coordinating-employment-services-across-the-tanf-and-wia-programs/ Mon, 09 Feb 2015 20:05:37 +0000 http://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/?p=914 Read more]]> TANF and WIA programs provide employment and training services to a targeted population of low-income individuals. The similarities between the TANF and WIA programs have generated interest in the coordination and integration of services across the two programs since their inception in the late 1990s. Nonetheless, it remains unclear how and to what degree the programs are coordinating at the state and local level. The Study of TANF/WIA Coordination, initiated by the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation explored the supports, strategies, and considerations that influence coordination within selected locations across the country.

The information presented in this report and accompanying brief comes from interviews with state and local respondents in 8 states and 11 localities.  Authors describe 12 strategies for TANF/WIA coordination that the study sites use and that other locations may choose to replicate. The strategies fall under six program components: (1) administration and management; (2) funding; (3) policies and procedures; (4) program missions and knowledge; (5) services for customers; and (6) accountability and performance measurement. Using the practices of the study sites, the report defines levels of coordination for each of the 12 strategies.  The report also includes a postscript addressing key TANF-Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act coordination points.

Issue Brief
Full Report

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