MICHIGAN WORKS! SOUTHEAST ANNUAL REPORT

Looking Back on a Year of Growth & Opportunity

JULY 2020 - JUNE 2021

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A Message from our Directors

We're thrilled to be here today with a full year of experience as Directors of Michigan Works! Southeast. 2021 was a year of growth and development; the lessons learned and obstacles we overcame together has given ourselves and Michigan Works! Southeast a new sense of pride and opportunity!

What will 2022 have in store for us? Check out this short video to hear our vision!

Thank You Marcus James!

Marcus James has dedicated over 20 years to workforce development in the State of Michigan, and for that we are grateful. In 2021, Marcus chose to retire from his the role as the Workforce Development Board Chair, where he provided guidance, oversight and leadership to Michigan Works! Southeast. During his time as Chair, he contributed to the growth, connections and strategy of our agency and the Governors statewide Workforce Development Board. Marcus is known by many for his love of data, and has always been driven by his cerebral approach to leadership. We look forward to continue working with Marcus on the Workforce Development Board as a highly engaged participating member.

Michigan Works! Southeast Leadership Team

2021 Year in Review

2,509 Program Participants

1,347

Wagner-Peyser

186

WIOA Adult

111

Clean Slate

105

Youth

95

WIOA Dislocated Worker

19

Business Resource Networks

6

Trade Adjustment Act

1

FAE&T

2851

People Served

2293

Jobs Found

3931

Total Visitors

478

Employers Engaged

Fiscal Summary

As of July 2021

Other: $1,533,244

Wagner-Peyser: $966,819

Department of Health & Human Services (DHHS): $3,567,669

Workforce Innovation & Opportunity Act (WIOA): $4,112,266

Administrative Operating Costs: $383,215

Administrative Wages & Fringes: $3,813,576

Program Operating Costs: $2,650,638

Workforce Innovation & Opportunity Act (WIOA): $2,403,785

Program & Subcontractor Wages & Fringes: $3,813,576

What Businesses are Saying

  • The Going PRO Award has allowed for great success in addressing our greatest concerns at this time: recruiting and developing new employees for our skilled and dynamic workplace as well as offering further training opportunities to our current dedicated employees to keep up with the drastic advancements in technology our industry continues to enjoy.
  • Each year Henry Ford Allegiance Health brings in a large group of Graduate Nurse Residents. Our partnership with Michigan Works and the Going PRO Talent Fund allows our organization to continue to provide our high quality training and extended orientation for our new graduate nurses. It is critical that we provide appropriate on the job training to our new nurses to assure safe high quality healthcare for our community. The partnership with Michigan Works has helped support our ongoing work of training our future nursing staff to continue to provide the high quality exceptional care our community has come to expect. Additionally, the support has allowed us to continue to hire and train a large pool of exceptional staff members.
  • Your instructors have done a superb job in taking my workforce talent to a new and higher level. The level of welding surpassed my expectations. What these individuals have achieved in such a short period of time is quite remarkable given the time frame and duration of course.
  • We've had numerous occasions to work with MWSE. In all cases, the service they provided directly assisted us in attracting new companies to Tecumseh, as well assisting current companies in their expansion efforts. One of the single most important factors that most relocation decision include is the available workforce and training. I have found that the response we receive with the services and dollars that are offered through MWSE have been attention grabbing to these companies. In addition, the research that MWSE provides to these new organizations is by far something that we could not have accomplished on our own.
  • We were able to hire 2 construction crew members that started this past Monday from a job fair at Michigan Works! Southeast. This is a great number as construction crew members that are willing to start right away and are willing to travel are few and far in between.
  • Michigan Works! Southeast put us in touch with other critical partners to assist us with recruiting. They hosted weekly informational and interview sessions so that we could tell prospective candidates about UPS. When we started our hiring process and helped us to partner with and have our orientation sessions with approximately 30 new employees at their facility. We had a very successful peak season in our new Howell facility. We couldn't have done it without our partners from Michigan Works!. We expect to continue our partnership with Michigan Works! and will count on them to help us with our staffing needs into the future.

Going PRO Talent Fund

We received over $3 Million to help local businesses create jobs and upskill their current employees!

“This has been a great opportunity for QED’s engineering team to learn some of the basic development tools/skills to ensure higher quality product. The Going PRO Talent Fund gave us the funding needed to send the whole engineering tam and get us all on an equal understanding of these tools at once.”

John Paul B., Employee at QED Environmental

*Actual expenditures from 2021 may vary from awarded amount.

Clean Slate & Expungement

A series of Expungement Events were hosted across the region to give residents the chance to have their criminal records expunged. In partnership with Legal Services of South Central Michigan (LSSCM), city officials, and local law enforcement over 100 expungement applications were submitted - giving job seekers hope for a second chance at gainful employment!

Virtual Career Events

To meet the needs of local businesses while ensuring a safe environment, we’ve hosted numerous virtual job fairs. Through the State of Michigan’s Brazen platform, hundreds of job seekers were connected to new careers and opportunities!

Legislative & Community Engagement

MiCareer Quest South

40 Employers showcased their careers to over 3,000+ attendees at our regions largest virtual career exploration event. MiCareerQuest South gave middle and high school students the opportunity to speak directly with working professionals to learn about the top careers in our region such as healthcare, construction, advanced manufacturing and more.

“MWSE has made it possible to connect young people with current employers to help them navigate the exploration of future career opportunities. It is an easy, yet exciting chance for students to get a glimpse into their possible futures.”

Kevin Oxley, Superintendent at Jackson County ISD

Summer Youth Energy Academy

To build a connection point between high school energy classes and Jackson College’s energy programs, our Jackson team partnered with Consumers Energy to create the Summer Youth Energy Academy. The Academy gives Jackson-area youth real-world training for energy careers and a stipend equivalent to $12.50/hr. The inaugural Summer Youth Academy concluded in July, with all 10 students successfully completing their training.

Invaluable Experiences:

  • Wind farm field trip in Jonesville
  • Field trip to Consumers Training Facility in Marshall
  • Mock interviews with MWSE & Consumers Staff
  • CPR/First Aide Training Certification
  • Consumers job exploration with staff

Local Impact

Hillsdale

  • Our team provided 1,000 backpacks to Hillsdale County Schools for Safety Security Day.
  • We partnered with Jackson College to offer “Connect with My Future,” giving eligible participants the opportunity to complete a college certificate at little or no cost.
  • We worked with County National Bank to help job seekers without an account to waive their opening balance fee.

Jackson

  • We partnered with Access for All to provide WorkKeys testing for participants enrolled in pre-apprenticeship training.
  • Our team co-hosted an “All-Trades Career Fair” with the Michigan AFL-CIO, Workforce Development Institute, and Access for All at the Martin Luther King Jr. Center in downtown Jackson.
  • Through continued partnership with Andy’s Place, a long-term substance abuse treatment and rehabilitation community, our team connects members to actively hiring employers and additional resources.

Lenawee

  • Our team distributed over $25,000 worth of COVID Relief gift cards to individuals in need in partnership with the Lenawee Community Foundation.
  • In collaboration with Wacker Chemical and Anderson Development, a virtual job fair was hosted on the State of Michigan’s Brazen platform to attract talent to the chemical industry.
  • Over 50 individuals received assistance with tuition and employment training throughout the year.

Livingston

  • The Livingston Service Center moved to a new location in downtown Howell, offering wider space and easier access for the Livingston Community.
  • In April we hosted “Jump-Start Your Future:” a virtual event for non-college bound high school seniors. The event was in collaboration with LESA and the local MCAN.
  • Representative Bob Bezotte invited us to his virtual “Coffee Hour” where we shared our services with the Livingston Community.

Washtenaw

  • We partnered with Washtenaw Community College to create two industry-specific bootcamps to help job seekers transition into high-demand fields such as Cybersecurity and Long-Term Healthcare.
  • Our team partnered with the Washtenaw County Health Department to provide paid work experiences for 6 individuals using COVID relief funds.
  • Over 125 expungement applications were submitted at our annual Expungement Fair. Our team continues to work closely with Legal Services of South-Central Michigan to process these cases.