Labor Topics

• Measuring Program Performance
• Finding Out What Works
• Using Vouchers to Deliver Services
• Helping Service Members
• Self-Employment as an Alternative Strategy
• Moving Young People into Productive Careers
• Encouraging Employment for Ex-Offenders
• Addressing Unique Problems of Experienced Workers
• Assisting DOL and Grantees
• Clients

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Advancing in the Workforce: The Role of Faith- and Community-Based Organizations

The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 helps all Americans access the information, services, training, and other tools they need to enter and advance in the workforce. At the heart of the program is an extensive network of One-Stop career centers where this assistance can be accessed.

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) recognizes that small, grassroots, faith-based and community organizations (FBCOs) can be valuable partners because they are trusted in the community and can increase access to the One-Stop system. By providing personal, flexible services and emotional support, FBCOs can help some of the hardest-to-serve populations. In addition, their knowledge of the community and its needs can be used to help plan future directions for the local workforce development system. However, barriers to the development of these partnerships may exist.

To help overcome these barriers, DOL issued grants to local workforce investment boards with the goal of promoting collaboration with FBCOs. Mathematica's qualitative study evaluated the success of the grants in promoting collaboration and addressed the following questions:

• What strategies did states and intermediaries use to promote collaboration?
• To what extent were collaborations formed as a result of the grants? To what extent are these collaborations sustainable?
• Did the grants lead to increased access to the One-Stop system, additional services available to One-Stop customers, and increased capacity for service provision by FBCOs?
• Did the grants lead to improved customer outcomes? Did customers receive more services, obtain education or training credentials, and get and retain jobs as a result of collaborations? Are customers satisfied with services they received from the One-Stop centers and FBCOs?
• What promising practices exist? What strategies were most effective? Did the most effective strategies vary with external conditions, such as whether an area is urban or rural? Can these practices be replicated?

Mathematica's study noted that FBCOs can extend the workforce system's reach to underserved groups, provide services tailored to the needs of hard-to-serve job seekers, help people with significant barriers to find jobs, and leverage community resources.

Publications

“Collaborating with Faith- and Community-Based Organizations: Lessons Learned from 12 Workforce Investment Boards” (May 2007)
“Evaluating Grants to Build Collaborations Between the Workforce Investment System and Faith-Based and Community Organizations: Early Findings” (January 2006)
“Building Relationships Between the Workforce Investment System and Faith-Based and Community Organizations: A Background Paper” (April 2005)