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Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation
Commonwealth Workforce Coalition
SHARING SKILLS~
BUILDING CONNECTIONS
Career Ready: For Today and Tomorrow
Thursday, May 7, 2015
Sturbridge Host Hotel and
Conference Center
Supporters:
Bank of America
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts
Boston Mayor’s Office of Jobs & Community Services
Boston Private Bank & Trust Company
Commonwealth Corporation
Eastern Bank Charitable Foundation
Registration
7:30 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.
Massachusetts Housing Investment Corporation
Mel King Institute for Community Building
SkillWorks: Partners for a Productive Workforce
Spaulding Rehabilitation Network
State Street Corporation
The TJX Companies, Inc.
United Way of Massachusetts Bay & Merrimack Valley
SHARING SKILLS~
BUILDING CONNECTIONS
The 12th Annual Statewide Conference for Workforce Development Professionals
Thursday, May 7, 2015 | Sturbridge Host Hotel and Conference Center, Sturbridge
366 Main Street, Sturbridge, MA
Career Ready: For Today and Tomorrow
This year’s conference theme is Career Ready: For Today and Tomorrow. The
dynamics of both the global and local labor markets ensure that employer
demands will be constantly changing. It is not enough to prepare participants
for a career based on current employer needs; we need to prepare them to
be actively engaged in their career planning process, continually seeking to
update their skills and experiences to successfully attain and build economic
independence for themselves and their families. Conference attendees will learn
about programs and strategies designed to engage and support participants to
become career ready for both the short- and long-term.
CONFERENCE AGENDA AND WORKSHOP BY TRACKS AND SESSION
7:30 a.m. - 8:30 a.m. ­– Registration
8:30 a.m. - 9:15 a.m. – Welcome
E
P
A
C
I
S
Partnering with
Employers
Working with
Participants
Coaching &
Advising
Collaboration
Sector Strategies and
Industry Pathway
Development
Policy and Systems
Change
9:30 a.m. - 10:45 a.m. – Session #1 Workshops (choose one)
E1
Pitching Your Services
to Employers: A
Hands-On Clinic
E2
Taking Networking to
a New Level: Using
Social Media
2
P1
Preparing
Individuals with
Asperger’s Syndrome
to Find and Keep a
Job
P2
Standing Out in the
Job Search - ATS
Friendly Resumes
A1
Moving Forward with
Clients – Coaching
“In Relationship”
A2
Culturally Responsive
Practice for
Work-Based
Mentoring Programs
C1
Employment for
Homeless Families Strategies for
Effective Career
Center Collaboration
I1
Entrepreneurship
for Jobseekers
S1
Harnessing Change for
Success
S2
On Solid Ground:
Building Opportunity
CONFERENCE AGENDA AND WORKSHOP BY TRACKS AND SESSION
10:45 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. ­– Break
11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. – Session #2 Workshops (choose one)
E3
Bringing Business,
Education and the
Workforce System to
the Table
E4
Industry Challenges
and Skills Needed
P3
Assessing and Building
Participants’ Soft Skills
P4
Ready to Work:
Understanding the
Impact of Toxic Stress
A3
Coaching Across
a Continuum of
Services
C2
Developers,
Non-Profits, and
Cities--Oh My!
I2
Utilizing the
Applied
Manufacturing
Technology Pathway
Certification
A4
S3
Workforce
Innovation &
Opportunity Act
(WIOA): What You
Need to Know for
Implementation
S4
Capturing the Impact
of Coaching
Advocacy 101 for
Workforce
Professionals
12:30 p.m. - 1:45 p.m. – Luncheon: Network and Exhibitor Showcase
2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. – Session #3 Workshops (choose one)
E5
Building a Responsive
Workplace: The
Benefits of
Incorporating
Trauma-Informed
Practices
E6
Creating a Pipeline
through Employer
Partnership Training
Programs
P5
Your Career Road-Map:
How to Conquer Your
CORI
A5
C3
The Practice of
Mobility Mentoring®:
Principles, Values,
and Key Elements
Direct Health
Care Workers
Training Pilot
I3
Massachusetts’
Food Plan Predicting Food
Sector Job Growth
S5
Our State Budget:
Choices for our
Future
P6
HiSET®: What You
Need to Know to Best
Serve Your Clients
P7
Workplace
Discrimination: What
You Need to Know
3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. - Post-conference reception with refreshments
Post-Conference Reception
The conference ends with an informal reception at 3:30 p.m. to provide an opportunity to meet and talk with other
practitioners from around the state. Beer, wine, and soft drinks will be served.
