SkillWorks Fellowship Showcase for Workforce Innovation

January 30, 2024

At WBUR's CitySpace on January 30, SkillWorks was proud to present the ongoing work of eight teams of SkillWorks Fellows - organizations that are working to rethink the way we train and prepare a new generation of workers for high-quality, family-sustaining careers. 

After introductions from Andre Green, Executive Director of SkillWorks and Lauren Jones, the Massachusetts Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development, each team presented their program development to date, and made their case for where further funding could take their work. 
Presenters included:

Invisible Glue/Center for Health, Education, Research, and Service (CCHERS): Sage Carbone, Director of Community Programs, Fenway CDC

CONNECT/The Neighborhood Developers: Alexa Shabecoff, CONNECT Director

SelfCorps/International Institute of New England (IINE): Kubana Alexis, Associate Director, Workforce Development

Life Science Careers Advancement Project/Just-A-Start: Miriam Ortiz, Director, Education & Training


STRIVE Boston: Taron Tibbs, Program Manager

Job Quality Benchmarking index/JVS Boston: Mandy Townsend, Senior Vice President of Employer Engagement

Hack.Diversity: Angela Liu & Cait Davison Chief Officer, Strategy and Growth & Associate Director, Boston

New England Culinary Arts Training (NECAT): Jim Carey, Career Services Director

Invisible Glue/CCHERS

SelfCorps/IINE 

STRIVE Boston

Hack.Diversity

CONNECT

Just-A-Start

JVS Boston

NECAT

Project Summary: SkillWorks Fellowship

Solution & Design Lab for Workforce Innovation

The Problem: The current workforce development system has failed to move disadvantaged populations, predominantly people of color, out of poverty; reinforcing inequitable outcomes and perpetuating the racial wealth gap and inequities.

The Goal: To enable nonprofits to design innovations to make improvements to their capabilities and their theory of change or model of serving individuals that could be implemented with adequate funding to support trainees toward a life-sustaining wage, not simply an initial job placement. Solutions must be action oriented and a manageable task for the proposing organization.

The Theory of Change: Our theory is that if given flexible funding, access to capacity building and technical assistance resources, and time, thoughtful workforce development organizations have the expertise to design innovative and actionable solutions to problematic systems, driving more equitable outcomes.

Design Grants: 1 year/$50,000 (6 awarded)

  • General operating support to develop project plans for possible future implementation of design ideas.
  • Includes membership and access to Solution Design Lab, coaching and technical assistance.

Solutions Grants: 2 year/$200,000 (3 awarded)

  • General operating support to develop and pilot implementation-ready solutions.
  • Access to an additional $25,000 each year for access to 1:1 coaching and technical assistance from consultants contracted through the SkillWorks Fellowship. 

What is innovative?

  • A less onerous process with presentations or pitches by the invited organizations; no formal proposal or budget.
  • Each organization picked a problem to tackle based on its experience, expertise, and proximity to their selected problem and affected populations.
  • Non-prescriptive and unrestricted grants with minimal reporting requirements.
  • Availability of learning sessions, technical assistance, and relationship building and learning from other organizations.