Promoting Workforce Innovation

Sherry Kelley Marshall, President & CEO of the SWORWIB, shares the history behind the selection of the Cincinnati/Hamilton County One Stop Center, and the unique resources at the OhioMeansJobs/Cincinnati-Hamilton County both in physical plant, parking lots, adjusting to Gubernatorial renaming and working together with 17-19 partners sharing the facility – and of course the challenges of COVID-19. Discover the biggest projects ever managed by the SWORWIB as the leasee of the building, the early partnership with the Public Library that was later required for library/OMJ partnerships and the most recent updates that have been made in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, record-breaking unemployment and social unrest. 

Sherry Kelley Marshall, President and CEO of the SWORWIB, is joined by leaders from the construction industry as they discuss the Construction Resource Report developed as an information piece for young people, job changers, parents and the regional community. Discover the talent challenges and opportunities when it comes to developing the talent pipeline of skilled construction craft and other talented professionals and the efforts that are underway by SWORWIB Board Members, construction organizations and nonprofit entities.

Sherry Kelley Marshall, President & CEO of the SWORWIB, is joined by OhioMeansJobs Center Director Kevin Holt and Leah Winkler, Workforce Development Specialist for the State of Ohio, as they discuss how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the workforce system and the economy as a whole. Discover the innovation that is happening in the midst of the crisis, what officials from USDOL, USHHS, and USDOE to be considering, and what the economic recovery cycle might look like in the post-pandemic era.

In this episode you'll hear from Sherry Kelley Marshall, President and CEO of the SWORWIB, Steve Johns, Planning Services Administrator from Hamilton County Planning and Development and Chandra Yungbluth, Assistant to the Cincinnati City Manager. Discover the process for building a combined Census Advisory Committee (CAC) for the City of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, and how the CAC is helping to inform everyone about the census and why it's important to complete your census form. Sherry Kelley Marshall shares her Top 5 findings from the census that will be important to the SWORWIB and shares her thoughts about what can be done to improve the census in the future. 

Sherry Kelley Marshall, President & CEO of the SWORWIB, discusses the history and purpose of the SuperAwards. Discover how the process has changed over the years, the various award categories, and the benefits of a workforce board having an awards program. Sherry also shares the process for releasing the awards, the strategy for promoting the SuperAward winners, and why the SuperAward is valuable to the heritage of the SWORWIB’s record of performance in Cincinnati and Hamilton County. 

Nominating is critical to the health and vitality of workforce boards. This episode features an interview with Sherry Kelley Marshall, President of SWORWIB and  Scott Conklin, Board Member and Chief HR Officer at iTelligence as they discuss nominating committee requirements, political considerations of the nominating process as well as recruitment tips. Sherry Kelley Marshall also shares her thoughts about the changes to the nominating process over the past 15 years. 

  This episode features an interview with Jackie Alf of Jurgensen Companies, Anthony Ricciardi of Allied Construction Industries, Lydia Burns from Construction Career Advocate Program (SOC)  and Sherry Kelley Marshall, President & CEO of the SWORWIB, as they discuss how to attract, recruit and train the next generation of construction craft skilled workers. Discover how the SWORWIB has been involved in construction industry efforts to increase exposure to the trades, and various industry trends as baby boomers exit the workforce. Sherry Kelley Marshall also shares her thoughts about the role the federal government can play in attracting young talent to the construction industry and recognizing how many industries have recognized credentials for which good paying jobs are available – and without college debt and dropouts. 

Trina Jackson, Director of the Hamilton County Re-Entry Program, joined Sherry Kelley Marshall, SWORWIB President & CEO for this program to discuss the impact of the tight labor market on employers' expanding willingness to interview and hire returning citizens. Discover the various programs and services provided by the Hamilton County Re-Entry Program and the OhioMeansJobsCenter overseen by the SWORWIB, as well as statistics about justice-involved individuals in the region and statewide. Trina and Sherry elaborated on the importance of re-entry partnerships and shared thoughts on changes that could  further improve outcomes for returning citizens. 

In this episode, you'll hear about the SWORWIB's partnership with the Job Corps working in southwest Ohio. Discover the history of Job Corps, how they recruit students and who is eligible. You'll also learn about which industry sectors have the best results, challenges and opportunities, and how the in-demand occupations that the SWORWIB supports match up with Job Corps' focus. 

