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LTWDB Meeting Minutes March 20, 2018

July 31, 2018

MINUTES OF THE
LINCOLN TRAIL WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT BOARD

      March 20, 2018

The Lincoln Trail Workforce Development Board (LTWDB) met on Tuesday, March 20, 2018 at 11:30 am EST, at the Lincoln Trail ADD office in Elizabethtown.

The meeting began with the reciting of the Pledge of Allegiance.

In the absence of Chair Dean Schamore, Mo Miller, First Vice Chair, stated that quorum requirements had not been met and the meeting would be informational only.

Mr. Miller introduced new board member Rebel Baker-Chreste, Regional Manager for the Office of Employment and Training (OET).

Mr. Miller continued with the introduction of the following guests:  Mark Lord, District Director for Congressman Brett Guthrie, Strategy Matters team, Sarah Berkshire, Heartland Communications Consultants, Local Adult Education Providers, Jennifer Carman, OET and Megan Stith, United Way.

Mr. Miller thanked Gary Chapman and Dr. Evelyn Ellis for their time on the Board.  Both will be ending their terms on the Board due to retirement and change in employment.

ACTION ITEMS

Minutes

Action was not taken due to the absence of a quorum.

Adult Education Proposal Review and Recommendations

Mo Miller asked those who submitted a proposal to leave the room during the discussion of this item.  Dr. Juston Pate, Diane Kelley and Dianne Bratcher, who represented entities submitting proposals, left the meeting during the discussion.  Patricia Krausman, representing the committee that reviewed the proposals, provided a brief overview of the process.  Ms. Krausman indicated the Kentucky Adult Education program provided specific review instructions to be followed by the committee and the purpose of the review was to ensure that the proposals aligned with the LTWDB’s local plan.  Ms. Krausman stated that two proposals were submitted and, overall, appeared to support the local plan.  The review resulted in two recommendations, which were points of clarification for one proposal and no recommendations for the other proposal.  Sherry Johnson explained that, according to WIOA law, the local Board must review and recommend that Adult Education providers are in alignment with the local Board’s strategic and workforce plans and not involved in determining whether or not the proposals were funded.

DISCUSSION ITEMS

Heartland Communications Update

Sarah Berkshire, with Heartland Communications Consultants (HCC), stated the update would be provided in conjunction with the American Greetings report.

Strategy Matters Update 

Liz O’Connor provided an update on implementation activities that had occurred, to date, regarding the strategic plan.  Ms. O’Connor indicated that the Business committee had met previously and that additional meetings with employers were scheduled over the next few days.  Brittney Nichols reported on the Unlocking Local Potential subcommittee, which met earlier in the day and Katie Stewart provided an overview of the first meeting of the Removing Obstacles subcommittee, which also met prior to the LTWDB meeting.  All committees were starting to identify their main priorities and goals with a common theme of ensuring there is a prepared and available workforce for current and future employers.  Additional activities are scheduled for the last quarter of the contract period.

SNAP E & T Update

Carter Dyson provided an update on the status of the SNAP E & T program.  Mr. Dyson indicated that Career Center staff had been providing services in Hardin County since January with services in the other seven counties being rolled out in March.  Mr. Dyson informed the Board that the State indicated the number of participants to be served was zero to two thousand.  Mr. Dyson stated that approximately 40 participants have been seen to date with the biggest issue being that participants are not showing up for scheduled appointments.  Mr. Dyson indicated that numbers were expected to increase due to benefit loss after 3 months with no participation.  Mr. Dyson stated that the bottom line for the program was to place participants in full time employment.

Kentucky Health Update

Sherry Johnson provided an update on the Kentucky Health program.  Ms. Johnson indicated that the original plan was to roll out the program on July 1st in the Northern Kentucky and KentuckianaWorks regions but the State has decided to start with a demonstration project in Northern Kentucky only.  If the Northern Kentucky Workforce Board agrees to participate, the project will begin in July.  The demonstration project would allow them to work out any issues due to new client tracking system in place.  Kentucky will be the first state in the Nation to offer services under the Medicaid waiver.  Based on information received from the State, Lincoln Trail will not implement the program until October 2018.  Ms. Johnson also stated that a Memorandum of Understanding to administer the program had been received and would be thoroughly reviewed.   Ms. Johnson shared that planning numbers received from the State identified approximately 64,577 people who were eligible to receive Medicaid in the Lincoln Trail region.  The projections indicated that forty percent would seek services resulting in 5,278 potential new clients for the Lincoln Trail workforce system.  Ms. Johnson stated that the total year budget would be a little over 1.1 million dollars to provide case management services and 10 percent for administration.  Ms. Johnson indicated that it was still not clear whether or not case management services or the fiscal agent had to be procured.  She stated there were still a lot of questions and would keep the LTWDB posted on any new developments.  