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12th Annual Sharing Skills~Building Connections Conference
Luncheon: Exhibitor Showcase and
Networking
Be Sure to Visit Our
Exhibitor Tables
During lunch, we are pleased to feature a number of diverse
Exhibitors with valuable information and resources for your
participants and programs. In addition, we have some
creative ways to help you meet and network with your
colleagues. We will have table topics based on your input
when you register for the conference.
Find information and resources for your
programs and participants at the Exhibitor
Tables.
Alexander, Aronson, Finning, Certified
Public Accountants & Business Advisors
Burning Glass Technologies
Citizens’ Housing & Planning Association,
Inc.
Common Good HR
Commonwealth Corporation, Department
of Youth Services
Jobs For The Future
Massachusetts Community College and
Workforce Development Transformation
Agenda
Massachusetts Housing Partnership
Massachusetts Workforce Training Fund
The Skilled Careers in Life Sciences
Initiative
Work Without Limits, An Initiative of the
UMass Medical School
If you would like to be an exhibitor, there is still time!
For more information, please contact Alysia Ordway
at 857-472-0751 or alysia@strategymatters.org.
WORKSHOP LISTINGS BY TRACK
Partnering with Employers Track
E1
E
Pitching Your Services to Employers:
A Hands-On Clinic
Employers and Judith Lorei, Commonwealth Workforce Coalition
In this hands-on interactive workshop you will have an
opportunity to practice pitching your employment services
to employers who will provide on-the-spot critiques.
Registration for this workshop is limited to 30. Each
participant will be expected to come prepared to simulate
a 3-4 minute cold call with a new employer about their
organization. The workshop will involves mini-simulations
and opportunities for feedback so come ready to put your
best foot forward!
E2
Taking Networking to a New Level: Using
Social Media
Lara Enein-Donovan, Institute for Community Inclusion/UMass
Boston
Social media websites are another avenue for networking
and can be crucial to creating and maintaining links to
employers. This entry-level, interactive session will provide
participants with information on how to use these websites
to build connections with employers, post resumes and
access job openings. Helpful tips will also be shared.
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E3
Bringing Business, Education and the
Workforce System to the Table
Meredith Crouse, Boston Private Industry Council, and Joanne
Pokaski, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
The Boston Healthcare Careers Consortium is a
collaboration that began in 2010, and includes
approximately 20 participating healthcare employers, 12
colleges, and 15 other workforce-related organizations
convened by Boston’s WIB. This workshop will describe
methods used to convene and engage stakeholders, and
work products delivered to date.
E4 Industry Challenges and Skills Needed
Dawn Creighton, Associated Industries of Massachusetts, and TBD
What are the biggest workforce challenges currently faced
in the key industries of manufacturing, IT, and healthcare?
Learn from employers what skills are most needed to
succeed in these industries, how the workplace culture
varies among them, and how to determine which potential
candidates are a good match for an employer.
WORKSHOP LISTINGS
E5
Building a Responsive Workplace: The
Benefits of Incorporating Trauma-Informed
Practices
Margaret Leipsitz, Root Cause, and Victor Santana, Boston Public
Health Commission
Participants will explore how to create trauma-informed
workplaces that support the success of young people in
meaningful employment. This session will share theoretical
knowledge as well as offer practical guidance for
developing a job site that accommodates young people
who have complex past experiences.
