Meeting Minutes for December 6, 2011
Lancaster County Workforce Investment Board
Executive Committee
Minutes
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
3:30 p.m.
Liberty Place, Room 112
Present: Thomas Baldrige, Steve Fries, Stephen Grosh, Gary Grube, Sharon Leese, Jean Martin, Linda Kreider (Ex-Officio)
Not Present: James Black, Eric Horn, Donald F. Johnson Jr.
Staff: Andrew Garner, Kim Sullenberger, Lori Rank, Joyce Lenox. Rod Kopp, Scott Sheely
Operators Representative: Trish Link
Guests: William Moulfair, Anna Ramos
Call to Order
Sharon Leese called the meeting to order at 3:35 p.m. and welcomed everyone.
Consent Agenda
Approval of Minutes from October 4, 2011 meeting
Minutes approved unanimously on motion from Steve Fries and second from Jean Martin.
Approval of Minutes from November 1, 2011 meeting
Minutes approved unanimously on motion from Steve Fries and second from Jean Martin.
Approval of Minutes from November 3, 2011 meeting
Minutes approved unanimously on motion from Steve Fries and second from Jean Martin.
Approval of Minutes from November 17, 2011 meeting
Minutes approved unanimously on motion from Steve Fries and second from Jean Martin.
Discussion Items
Organization of Workforce Initiatives, LLC
Scott Sheely reported there is a lot to do in getting the new organization up and running. The Board previously voted for the attorney to go ahead. Corporation papers have been filed and an EIN # is requested. Kim Decker recommended a small Board of seven or so members interlocking with the WIB Board to run the social enterprises. Scott is looking for four Board members to serve on the other Board. Meeting schedule, administrative and setting up the books will need to be done. The Board received a grant of $20,000 the Lancaster County Community Foundation to get Workforce Initiatives, LLC up operational.
There will be a separate business and marketing plan for each enterprise. Hiring employees of the new company is as issue with the possibly of using a staffing agency for use of employees. Tom Baldrige mentioned we have to keep in mind the way the new enterprises compete with private business for work. The Workforce Summit being held on December 16, 2011 will have a panel to represent best practices and answer questions about local social enterprises.
Closing the Previous Relationship with the County of Lancaster
Scott Sheely reported we would like to close our previous relationship with the County by the end of the year specifically with the close-out of LETA activity and the change in fiscal agent. After meeting with Commissioner Martin and other from the County administration in June, it was agreed that all assets will be transferred to the WIB. With these changes, a new Local Elected Official Memorandum of Understanding will have to be written. Scott and Kim will rewrite the LEO-WIB MOU based on the Department of Labor and Industry rules and regulations. This document will also include an amount for County fees through December 31, 2011.
Fiscal staff is working on the reconciliation of the County clearing account which previously was the vehicle for moving money from the Commonwealth to the County to the WIB. All County information has been cleared off the computers and a reconciliation of the entire inventory of information technology equipment has been accomplished. This information has been sent to the county but no word has come back from them on how they want to proceed.
Question came up how the new contractor is doing. It was reported there is a 20% increase in participation of EARN clients with fewer people coming in but working harder. Gary Grube reported the Welfare clients are seeing that the changes are positive and that the staff is working together.
New Grant Update
Scott Sheely reported we received $20,000 from Lancaster County Community Foundation for startup costs for Social Enterprise. He is also working with the PA Commission on Crime and Delinquency on a proposed project with re-entry. This will double the number of clients being served. The amount is expected to be $100,000. This will allow us to hire Melanie Snyder part-time for her work she is doing with the RMO. The Lancaster County Re-entry model is also being picked up and used across the State.
Sheely reported CarMax is coming into town and wants to give a grant to a local organization and they have chosen us as the recipient. Scott Sheely thanked Steve Fries and Alcoa Foundation for the $40,000 Clinton Global Initiative grant to be used for STEM training for adults in technical career paths where skills are needed. The IU # 13 will be working on math tutoring for work keys certifications and improving scores. The work with the Wal-Mart Grant for bi-lingual skill training will be coming to an end. Scott will be serving on the Steering Committee of Tec Centro with Mike Curley heading up the workforce development planning. There will probably be fewer large grants coming our way for a while but the small grants do support us in meeting our strategic plan and filling the gaps to reach our goals.
Action Items
Approval of Agreement with Staffing Service to be the Employer of Record for the National Emergency Grant Flood Crews
Kim Sullenberger reported the NEG grant is not a direct Federal grant but is through the Commonwealth of PA. Lancaster County was declared a disaster area and through the Department of Labor a grant was given for cleanup resulting from Tropical Storm Lee. There are 22 people in training which includes first aid, CPR, and OSHA and hand/power tool safety. They will not be using chain saws.
A Request for Quotations was sent out to all the temporary agencies for proposals to be Employer of Record. We received five responses with four staff reading and rating the proposals for cost and experience. Refer to the attached chart for the scoring. Tristarr came in highest in cost but the best for overall in proposal rating. The recommendation for Tristarr as the employer of record is being submitted. Costs will be further negotiated.
