Community Partnerships for Adult Learning
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Supported by the Office of Vocational and Adult Education
of the U.S. Department of Education
The North Idaho College Adult Education Center
Highlights
Introduction
Background
Adult Education In North Idaho
Partnerships With The Adult Education Center
Northern Idaho College
The Educational Opportunity Center
North Idaho Workforce Investment Board
The Job Service
The Idaho Division of Vocational Rehabilitation
The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare
Family Literacy Programs
School Districts
Sharing Resources
Sharing Successes And Challenges
Conclusion
Complete Profile (PDF, 366kb)
Return to Summary

PARTNERSHIPS WITH THE ADULT EDUCATION CENTER
North Idaho Workforce Investment Board

The federal WIA mandated the formation of a Workforce Investment Board to be responsible for coordinating all agencies involved in workforce development. With the assistance of staff from the Panhandle Area Council (PAC), a nonprofit foundation focused on economic development, the Workforce Investment Board helps the region meet the requirements of WIA. It oversees the One-Stop Center and designated three local organizations—NIC, the Job Service, and the Idaho Commission on Aging—to be the Center's operators. It also continually brings community organizations together to address workforce development issues. These organizations work closely together on adult education, job-readiness training and job placements, employer relations, economic development, and other workforce development issues.

Many of these organizations serve on the Regional Collaborative Team, formed originally as the result of the federal One-Stop grant. The Team continues to meet regularly, years after the grant ended, to work on community issues in addition to workforce development. The Team has representatives from such agencies as the Adult Education Center, NIC, Department of Health and Welfare, the Department of Vocational Rehabilitation, Job Service, and the Idaho Industrial Commission. RCT meetings serve as steering committee, sounding board, and information swap. As one member describes it, "The Team serves as a way of allowing organizations to see how they fit in the community and helps them define the services they provide." The RCT enables partners to:

  • Plan and develop solutions to community problems (e.g., transportation).

  • Announce changes and updates and share information (e.g., members provide or arrange for presentations on topics of common interest).

  • Check for the duplication or inefficient delivery of services and seek ways to integrate services.

  • Identify existing and potential resources (e.g., new grants).

  • Continue to strengthen relationships.