E6
interpersonal and parenting skills that aim to prevent ongoing harm that can interfere with a client’s ability to be
career ready and working.
P5
Your Career Road-Map: How to Conquer Your
CORI
Penny Welch, Straight Ahead Ministries
This workshop will provide a better understanding of
Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI), as well
as provide effective techniques to engage clients with
a criminal record in order to help them become more
employable. Attendees will also learn how addressing
individual skills and collaborating with local community
partners can help overcome CORI barriers.
Creating a Pipeline through Employer
Partnership Training Programs
Robin Hooper, The Community Builders
Learn about The Community Builders, Inc. (TCB) / CVS
Health Pre-hire Training Program at Plumley Village in
Worcester. This program is a pre-hire training program
designed to provide TCB’s low-income housing residents
with the skills and knowledge in essential areas that will
lead to long-term employment success with CVS Health.
Working with Participants Track
P1
P6
Ruth Derfler, Massachusetts Department of Elementary and
Secondary Education
HiSET® is the current assessment for the high school
equivalency credential for Massachusetts and replaces the
GED. This workshop will provide updated information on
what it is, how it fits into the overall delivery system for
adult basic education and workforce development, and
how you can best guide your clients in preparing for and
accessing the HiSET® tests.
P
Preparing Individuals with Asperger’s
Syndrome to Find and Keep a Job
Barbara Bissonnette, Forward Motion Coaching
P7
Workplace Discrimination:
What You Need to Know
Sheree McClain, Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination
Discover practical tips for assisting high-functioning
individuals who are seeking competitive employment.
Topics include: focusing individuals on jobs for which
they’re qualified, do’s and don’ts of interview preparation,
creating a manageable job search plan, addressing
challenges on the job such as understanding expectations,
asking for help, and managing anxiety and frustration.
P2
HiSET®: What You Need to Know to Best
Serve Your Clients
This interactive workshop will introduce workforce
professionals to what may constitute discrimination
against job applicants and employees, and how to
address possible discrimination, including disparate
treatment, harassment, and the denial of a reasonable
accommodation.
Standing Out in the Job Search - ATS Friendly
Resumes
Coaching & Advising Track
A
Audra Lavoie, Dorcas International Institute of Rhode Island
Learn the significance of Applicant Tracking Systems
(ATS), why employers use these systems to screen job
applicants, and how to create a resume that is compatible
with these systems. Additionally, participants will share
best practices on how to stand out in the job search.
P3
Participants in this workshop will focus on the critical
coaching/counseling aspects of the work they do, and will
also understand what it means to be actively engaged
with clients. Exercises and tools will be introduced to
help participants focus more on the relationship-building
aspect of their work.
Patricia Pelletier, Pelletier Consulting
Ready to Work: Understanding the Impact of
Toxic Stress
Kelly Champion, NE Regional Center for the American
Psychological Association’s ACT Raising Safe Kids Program,
Lemberg Children’s Center
Toxic stress interferes with a client’s ability to obtain and
retain work. It also adversely impacts their families. In
this workshop, learn and practice applying and teaching
Moving Forward with Clients –
Coaching “In Relationship”
Amy Mazur, Jewish Vocational Service
Assessing and Building Participants’ Soft Skills
Soft skills, sometimes called job readiness or employability
skills, are required to succeed in a job, postsecondary
education or job training. In this session we will review
some tools to assess participants’ soft skills and
demonstrate some lessons that can be integrated into your
program, class or advising/coaching practices.
P4
A1
A2
Culturally Responsive Practice for Work-Based
Mentoring Programs
Charline Alexandre and Danielle Niedzwiecki, Commonwealth
Corporation
This workshop introduces participants to the elements
of Culturally Responsive Practice and Positive Youth
Development (PYD/CRP). Participants will better
understand how to incorporate culturally responsive
practice (CRP) at their organization and develop highquality employer/teen employee relationships. This
workshop is geared towards employers and supervisors of
youth (mentors).