The Approval of an Agreement with Tristarr to be the Employer of Record for the National Emergency Grant Flood Crews was approved unanimously on motion from Stephen Grosh and second from Gary Grube.
Steve Fries complimented the staff on the quick turnaround of the information and Sharon Leese commented on being able to view the data before the meeting was good.
Update on Youth Council membership
Andrew Garner reported this motion is in regards to change in employment for Elaine Box. Her category of representation would remain the same (which is manufacturing in the private sector) on the Youth Council
The continuation of Elaine Box as a Youth Council member was approved unanimously on recommendation of the Youth Council and second of Steve Fries.
Approval of September and October ARRA Reports
Rod Kopp reviewed the October ARRA report with additional expenses for staff time to work with the Green Energy grant. A proposed budget revision was presented. Rod reported there was a 7.5% administration fee allocated from the grant but state did not have administration fees in it when they distributed it. They will be revising the Notice of Obligation to reflect this. A request to move $57,000 from Training and support services to administration and staff and infrastructure is being requested. Pure Energy did a course in November and with this expense we will be 80% expended. There is money allocated to Berks County to use but, if they do not use it, Lancaster County will be spending the money.
Rod Kopp reported since the September ARRA report was never approved, we will need an approval of it also.
The Approval of September ARRA Report was approved unanimously on motion from Tom Baldrige and second from Steve Fries.
The Approval of October ARRA Report was approved unanimously on motion from Tom Baldrige and second from Jean Martin.
Staff Reports
Youth Coordinator
Andrew reported there are going to be winter camps at the Lancaster Science Factory this year over Christmas break in ½ day sessions. These will be a continuation of the summer camps that were held. Letters are going out to eligible TANF clients for scholarships for TANF youth as well as being promoted in the EARN program, School District of Lancaster, and Lancaster Partnership Program.
There is a flyer in the packet on the 2012 Youth Career Summit being held January 12, 2012 at Liberty Place this year. This Summit will promote services in the PA Careerlink and a tour is planned. Penn State is offering ACT 48 credit again. A Request for Quotations for a TANF afterschool program has gone out. The pilot last year was very good and the Youth Council decided to continue the program. At the January meeting, a recommendation for a provider will be coming to the Executive Committee.
PA CareerLink Administrator
Trish Link thanked the Executive Committee from the Operators Consortium for their support with the changes in the Resource Sharing Agreement and, particularly, for picking up the extra expenses. She reported that the partners understand that for next year changes will need to be made. They are looking to attract new investor partners into the PA CareerLink and reducing costs for 2012-2013 year.
Lori Rank reported there is a Ready 2 Work graduation on December 7 with 98 graduating and employers attending. An Armstrong Job Fair is being held on December 14th from 1-7 pm for 4-5 openings for customer service representative positions starting at $38,000-40,000 a year.
The Leadership Team is looking at further integration of services and reviewing the flow chart again for minor changes as needed. Lori reported the numbers are going down with only 170 new clients in November and a total of 1,100 for the month returning and new. Job orders are up on the CWDS system with some listings having multiple jobs openings. The PA CareerLink is still in the process of downsizing to save space and will continue to look at it as the number of clients fluctuates.
Anna Ramos reported that an orientation has been held for recruits with the NEG Flood grant. There were two days of training for eligible participants with some deciding they did not want to do it since it was less money than UC provided. Participants who've exhausted their UC were the main target.
Lori Rank reported the Job Search Center will be finishing its move down into the PA CareerLink on Friday. With the space on the second floor gone, we will be saving $103,000 a year in rent.
Executive Director
Scott Sheely reported ...
• There is going to be a PA CareerLink open house for the community on January 12, 2012 to let them know we are still here with new programs available and even better service. Workshops to present services available in the CareerLink will be held along with tours.
• The Industry Partnership bill is being signed by the Governor on Tuesday, December 13. Scott thanked the Chamber for endorsing it and the employers for their support in getting it through the General Assembly.
• There are a series of Career Pathways meetings map resources available for paths from K-12 through adult for training. The initial four paths include production, administrative support, construction and trades, and health care.
• With cutbacks in School funding and fieldtrips, it has become necessary to find a way to take technology education to the schools. A mobile tech lab is being explored as a possibility to visit schools for a week and have students do hands on activities to explore careers.
• With taking over the WorkKeys assessments directly and training an employee in profiling, there is more revenue to be generated to support work in the PA CareerLink by working with companies on their worker training needs.
• All the governing documents for the Board will need to be reviewed and rewritten for changes made over the last six months. The LEO-WIB MOU, local plan, and some PA CareerLink documents are among the documents.
• Some program and planning themes over the last 2-3 years also need to be looked at again to see where they are, how they are doing, and what is the next step. Two of these would be the Latino Study and the Drop Out conversation.
Adjournment
The Executive Committee meeting adjourned at 4:55 p.m.
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Next Meeting
January 3, 2012 at 3:30 p.m.
Liberty Place Suite #112
313 West Liberty Street
Lancaster, PA 17603
