MARC Workforce Development Initiatives

The Mid-America Regional Council is involved in several workforce development initiatives in the Kansas City region, including OneKC WIRED, the Walmart Foundation's America Works Initiative, and the green jobs programs described below.

Walmart Foundation/America Works Initiative

MARC was awarded a two-year, $500,000 America Works Initiative grant from the Walmart Foundation in late 2009 to sustain the impact of One KC WIRED. The Kansas City region was one of seven regions chosen to receive the AWI grant. Work is under way with a regional steering committee to develop a Regional Workforce Intelligence System and to continue efforts to strengthen sector-based partnerships.

Regional Workforce Intelligence Network

The Workforce Intelligence Information System assists local agencies with information on existing and future jobs in the Kansas City region, skill requirements, skill gaps, training needs and opportunities for economic growth. This work is an extension of MARC’s role in economic and demographic research. A monthly dashboard and electronic newsletter were launched in February 2011. Newsletters are archived at www.kceconomy.com. In addition, a regional employer survey is underway to better understand employer needs for a trained workforce, and key employers were contacted to solicit participation in a monthly online survey to gauge changes in economic conditions. A regional workforce summit took place in June 2011, where the employer survey results were released. Contact: Jeff Pinkerton, Senior Researcher, at jpinkerton@marc.org or 816-701-8231.

Sector-Based Partnerships
The sector-based partnerships are intended promote a greater understanding of existing partnerships and workforce needs in the Kansas City region. Workshops will provide qualitative input from employers in a collaborative effort to identify sector-wide issues, and support the development of new relationships between workforce investment boards and community colleges to benefit firms in respective sectors. The key sectors being targeted include Biosciences, Health Care, Energy and Allied Manufacturing. Contact: Victoria Ogier, Workforce Development Manager, at vogier@marc.org or 816-701-8308.

MARC receives Walmart Foundation workforce grant, 4/6/10

MARC Green Jobs Programs

MARC has a number of programs related to green jobs through its Environmental Services, Green Impact Zone®, Community Development and Research Services divisions. These programs include:

Green Impact Zone

The Green Impact Zone has developed a jobs pipeline to provide workplace readiness training for zone residents who want to attain long-term employment. Applicants accepted into the jobs pipeline will receive free training for the skills employers are looking for most, and those who successfully complete the training will also receive assistance in connecting those skills to employment opportunities.

The Green Impact Zone initiative is an effort to concentrate resources — with funding, coordination, and public and private partnerships — in one specific area to demonstrate that a targeted effort can literally transform a community. This national model for place-based investment is now underway in the heart of Kansas City's urban core. The project, proposed by U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II, will put people and dollars to work to strengthen neighborhoods, create jobs and improve energy efficiency. The initiative includes housing rehab and weatherization programs, community policing and services, job training and placement, and health and wellness programs, all built around a comprehensive neighborhood outreach program and using sustainability as a catalyst for this transformation.

The Green Impact Zone is a 150-square block area of Kansas City, Mo., that has experienced severe abandonment and economic decline. The zone has experienced extreme abandonment, with about 25 percent of its properties in vacant lots and another one-sixth in vacant structures. Unemployment in Kansas City, Mo., is now 11.7 percent citywide and estimated to be as much as 50 percent in parts of this zone.. The Green Impact Zone strategy is to transform this community to a thriving, sustainable neighborhood — not just to hold the decline at bay. To do this, the zone has assembled a core team of leaders within the neighborhood and community development organizations in the zone, as well as the programmatic, nonprofit, private, and civic leadership necessary to support a comprehensive strategy that will transform the entire zone. www.greenimpactzone.org

Contacts: Anita Maltbia, Director, 816-936-8801; amaltbia@marc.org
Twana Hall-Scott, Assistant Director/Outreach Manager, 816-936-8802; tscott@marc.org

Low-Income Weatherization Program

MARC has received a $4.5 million grant from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources to weatherize the homes of 659 low-income residents of the Smart Grid area, which includes the Green Impact Zone and adjoining neighborhoods in Kansas City, Missouri. MARC has selected a master contractor, Zimmer Energy Solutions, to assist in the determination of eligibility of households and properties, preparation of energy audits and weatherization of eligible properties. This program will operate for 18 months through March 2012.

EnergyWorks KC

MARC is a subcontractor to the city of Kansas City, Missouri, to support energy conservation efforts in the city and throughout the metro area by helping to transform the building retrofit market. MARC will assist the city in educating property owners and assisting them in securing resources to make energy conservation improvements to their properties; in strengthening the workforce development system for energy conservation work; and in promoting innovative practices in energy conservation. The workforce development component will be focused on providing resources for a pipeline to train and place residents of the grant’s seven target neighborhoods, including the Green Impact Zone, and others in energy retrofit careers.

Contacts: Roger Kroh, Energy Program Manager, 816-701-8280, rkroh@marc.org;
Victoria Ogier, Workforce Development Program Manager, 816-701-8308, vogier@marc.org

Street Lights

MARC has been funded by the US Department of Energy to retrofit 4,000 street lights in 26 small cities throughout the metro area. MARC is working with vendors to identify energy efficient lighting and with cities on suitable locations.

Contact: Roger Kroh, Energy Program Manager, 816-701-8280, rkroh@marc.org

Environmental Planning

MARC supports regional planning in areas of air quality, solid waste management and waste reduction/recycling, water quality, green infrastructure and energy conservation. MARC provides environmental training through its Academy for Sustainable Communities. Through many of these programs and in cooperation with a previous MARC program, OneKCWIRED, MARC conducted an analysis of the potential for green jobs with a focus on the construction industry. MARC continues to identify economic opportunities in each of its environmental program areas.

Contact: Tom Jacobs, Environmental Program Director, 816-701-8352, tjacobs@marc.org

One KC WIRED

Over the past five years, MARC provided support to a regional workforce development initiative, One KC WIRED. WIRED’s (Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development) goals were to strengthen the region’s workforce development system and key sector partnerships in support of in industries where opportunities existed for high quality careers and job growth and increase the region’s economic competitiveness. The $15 million grant ended June 30, 2010, and enabled MARC to establish strong partnerships with public and private organizations, and resulted in training for over 1,200 individuals in the areas of advanced manufacturing, biotechnology and health care. More than 3,000 individuals received career assessments through local workforce investment boards.

Contact: Victoria Ogier, Workforce Development Manager, at vogier@marc.org or 816-701-8308.

OneKC WIRED Final Report (3.5 MB)

600 Broadway, Suite 200
Kansas City, MO 64105-1659
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