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WORKSHOP LISTINGS
Across a Continuum of Services
A3 Coaching
Marybeth Campbell, SkillWorks: Partners for a Productive
C2
Workforce, and others TBD
A4 Capturing the Impact of Coaching
Zeida Santos, SkillWorks/Boston Private Industry Council
C3
C1
Ken Demers, BerkshireWorks Career Center, and Lisa Lapierre,
Corporation for Public Management
Learn about the Secure Jobs Initiative designed to
better serve homeless families through multi-agency
collaboration. Career Centers in Western Massachusetts
will share the three key actions for success based on their
model for collaboration among all workforce agencies on
a regional level. Participate in facilitated regional break-out
groups for problem-solving.
6
I1
I
Entrepreneurship for Jobseekers
Peter Friedland, Workforce Central Career Center-2014, and Amy
R. Mosher, Expressive Capital Consulting
Jobseekers who develop an entrepreneurial mindset—
whether or not they ever go into business for themselves—
have a competitive advantage in today’s economy.
This interactive workshop will reveal the structure, best
practices, and lessons learned from an entrepreneurship
program piloted between 2012-2014 at a One-Stop Career
Center in Central MA.
C
Employment for Homeless Families Strategies for Effective Career Center
Collaboration
Olga Yulikova, Executive Office of Elder Affairs
Sector Strategies and Industry
Pathway Development Track
Jennifer Lowe and Judy Parks, Crittenton Women’s Union
Collaboration Track
Direct Health Care Workers Training Pilot
The demand for direct care workers is growing rapidly.
These jobs represent entry-level access points to health
care careers for many adults. Learn about a successful
partnership between multiple local and state agencies and
employers to train and place mature workers as
Personal and Home Care Aides.
A5 The Practice of Mobility Mentoring®:
Principles, Values, and Key Elements
In response to the growing complexity of poverty and
research on the impact of trauma and stress on executive
functioning skills, CWU developed Mobility Mentoring®.
Come learn the key elements of how to partner with
clients so they may acquire the resources, skills, and
sustained behavior changes necessary to attain their
economic independence.
Marie Downey, BEST Corp., Hospitality Training Center, and Trinh
Nguyen, Mayor’s Office of Jobs and Community Services
This workshop showcases the three-way partnership
between a hotel developer (CV Properties), a nonprofit (BEST Corp.), and the Mayor’s Office of Jobs and
Community Services (Boston). The partnership was
designed to encourage and prepare Boston residents
for upcoming careers in the well-paying and benefited
hospitality industry at two hotels developed by CV
properties.
Participants must navigate services across a continuum of
providers, often each with it’s own coach who works with
the participant. This session will explore models for how
different service providers are using a holistic approach
to meet participants’ individual needs through enhanced
coordination of coaching services across the continuum.
The work of career coaches is instrumental to participant
success in obtaining employment, transitioning and
succeeding in post-secondary education or training. Yet,
often these final outcomes reported to funders don’t
capture the full impact of coaching on participants’
success. Learn new ways to identify and report the
additional outcomes that positively impact participant’s
lives.
Developers, Non-Profits, and Cities--Oh My!
I2
Utilizing the Applied Manufacturing
Technology Pathway Certification
Leslie Parady, Massachusetts Manufacturing Extension Partnership
Learn about the Applied Manufacturing Technology
Pathway Certification, a recognized quality career
pathway, and how it can encourage people to consider
careers in manufacturing and allows employers to readily
understand the skill set of an applicant. Learn how it can
be incorporated into existing programs and the benefit to
program participants.
WORKSHOP LISTINGS
I3
Massachusetts’ Food Plan - Predicting Food
Sector Job Growth
Workforce Innovation & Opportunity Act
S3 (WIOA): What You Need to Know for
Implementation
Alexandra Risley Schroeder, Massachusetts Workforce Alliance
Richard Chavez, US Department of Labor, Region One
Job creation is an explicit part of the new Massachusetts
Food System Plan. This workshop provides an introduction
to food system sectors and jobs, a picture of opportunities
for job growth and information on how to both benefit
from and influence the state’s planning process.
