MCC Economic & Workforce Development Center: Impact Report 2015-17

JPMorgan Chase Foundation “New Skills at Work” Initiative Helping to fill chronically unfilled positions.

In January 2015, the MCC economic and workforce development division was awarded a $320,000 grant from the JPMorgan Chase Foundation to create a Middle-Skills Bridge Program, support accelerated certificate programs, and enhance the division’s labor market intelligence efforts. The aim is to increase the pool of qualified workers available to employers in high-demand middle-skills workforce clusters—where jobs often go unfilled. The Middle-Skills Bridge Program is an intensive 10- week program focused on developmental education to improve English and math skills. Program partners to date include the Veterans Outreach Center, SUNY

ATTAIN Lab, Ibero Action League, Action for a Better Community, and Rochester Refugee Resettlement Services. The program is designed to academically prepare participants to successfully move directly into a post-secondary career technical education program upon completion. This project also supported the MCC accelerated precision tooling and mechatronics certificates, and continued growth of labor market intelligence efforts. A beta 1.0 web platform was launched to share labor market analyses ( www.mcclmi.com ), and the platform houses 9 new analyses spanning 3 New York State regions.

Impact: At the end of year one, 66% of students enrolled in the middle-skills bridge program completed and transitioned to accelerated career technical education programs. Accelerated programs enable students to earn a certificate in half the time—and gain employment within a year – 85% of students successfully complete an MCC accelerated, cohort- based program, and the job placement rate is 90%.

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