Everybody Counts
Everybody Counts is a dynamic new initiative from Team Kentucky that provides a clear pathway to success for qualifying seniors graduating from participating Kentucky school districts. The initiative benefits graduating seniors as well as businesses, local communities, and Kentucky's economy. https://everybodycounts.ky.gov/Pages/index.aspx
Digital Equity
The Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet (ELC) became the lead agency responsible for administering the State Digital Equity Plan. The Broadband, Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program is administered separately under the guidance of the Kentucky Office of Broadband Development (OBD). The ELC has collaborated with the OBD while developing the Kentucky Digital Equity Plan. BEAD and Digital Equity funds will be used to implement broadband infrastructure expansion and digital equity/digital inclusion programs as part of the Commonwealth's Better Internet Plan. https://digitalequity.ky.gov/Pages/index.aspx
LAUNCH Initiative
Kentucky is one of seven states involved in the Launch: Equitable and Accelerated Career Pathways for All Impact Cohort. Launch is a national college and career pathway initiative that strives for every learner to have access to and succeed in high quality and equitable pathways through opportunities in advising and student supports, work-based learning, credentials of value, and seamless transitions between K12, postsecondary, and the workforce. To accomplish this, the initiative strives to drive a national agenda for college and career pathways; work with state and local partnerships to advance equitable growth and scaling of pathways by tackling entrenched inequities in education and workforce systems; advance pathways policies and strategies that help achieve greater scale and sustainability; and seed and grow next-generation models that will transform career pathways systems and dismantle entrenched barriers that perpetuate inequities in economic advancement. When done right, college and career pathways provide intentional, career-aligned courses that span secondary and postsecondary education; embed meaningful work-based learning experiences; and lead to credentials of value. https://launchpathways.org/ & https://launchpathways.org/impact-sites-kentucky/
Commonwealth Education Continuum
The Commonwealth Education Continuum (CEC) exists to strengthen Kentucky's education pipeline. Its work addresses the moral imperative for students to have access and opportunity to earn degrees and credentials that lead to sustainable, competitive-wage careers. https://cpe.ky.gov/ourwork/cec.html
Jobs on Day One
Jobs on Day One creates a statewide framework that is customizable to the local community through a three-phased approach: pre-release training and education, employment immediately upon release (or a job on day one), and supportive services that help retain individuals through the workforce development ecosystem. This cohesion provides an avenue for all partners to collaborate in their space to ultimately strengthen employment outcomes, build talent pipelines for employers, and reduce recidivism that in due time leads to stronger communities.
The Jobs on Day One collaborative spirit has led to Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear highlighting this initiative as a critical talent strategy component that addresses employer demands with a skilled workforce.
Analyzing Benefit Cliffs
Families' benefit cliffs occur when an increase in parents' income causes them to lose access to a public benefit program, and the loss of the benefit results in a negative drop or “cliff" in net resources. These cliffs leave families with reduced financial resources even as earnings increase.
When faced with benefit cliffs, parents may elect to leave the workforce, turn down new jobs or promotions, or avoid working additional hours in order to continue to receive benefits for themselves and their families. Benefit cliffs can trap workers in employment with lower salaries and limited hours of work, preventing advancement and prosperity. For some families, these cliffs keep them in poverty, unable to move beyond low-income wages. Alternatively, if workers “power through" benefit cliffs, the resulting loss of net resources can be significant enough to return them to poverty before they can increase their earnings further.
Kentucky is focused on understanding where cliffs happen, what strategic objectives can be completed administratively, and how to maximize the opportunity for individuals on benefits to reenter the workforce while educating businesses on this issue. Such action is best taken collectively through continuous collaboration between the appropriate stakeholders including the Education and Labor Cabinet (ELC), the Cabinet for Health and Family Services (CHFS), employers, community-based organizations, and the individuals who are impacted. If reentering the workforce into a good job is the priority with minimal impact from the benefit cliffs, then the stakeholders at the table have an obligation to find solutions.