This episode features a general overview of the Comprehensive Case Management and Employment Program (CCMEP) in Ohio which began July 1, 2016 and continues as a formal connection of WIOA and TANF for youth 14-24.  A variety of special approaches have been used, particularly in the Cincinnati/Hamilton County market where exploration of MindShift/WordShift was underway as the program rolled out in Cincinnati and Hamilton County.  You'll hear a story of a young person whose life was changed dramatically for the better due to her participation and commitment to the offerings of the CCMEP program.  There is also discussion among the leaders in Cincinnati/Hamilton County for this program relative to possible improvements for the program and how the program might change with a shift in the strength of the economy. 

In this episode, you’ll learn about Goal4 It!, a unique approach for assisting out-of-school youth in the Comprehensive Case Management Employment Program in Ohio WIOA Area #13  under the SWORWIB’s leadership.   Hosts describe details of the approach, why it was developed, and lessons learned.

This episode features a conversation with Sherry Kelley Marshall, President and CEO of the SWORWIB and Laura Randall, Vice President of Strategic Partnerships at Junior Achievement, as they discuss the 2019 Inspire Event; a hands on career expo for high demand careers. Discover the careers that were chosen, the involvement of the SWORWIB and its partners, as well as feedback and lessons learned from the event.  Information about the 2020 event is also discussed and other attachments provide signup information and display activities of the 2019 event.

Sherry Kelley Marshall is joined by Brandy Taylor, Regional Director of Workforce Development, as they discuss the Scholarship Program Partnership between the SWORWIB and The New Horizons Computer Learning Center. Discover the eligibility requirements, how to apply for the scholarship and the details of six different IT specialty skills for candidates to consider as their preferred training selection.  Brandy and Sherry also reveal the details of the scholarship, and the job placement assistance available for the scholarship winners upon completion of their training. 

SWORWIB President and CEO Sherry Kelley Marshall is joined by Riley O'Grady, Founder and CEO of Valiant, as they discuss a pilot project collaboration with Talbert House as one of the SWORWIB’s and Hamilton County’s providers for the broad Comprehensive Case Management and Employment Program (CCMEP) in Ohio, for eligible youth between ages 14-24. Riley shares her reason for creating the Valiant approach and lessons learned from their pilot project – both the best planned for and unplanned for results. 

Sherry Kelley Marshall is joined by Mardia Shands, Executive Director of Partners for a Competitive Workforce (PCW) and Jesse Simmons, Director of Supply Chain and Construction Pathways for PCW as they discuss the history of the SWORWIB’s involvement for in-demand occupations since 2001 and the formation of the Greater Cincinnati Workforce Network.  Subsequently renamed Partners for A Competitive Workforce (PCW) has recently focused on partnerships with middle and high school and out-of-school providers to link their efforts to showing young people the in-demand industry sectors in the Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana tristate region.

Sherry Kelley Marshall is joined by Gloria Skurski, Chief Education Officer for CET & ThinkTV and Jason Dennison, Manager of Learning Services for CET & ThinkTV, as they discuss the American Graduate initiative from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Discover how and why the SWORWIB got involved in a Corporation for Public Broadcasting grant for educational television, and how this partnership is offering opportunities and new options for young people to consider. 

In this episode Sherry Kelley Marshall is joined by Tom Burton, Superintendent for the Princeton City School District. Sherry and Tom discuss the partnership between their two organizations, and how they are assisting those students who are struggling to succeed and those who are not necessarily planning to attend college upon graduation. 

Sherry Kelley Marshall discusses a conversation that the SWORWIB is having with committee members, workforce partners and legislative representatives about Mind/Shift and Word/Shift and how changing our thinking and language can have a positive impact on customers' lives. Discover the work that the SWORWIB isleading in both a white paper on MindShift and WordShift, and  what's behind the pursuit of these messaging and wording that needs adjustments for this era.

In this episode, you'll hear from Sherry Kelley Marshall from the SWORWIB, Debbie Smith from Easterseals and Eric Thomas from Cincinnati/ Hamilton County Community Action Agency.  Discover the history of YouthBuild, the market focus, activity and training for both CAA and Easterseals YouthBuild programs, and how the SWORWIB and OMJ Center partner with and assist in the success of the YouthBuild grants for Cincinnati.  

