Tratamiento del Producto No Conforme según criterios de

Grantee. Quad Area Community Action Agency, Inc. (CAA) is a public, non-profit organization located in Hammond, Louisiana, that provides a variety of services to adults and youth populations in seven parishes in Louisiana

Industry Focus. Architecture/engineering, construction, financial/administrative services, healthcare/science, information technology and transportation

Location(s) of Grant Activities. Seven parish area in Louisiana (Ascension, Livingston, East Feliciana, West Feliciana, St. Helena, Tangipahoa and Washington) with a total population of approximately 443,000; project expanded operations into several parishes in the New Orleans metropolitan area.

Grant Amount. $1,000,000 Project Goals

• Create a talent development model that includes employment and training strategies to retain and/or connect older workers to high-growth, high-demand industries

• Develop a public awareness campaign to dispel age discrimination of older adults in the workforce

Targeted Participants

• Long-term and recently unemployed individuals 55 years of age or older • Incumbent workers 55 years of age or older

Project Services

• Initial assessments, job readiness training, customized job development, case

management and job search assistance provided by dedicated Silver Force project staff • Short-term computer skills training courses at several different skill levels, developed for

Silver Force participants and offered through contracts with local community colleges • A specialized job readiness course that focused on resume preparation, interviewing skills

and preparing online applications, offered to Silver Force participants through a contract with a third-party training provider

• A relatively low level of supportive services to help aging workers with personal and work supports

• Job search assistance using a dedicated web-based tool

• _{Occupational skills training offered through pre-existing training providers and programs;} after determining that its project’s budget was lower than expected, the grantee deleted occupational skills training from its menu of grant-funded services

Project Management and Staffing. Grantee administered the grant using existing agency staff for administrative support (an executive director, budget manager, administrative assistant). In addition, the grant supported six specialized Silver Force program staff members (program director, job training development coordinator, three 100-percent time and two 50-percent time case managers and a data specialist).

Key Partners and Their Roles.

• Partners in the recruitment of AWI participants. Quad Area CAA received referrals from the local agency on aging (which referred a number of SCSEP program

participants) as well as churches and other non-profit organizations. Project Challenges

• Misunderstanding of grant funding levels. This project encountered an early set-back in designing and implementing the project when the grantee realized that the grant level was $1 million over three years, instead of $1 million per year. As a result, the grantee had to delete its proposed long-term training component, reduce the size of the geographic service area, and reduce the size of the project staff. Instead of offering long-term occupational skills training, the grantee relied upon very short-term, certificate-based computer skills training workshops.

• Inability to coordinate services with existing One-Stop Career Centers. The grantee encountered difficulty in engaging and coordinating services with existing local One-Stop Career Centers within its service area. The grantee reported that the One-Stop Career Centers were overwhelmed with customers and did not see the value in coordinating with the AWI project.

• Difficulty managing the flow of participant enrollments. The grantee reported that it was difficult to manage the initial influx of customers being referred to the program because it did not have enough staff and was unable to provide adequate initial

assessments and case management services to these customers. If it were redesigning its service model, the grantee would incorporate more staff to perform front-end assessments and screen participants regarding their motivations and ability to complete training. • Difficulty obtaining participant-level data. Program participants were reluctant to share

their private information with program staff, especially Social Security Numbers. This made it difficult for the grantee to track employment outcomes for enrolled participants.

Participant Outcomes

The following project outcomes are based on the data submitted on the grantee’s quarterly progress report for the period ending on September 30, 201298_:

Goal Actual Percent of Goal Achieved

Enrolled 500 724 145%

Began education/training activities 500 531 106%

Completed education/training services 300 541 180%

Received degree/certificate 300 481 160%

Entered employment (of those who completed education/training activities)

270 200 74%

Entered training-related employment (of those who completed

education/training activities)

250 200 80%

Enrolled 500 724 145%

Began education/training activities 500 531 106%

Completed education/training services 300 541 180%

Entered employment (of those who completed education/training activities)

270 200 74%

Entered training-related employment (of those who completed

education/training activities)

250 200 80%

98 _{In this project profile, we compare grantee goals to the aggregate outcomes reported by the grantee on ETA}

Form 9134 for the quarter ending September 30, 2012. These were the most recent data available at the time we were revising this report. In contrast, in the body of the report, we present findings based on our analysis of individual level data provided to us by the projects in the late spring of 2012. Therefore, the data presented in this table are from a more recent time period and a different data source than the outcomes data presented in Chapter V.

Other Outcomes

• _{Improved short-term training computer skills training available to program participants} by negotiating reduced-fee programs through two universities and one private vendor. • _{Increased the awareness and capacity of grantee agency staff to serve mature workers.} • _{Created a comprehensive website for Silver Force participants and employers. The}

website allowed employers to advertise their businesses, post employment openings and gather information about the benefits of maintaining a mature workforce. Participants were able to use the website to research employment opportunities, post their resumes and access job readiness tips, including information on how to prepare for an interview. • _{The grantee sponsored a summit meeting to educate employers, legislators, and other}

partners about the benefits and contributions of aging workers and the importance of continued education and training for the workforce. Over 165 individuals attended the summit, with a significant level of participation from the business community.

“Maturity Works: Tapping Older Workers for