Workforce Development Board of Oswego County
Business Commons
8:00 a.m.
The mission of the Workforce Development Board of Oswego
County is to attract, develop and maintain a qualified workforce for the Oswego
County community, to assist in economic development by convening community
leaders to engage in strategic planning and facilitating dialogue to educate
and train the workforce needed by today’s and tomorrow’s businesses.
PRESENT: Kathleen Fenlon Dr. Daniel Larson
Don Unger Dave Vickery
Dave Lloyd Eric Behling
Frances Lanigan Dennis McDermott
Dennis Donahue Edward Mervine
Kris Smith Daniel Carman
Paul Kurtzman Dr. Joseph Camerino
Bruce Phelps Mike Treadwell
John Henry Evelyn LiVoti
Jamieson Persse
EXCUSED: Phil Church Chuck Rinoldo
Earnie Pietrykowski Wagner Dotto
Ellen French Nicole Capilli
Rajesh Modi Eileen Ensworth
Joseph Fiumara Diane Cooper-Currier
Connie Smith Donald Watson
OTHERS: Dawn Holynski Janet Lanious
Jeff Grimshaw Chris Weaver
Nancy Bellow Karen Familo
Nick Della Penna Jeanne Apicelli
Patrick Carroll Donald Morgan
Silvia Langdon Jack Alter
Carla DeShaw
1. Welcome: Dave Vickery called the meeting to order. Mr. Vickery welcomed new board members, Jamieson Persse, VP of Sales and Marketing, Eastern Shore Associates; Evelyn LiVoti, Owner of By Detail; John Henry, Owner of Mitchell’s Speedway Press; Donald Morgan, President of IBEW Local 43 who is replacing Dennis McDermott; and Patrick Carroll, Business Manager of the United Association of Plumbers & Steamfitters Local 73 who will be replacing Chuck Rinoldo who has retired.
A quorum was not established with 19 present out of 31.
2. Approval of the June 24, 2009 minutes. A motion was made by Bruce Phelps and seconded by Eric Behling to approve the minutes as presented. The motion was carried.
3. Annual Meeting
·
Desk Review: Jack Alter, CPA, reviewed the desk audit
for the period ending June 30, 2009. A
motion was by Dennis Donahue and seconded by Don Unger to accept the desk
review. The motion was carried
· Annual Report: Nancy Bellow gave an overview of The Workforce Development Board Inc. of Oswego County annual report for the period of July 1, 2008 through June 30, 2009.
· Election of New Officers: Dennis McDermott, chairman of the nominating committee, proposed the following people as officers for a two year term:
Chair: Dave Vickery
Vice Chair: Don Unger
Secretary/Treasurer: Connie Smith
A motion was by Mike Treadwell, and seconded by Fran Lanigan to accept
the nominations. The motion was carried
4. Executive Committee Report: Dave Vickery reported that the committee met on September 9, 2009. Jack Alter gave the results of his annual desk review. The committee also approved a budget modification that accounts for the actual carry-in dollars for the new program year.
The committee reviewed the final performance and spending reports for the program year ’08.
Fran Lanigan provided the committee with an update on the progress of the spending of the Stimulus money.
Nancy Bellow presented a draft of the Annual Report and briefed the committee on the progress of the one-year local plan submission.
Financial Report: Nick
Della Penna reported on the profit and loss statement for July 1, 2009 through August
31, 2009. A motion was made by Paul
Kurtzman and seconded by Dr. Larson to accept the report. The motion was carried.
Budget Modification for
year 2009-2010: Nick Della Penna reported on the proposed budget number one
for program year ‘09. The only changes
to the existing budget are the actual carry-over amounts in two years. A motion was made by Ed Mervine and seconded
by Dr. Camerino to accept the report.
The motion was carried.
Performance Review: Fran reported the fourth quarter figures for period 07/1/08 through 06/30/09. All performance measures are achieved. It is anticipated that approximately $26,686 in incentive funding will be earned.
Three out of six system improvement measures have not been met. The three categories that were not met are:
The Initial Assessment –Regional Goal is still below standard. The measure requires that individuals are assessed and data entered within 5 days. Customers are being assessed within the designated timeframes, but the data entry is behind schedule. There is no penalty for failure to achieve this measure.
Reduce the Number of Participants Who Exit While Still Certifying for UI Benefits – We are currently at 12.1%; 9% is required. Even though the standard was not met, Oswego County is the lowest in the state. There is no penalty for failure to achieve this measure.
The year-end goal for the Metrix Learning Pilot has not been achieved. This was an optional service and there is no sanction for failure to achieve this measure.
Spending: Fran reported the funding period 7/1/08 through 06/30/09. All targets have been met. All financial program requirements for formula funding have been met. The expenditure rate reported to NYS is 93%.
NYS has established a goal of expending at least 15% of ARRA (Stimulus) funding by
June 30, 2009. To
date, 29% has been obligated and 16% has been expended.
Stimulus Funding: The
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) provided additional Workforce
Investment Act Funding. Oswego County
received $1,296,259. The summer work
program was expanded by over 225 slots.
The number of summer conservation crews was expanded from six to
ten. Contracts will continue to provide
computer classes on site at the One-Stop Center. Cayuga Community College and Oswego County BOCES have added
classes to start in September 2009. Two
temporary employment advisors were hired and current staff is working
additional hours to serve customers.