Policy and Systems Change Track
The first legislative reform in 15 years of the public
workforce system, WIOA is designed to help job seekers
access employment, education, training, and to match
employers with the skilled workers they need to compete
in the global economy. Come learn more about policy
changes that are shaping the workforce field starting in
July.
S
S4
S1
Harnessing Change for Success
Mary Wright, Jobs for the Future
Every new initiative – no matter how perfect it sounds will require the organization to change in order for it to be
successful. In this session, attendees will be reintroduced
to the concepts of successful change management, as
well as have a chance to discuss how to better manage a
change in their organization.
S2
On Solid Ground: Building Opportunity
Libby Hayes, Homes for Families, and Rachel Heller, Citizens’
Housing and Planning Association
Family homelessness is a complex problem. A new cross
sector partnership is forming to change the public policy
approach to homelessness. This workshop will present
research findings and coalition efforts to change state
policies and shift the focus from shelter numbers to
housing and economic stability.
Advocacy 101 for Workforce Professionals
Melinda Mack, New York Association of Training & Employment
Professionals
As WIOA begins the next phase of workforce nationally,
it is even more critical that we continue to push for what
works and smart policies. Come learn the time-tested
steps to successful workforce advocacy, and tools to build
engagement into your day-to-day work. With a few simple
tweaks we can get workforce at the top of the agenda.
S5 Our State Budget: Choices for our Future
Nicole Rodriguez, Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center
The state budget is about choices: how we as a
Commonwealth choose to invest our resources to support
vulnerable residents, and build a vibrant economy. In this
workshop, MassBudget examines the choices we have
made, where we are now, and the opportunities ahead
with a specific focus on how the state budget supports
workforce training programs.
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Commonwealth Workforce Coalition
SHARING SKILLS~
BUILDING CONNECTIONS
Career Ready: For Today and Tomorrow
Thursday, May 7, 2015
Sturbridge Host Hotel & Conference Center, Sturbridge, MA
Conference Registration Procedure
Conference Fee: $150 early bird registration
(early bird ends on April 2 by 4 p.m.)
$195 for registrations received after
April 2 by 4 p.m.
The Final Registration Deadline is April 16 by 4 p.m. Visit our website to register: http://cwc.cedac.org
Payment by check or credit card
Online registration features an option to pay by check or credit
card. In order to receive the early bird registration fee, checks
MUST be postmarked by no later than April 9. Please note,
you are NOT considered registered, and will not receive a
confirmation, until payment has been received.
All payments via check must indicate which participant(s) the
check is for, and be made payable to:
CEDAC
Attn: Sharing Skills
One Center Plaza, Suite 350, Boston MA 02108
CEDAC’s Federal ID #: 04-2657382
Registration policies
• Each individual must register separately online.
•W
e will email confirmation of registration upon receipt of
payment.
• There will be no refunds.
• Registrations are transferable.
• You are not considered enrolled until payment is received. If
you have NOT paid you will not be able to participate in the
conference.
•P
hotographs will be taken at the conference. By registering and
attending the conference, you are giving CWC permission to use
your photo in written materials or on its website.
Registration includes
• Admission to 3 workshops from a selection of 29
• Post-conference reception with a complimentary drink
• Continental breakfast and 3-course luncheon
• Conference materials, including attendee contact list
Hotel accomodations
Come and stay the night before at the Sturbridge Host Hotel
& Conference Center for a reduced rate of $110 plus tax. When
making your reservation, be sure to mention that it is for the
Commonwealth Workforce Coalition conference.
Contact the hotel at (508) 347-7393 or visit their website:
http://www.sturbridgehosthotel.com.
Supporters:
One Center Plaza, Suite 350, Boston MA 02108
Tel: (617) 727-5944
Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation