The Solutions Workshops will present successful and innovative policies, programs, and practices from across Ohio and the nation that link economic development and workforce development. A focus of the workshop discussions will be the steps that Ohio can take to advance these initiatives in order to benefit employers, families, and communities throughout the state.

1. Addressing the Manufacturing Skills Gap Topic: Strategies to address manufacturing sector skill shortages, including sectoral employment development programs; manufacturing education centers; and regional collaborations to advance manufacturing competitiveness. Workshop discussion will include: initiatives of the National Center for Manufacturing Education at Sinclair Community College; WIRE-Net Manufacturing Sector Assistance Programs; and the Manufacturing Advocacy & Growth Network in Northeast Ohio. Panelists:
Presentations: Colm    Schron   Pfarr John Colm, President, WIRE-Net (Cleveland) Jack Schron, Jr., President, Tooling University, and Board of Directors, MAGNET (Manufacturing Advocacy & Growth Network) (Cleveland) Monica Pfarr, Director, National Center for Manufacturing Education (Dayton)
2. The Role of Business Leaders in Workforce Development Policy Topic: The role that the business community, corporate leaders, and chambers of commerce can play in state and local workforce development initiatives. Workshop discussion will include: benefits and challenges of business participation on Workforce Investment Boards; the employer’s perspective on workforce development and how to create real partnerships with economic development; and the Savannah Area Chamber of Commerce Project Workforce and Poverty Reduction Initiative. Panelists:
Presentations: Bonifacio Patricia A. Grischow, Senior Government Affairs Specialist, The Timken Company, and member, Governor’s Workforce Policy Board (Cleveland) Bob Milbourne, President, The Columbus Partnership (Columbus) Tina Bonifacio, Vice President, Workforce and Economic Development, Savannah Area Chamber of Commerce (Savannah, Georgia)
3. Developing Transitional Jobs for the Hard-to-Employ Topic: Programs that help persons with little education, low-literacy levels, and no work history (ex-offenders, persons with disabilities, persons who are homeless, refugees and immigrants, TANF recipients) connect to the labor market. Workshop discussion will include: overview of transitional employment in Ohio; Transitional Jobs 101: The Basics of a Successful Program; and Cleveland-area funder partnerships to support transitional jobs initiatives. Panelists:
Presentations: Linton       Mueller Michael Linton, CEO, Dawson Resources, and member, Governor’s Workforce Policy Board (Columbus) George Coulter, Greater Cleveland Partnership, Director of Workforce Development and Education (Cleveland) Jan Mueller, Director,New Workforce Program Development, Lifetrack Resources (St. Paul, Minnesota)
4. Increasing Investment in Adult Education and Training Topic: Innovative state financing programs for adult education and training, including TANF funding for career pathways programs; 529 matching programs; and training grants from employer contributions to Unemployment Insurance tax funds. Workshop discussion will include: Ohio investment in adult education and training; the Arkansas TANF-funded Career Pathways Initiative; overview of need-based components of state 529 College Savings Plans; and the Massachusetts Workforce Training Fund. Panelists:
Presentations: Leach Bruce Madson, Assistant Director, Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (Columbus) Mike Leach, Policy Program Director, Southern Good Faith Fund, (Little Rock, Arkansas) Vincent Lopes, Director of Operations, Massachusetts Workforce Training Fund Program (Boston)
5. Economic Development in the Knowledge Economy Topic: The changing role of state and local government economic development professionals as “human capital” investment becomes a focus of their work. Workshop discussion will include: the economic development profession in Ohio; New York’s business-focused, WIA-funded Workforce1 Career Center; and The Economic Development and Workforce Connection in Building Regional Competitiveness. Panelists:
Presentations: Ryan    Henton Jean Carter Ryan, Deputy Director for Economic Development, Ohio Department of Development (Columbus) Doug Henton, President and founder, Collaborative Economics ( Mountain View, California) Omer Mohammed, Director of Workforce Strategy and Policy, Workforce Development, New York City Department of Small Business Services
6. Redesigning Adult Learning Environments Topic: The use of information technology, course redesign, and flexible course schedules and locations to improve learning outcomes for adult and low-income students and reduce the cost, and increase the accessibility, of education and training. Workshop discussion will include: the Ohio Learning Network; Owens Community College open entry/open exit programs; and Central Ohio Technical College blended model of classroom and distance learning. Panelists:
Presentations: Coe Kate M. Carey, Executive Director, Ohio Learning Network (Columbus) Linda Stacy, Vice President, Owens Community College (Toledo) Bonnie Coe, President, Central Ohio Technical College (Newark, Ohio)
7. Government and Business Partnerships for Worker Training Topic: Partnerships between businesses and government to design and deliver skills-development and customized training and retraining programs, including grants to business-educational institution partnerships for worker training, and state skills certificates. Workshop discussion will include: the Texas Skills Development Fund; the Georgia State Certified Specialists Programs; and the Minnesota Jobs Skills Partnership Program. Panelists:
Presentations: Griffin Don Baylor, Policy Analyst, Center for Public Policy Priorities (Austin, Texas) Pamela Griffin, Director, Georgia Department of Technical and Adult Education (Atlanta) Carrie Thomas, Policy Director, Jobs Now Coalition, and vice-chair, Minnesota Jobs Skills Partnership Board (St. Paul, Minnesota)
8. Worker Supports for Employment and Family Stability Topic: The role of work supports, such as health care, child cares subsidies, earned income tax credits, and paid leave, in employment and family stability for low-wage workers, and employer involvement in work supports as a strategy for worker recruitment and retention. Workshop discussion will include: the status of worker supports in Ohio; the Finance Project’s publication, Work Supports and Low-Wage Workers: The Promise of Employer Involvement; and national and state advocacy efforts for state policies to make work more family-friendly. Panelists:
Presentations: Corlett    Relave    Hatcher John Corlett, Senior Fellow and Director, Public Policy and Advocacy, Center for Community Solutions (Cleveland) Nanette Relave, Senior Program Associate, The Finance Project (Washington, D.C.) Taylor Hatcher, Coordinator of Policy and Advocacy, Nat'l Partnership for Women and Families (Washington, D.C.)