Jeanne Apicelli reported on the different grants for Wage Subsidy benefits for training individuals and employers in Oswego County.
4. Committee Chair Reports: Partners Roundtable – Fran Lanigan reported that the committee did not meet this quarter. The committee is still working on getting the signatures for MOU year 8. They are still working on the final Cost/Benefit Derived spreadsheet for year 9.
The Partners Workforce Workshop group hosted bi-weekly trainer fairs in the Career Center throughout the summer. Sessions were held on Wednesday mornings to allow customers attending training overviews to talk to representatives from various schools.
Evaluation & Franchise – Don Unger reported the committee met on August 19, 2009.
The committee approved the renewal application as the System Operator from the Oswego County Department of Employment and Training. They also approved the renewal application from Oswego County BOCES as an associate site.
The Customer Satisfaction Summary Report was very positive. We had only a handful of “fair” and “poor” responses for the year, from over 300 total responses.
The committee also reviewed the final Classroom Training report for program year ’08. The comments were generally favorable.
The committee reviewed the Business Services Customer Satisfaction Survey results for the fourth quarter. Most of the responses were either “Very Satisfied” or “Satisfied”, with a couple
“Neutral” responses. Activity with the business customers has continued to pick up over the past few months.
Business Development – Mike Treadwell reported the committee met on July 22, 2009.
The committee reviewed the training activities supported by the system. Three customized training programs ran in the fourth quarter of program year ’08-all with Novelis. A total of 17 people participated. A total of 49 people were trained via On-the-Job Training (OJT) contracts for the year. Birds Eye Foods, Huhtamaki, Novelis and Spear USA accounted for over half of these (33).
One local company applied for the BUSINYS Grant, sponsored by New York State Department of Labor (NYSDOL). Pulaski Ticket and Tours submitted their application prior to the July 20 deadline. NYSDOL reported 277 applications were received statewide.
Huhtamaki and Novelis hosted on-site recruitments at the Fulton One-Stop Center during the April-June quarter.
Nancy Bellow reported on the activities of the regional “Green Team”, which was formed to follow-up to 2006 Battelle Report. This report stated that Central Upstate New York is one of our country’s leading regions in several sectors of green technology and innovation. The Green Team consists of six (6) distinct task forces and will assist in the implementation of those policies and programs that support the development and retention of green technology business in our region.
Youth Council – Kathy Fenlon reported that the committee met on July 8, 2009. The committee reviewed the performance results for the first three quarters of program year ’08. All three performance standards for youth have been met, including the literacy/numeracy gain measure, which failed in program year ’07. More youth have been enrolled this year and exiters are managed closely.
The Youth Employment Summit will be held on Friday, October 16 in Sheldon Hall on the SUNY Oswego campus. The youth employment speaker, Edward DeJesus, will kickoff the event. His speaker fee will be funded through a mini grant. Many local businesses have contributed toward this summit.
Skills and Training – Dennis McDermott reported that the committee met on September 2, 2009. The committee reviewed the Training Program for all of PY’08 (July-March). For the year, 286 Adults and 141 Dislocated Workers were active, with 238 Adults and 141 Dislocated Workers completing their training. There were 77 On-the-Job trainees (OJT), and 66 Adults participated in Customized training.
On the Job Training (OJT) and Customized Training activity continues to be slow due to the economic conditions of the region. Individual Training Accounts (ITA’s) have been utilized to support vocational training for 198 people. ITA’s were utilized most by people looking to enter the medical field (95). These people have been very successful finding employment upon the completion of their training. Twenty-eight different training institutions during the program year were utilized.
Donna Donablella updated the committee on the Literacy Coalition project. The Ben Snow Foundation approved their revised plan for the use of $10,000 grant they received. The committee is still waiting to hear back from the Gifford Foundation for their request for additional funding. The Coalition has received an Even Start grant which will be focused on family literacy in Hannibal, Oswego and Fulton.
A motion was made by Dave Lloyd and seconded by Paul Kurtzman to accept
the committee reports. The motion was
carried.
5. Director’s Report:
One-Year Plan Extension – The local Board is required to submit a plan modification to amend and extend the exiting plan through June 30, 2010. The plan modification will become the basis for local area policy and monitoring. The plan includes requirements for use of the funding recently awarded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).
The plan modification is required to be made available for a 30 day public comment period. A public notice was run in the official county newspapers. The plan was made available 8/11/09 through 9/10/09 for the 30 day period. No comments were received.
The plan must be submitted by September 18, 2009
Nancy Bellow commented on changes to the Priority of Service Policy and the Needs-Related Payments (NRP) Policy.
A motion was made by Mike Treadwell and seconded by Fran Lanigan to
adopt the new policies. The motion was
carried.
The proposed calendar for 2010 was distributed and Nancy asked that board members review the calendar and contact her office of any issues for conflicts. The final calendar will be presented at the December 9, 2009 meeting.
6. Workforce Spotlight – Oswego County 2009 Summer Youth Program was presented by Janet Lanious, Jeanne Apicelli and Silvia Langdon, from the Oswego County Department of Employment and Training.
7. Next meeting will be held Wednesday, December 9, 2009 – 8 a.m., 118A Rich Hall.