American Greetings Closure

 Jackie Masterson informed the Board that notification was received in January that American Greetings would be laying off 150 people by June of 2018.  Additional notice was received shortly thereafter that the plant would be closing completely by February of 2019.  Ms. Masterson indicated that staff had been working with the company to determine what transition services were needed.  The first Rapid Response session was held on March 14th for thirty-nine people.  Ms. Masterson indicated that a variety of workshops were planned, in partnership with the Kentucky Career Center-Lincoln Trail and Elizabethtown Community and Technical College, in advance of an Employment Expo scheduled for May 12th in Bardstown.  Ms. Masterson and Sherry Johnson also met with the Nelson County Judge Executive, Mayor of Bardstown and the Nelson County Economic Development Agency to discuss the closure.   One of the items discussed was creating a webpage specifically for American Greetings employees that they can go to as a resource.  Sarah Berkshire then provided additional information regarding the creation of the webpage as well as collateral items needed to help promote services to the employees.  Dr. Juston Pate also mentioned the possibility of employees being able to get academic credit for prior learning, which may get them closer to a credential to enter the workforce at a higher level.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS

OET Presence at Affiliate Sites (tabled from 12/14/17)

 Sherry Johnson recalled the OET reorganization over a year ago, which eliminated 95 jobs statewide, established hubs and removed OET staff from Lebanon, Bardstown and Leitchfield.  The LTWDB was asked to submit a plan outlining how OET could still provide services at the three affiliate sites.  Ms. Johnson indicated that a plan was submitted and a response was received in April from Commissioner Kuhn along with a schedule for OET’s presence at the affiliate sites.  This schedule was never implemented.  As a result of assistance from the State Senator covering Marion County, OET staff began going to the Lebanon site three days a week. Ms. Johnson stated that at the December 2017 meeting, Jennifer Carman, OET Local Workforce Development Manager, presented a document outlining a plan for OET to be present at all three affiliate locations one day a week. The Board tabled the decision until the impact of the SNAP  E&T and the Medicaid programs on customer flow at the centers could be determined.  Ms. Johnson shared that she had a phone conversation with John Pallasch, OET Executive Director, in March who indicated that OET staff would not be able to leave the hub in Elizabethtown due to budgetary constraints.  Ms. Johnson submitted a request to Mr. Pallasch to reconsider this decision due to American Greetings going from a layoff to a closure.  Ms. Johnson requested that one OET staff be deployed to Bardstown one day a week until the closure in February 2019.  Ms. Johnson indicated that Mr. Pallasch stated they would discuss the request.  The LTWDB was in full support of Ms. Johnson’s request.

NEW BUSINESS

Mo Miller read a letter from Lisa Boone stating her resignation from the Board effective immediately.  Ms. Boone indicated that, after serving for fifteen years, she felt it was time for new people and ideas.  Mr. Miller thanked Ms. Boone for her commitment and dedication to the Board for the past fifteen years.  Ms. Boone also thanked the staff for the support and leadership they have provided during her time on the LTWDB.

Dr. Ellis also thanked everyone for the opportunity to serve on the LTWDB.

ADJOURNMENT

With no further items to discuss the meeting was adjourned.

LINCOLN TRAIL WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT BOARD

ATTENDANCE SHEET

March 20, 2018

 

 

MEMBERS PRESENT: MEMBERS ABSENT  STAFF
Julie Brown

Lisa Boone

Stan Carton

Gary Chapman

Rebel Baker-Chreste

Dr. Evelyn Ellis

Don Howerton

Patricia Krausman

Mo Miller

Trish Niles

Dr. Juston Pate

Al Rider

Ken Ritchie

Joe Ashley*

Mary Cambron*

Daniel Carney*

Myra Covault*

Renard Duvall*

William Deaton

Ryan Henson*

Laura LaRue*

Tom Renfrow

Rep. Dean Schamore*

 

 

 

 

Angela Crenshaw

Carter Dyson

Sherry Johnson

Jackie Masterson

Jim Skees

 

 

GUESTS

Sarah Berkshire

Dianne Bratcher

Jennifer Carman

Diane Kelley

Mark Lord

Brittney Nichols

Liz O’Connor

Katie Stewart

Megan Stith

*Denotes excused absence

The Kentucky Career Center – Lincoln Trail helps match job seekers with local employment and training opportunities. Our business solutions team offers employers of all sizes and industries personalized support to build a competitive workforce. We are an equal opportunity employer.

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Program is funded with Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act Title I funds through the Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet and the Lincoln Trail Workforce Development Board. The Lincoln Trail Workforce Development Board assures compliance with the Education and Labor Cabinet’s Methods of Administration, as amended, Nondiscrimination and Equal Opportunity Assurance and all other Nondiscrimination and Equal Opportunity requirements of WIOA.