A couple of years ago, Governor John Kasich advanced a bold new approach to TANF when he asked the Workforce Boards of Ohio to partner with the Job and Family Services JFS) Departments, combining WIOA Youth funding with TANF funding to invent a new approach for youth (14-24 year olds).  The program is Comprehensive Case Management Employment Program (CCMEP).  Hamilton County JFS procured provider services for CCMEP and the Talbert House agency partnered with Community Action Agency, Easterseals and the Urban League, all serving in Cincinnati and Hamilton County to deliver these bold new services.  Sherry Kelley Marshall, President&CEO of the Southwest Ohio Region Workforce Investment Board joined Doug Foresta with partner representatives to discuss CCMEP and share insights on the program, the customers and progress for success in implementation:  Bonita Woods, JFS Cincinnati/Hamilton County, Employee Services Supervisor; Benita Spraggins, Director - Community Link/Talbert House; Erica Fears, CCMEP Associate Director/Talbert House. Teaser for E:11: Sherry Kelley Marshall, President&CEO of the Southwest Ohio Region Workforce Investment Board, started a “Mind/Shift” discussion for the local area when the Comprehensive Case Management Program began implementation and is now trying to influence a change in use of language when serving youth and other disadvantaged customers.  One of the most important language shifts among many that Marshall advocates is changing CCMEP to Comprehensive Customer Management or Motivation to Employment Program – seeing as how many individuals don’t see themselves as “cases” and don’t like hearing others see them as “cases”.  Check out the E:11 Podcast in January 2019 for more on her advocacy for a “language mind/shift” to lift people through the words used to serve them.

Kevin Holt, Director of the Ohio Mean Jobs (OMJ) Center of Cincinnati/Hamilton County (the State of Ohio’s name for one-stop centers in Ohio)  joined the program with Sherry Kelley Marshall to discuss how the job center aligns with the workforce boards and the role and function of the center in the community. Discover how the OMJ Center serves job seekers and employers, as well as the funding available for on-the-job training and the parameters of those funds.   As this podcast is being released, reprocurement for the OMJ Center operator/career services/business services and training services is being finalized and will be issued on the www.SWORWIB.org website before the end of 2018 in their required process to periodically review and re-issue a procurement opportunity to select the best OMJ Center management for the fulfillment of these critical workforce services.  

Sherry Kelley Marshall is joined by Paula Brehm-Heeger, the Eva Jane Romaine Coombe Library Director, Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, to discuss the partnership between SWORWIB and the public library that covers the SWORWIB area of the City of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, bringing in access to citizens from across 48 library branches and the central downtown main library. Discover the advantages of this partnership for SWORWIB, the public library system, employers and job seekers. Moreover, the whole State of Ohio benefits from their combined leadership as there is now state legislation requiring one-stop center and workforce boards to partner with the state’s large public library system.

As children, teenagers, and college students head “back to school” across the county, there are also people over 22 years of age and into their 60s coming back to school in Cincinnati Ohio to finish their high school diplomas that they were not able to complete their first time around. This episode features Sherry Kelley Marshall, President and CEO of the Southwest Ohio Region Workforce Investment Board and Zak Nordyke, Director at Dohn 22+ Adult Diploma Program, part of the Dohn Community School in Cincinnati, OH, as they discuss the details of the 22+ Adult Diploma Program, why they decided to partner, and some of the benefits of the program. 

Procurement and monitoring of the One Stop Center is one of the most challenging requirements for a workforce board in the U.S. In this episode, you'll discover how the SWORWIB manages this challenging task and you'll hear from Sherry Kelley Marshall as she shares advice about these processes for workforce professionals.     

In this episode, Sherry Kelley Marshall discusses how and why the SWORWIB has been evaluating its eligible training providers since 2008, the policies they have in place about eligible training providers, as well as the board committee that oversees Individual Training Accounts and Eligible Training Providers. Discover what the WIOA requirements regarding evaluation will mean for the SWORWIB’s historical self-evaluation. 

Sherry Kelley Marshall, President & CEO of the Southwest Ohio Region Workforce Investment Board, discusses alternative high school diplomas and the options available in Ohio. 

Sherry Kelley Marshall discusses the partnership between the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, the National Electrical Contractors Association and SWORWIB and the benefits of that partnership for those seeking a career as an electrician or electrical contractor, as well as for business, education and economic development.  To read the white paper, visit this url: http://www.sworwib.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/3.23.18-SWORWIB-IBEWWhitePaper.pdf  

Sherry Kelley Marshall, President & CEO of SWORWIB discusses the work that they have done in the region to re-embed apprenticeships in manufacturing, why it's important and who would be a good fit for these apprenticeships. 

Sherry Kelley Marshall, President & CEO of SWORWIB discusses the benefits and opportunities of leading a nonprofit workforce board, and what she is most proud of in terms of SWORWIB's accomplishments thus far.