Delaware Workforce Investment Board
Minutes of September 13, 2000
Sheraton Dover Hotel


Members Present: Lisa Blunt-Bradley, Jeffrey Bross, Ed Capadanno, Gov. Tom Carper (by phone), Judy Cherry, Alice Coleman, Clifford Crouch, William DeLauder, Patricia DiEmidio, Bruce Fitzgerald, Teresa Gallagher, Orlando George, Wayne George, Linda Graham, Nathan Hill, Sam Lathem, John McMahon, Darrell Minott, Frank Mossman, Sandra Reyes, Janice Rheingold, Fred Sears, Doug Smith, Jeffrey Swain, Gregg Sylvester, Patricia Troy, Duane Wayman.

  1. Welcome - Chairman Fred Sears welcomed new members Patricia DiEmidio (NCC - replacing Tom Gordon) and Patricia Troy (NCC).
    Harry Sanchez, (DE Commission of Veterans Affairs) no longer a member on the board, will need to be replaced.

  2. Minutes - of the May 5, 2000 meeting were reviewed and approved.

  3. Recognition Award - Chairman presented the first WIB award of merit to DOL staff member Lou Masci for an outstanding job in designing the State 5-Year Strategic Plan. This plan was submitted by the Board to the US Dept. of Labor for approval, for implementation of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA), thereby making Delaware eligible to receive federal WIA money.

    4. Lou also has been appointed by the Governor as the new director of E&T at the Dept. of Labor, replacing Mike Benefield.

  4. Governor Carper Remarks - The Governor commented on some of his goals and accomplishments during the past 8 years, via a conference telephone call to the Board. He highlighted the success of his State Education Plan, new standards set for students and the achievements of schools across the state. He then thanked everyone serving on the DWIB over the past 12 months, all staff members, and committee members for a job well done.

  5. Committee Reports -

    Executive & Policy - Chairman Fred Sears reported that the Executive Committee met on June 20th , certifying 112 training programs recommended by the Proposal Review & Certification Committee, and approving performance results . The committee also decided that future Board meetings for 2001 will be held at 8:30 a.m. on Feb. 22, May 3, and Oct. 11, 2001. (Locations to be announced later). The following members serve as the Executive Committee: Fred Sears, Suzanne Moore, Judy Cherry, Lisa Blunt-Bradley, John McMahon, Darrell Minott, Gregg Sylvester, Duane Wayman, & Valerie Woodruff.
    Fred also informed the Board of his attendance to the Annual Meeting of State Workforce Chairs held in Sun Valley, Idaho. He stated that this conference was very interesting and comments were sent to the Governor and Secretary of Labor.

    Performance Measures/Customer Satisfaction - Judy Cherry stated that the final targets agreed upon were enclosed in minutes and sent out to Board members. Also, met with another committee to discuss certification. A report on customer satisfaction will be given at the next Board meeting.

    Public Relations/Outreach - Lisa Blunt-Bradley reported on the status of the one-stop career centers at DOL, satellite centers in Probation & Parole, and the start-up of centers in the near future at DOE and state service centers through the Dept. of Health & Social Services. The goal of this committee is to make the Delaware Career Network a household name. She discussed the VCNet through the Dept. of Labor, Kick-off PR and other PR ongoing activities. 

    6. This committee voted at the last meeting to use the name delawareworks.com for all future DWIB website information. Also suggested at this meeting to help get the message out was the possibility of acquiring a Delawareworksmobile (similar to the bookmobile used in communities in the past) to reach out to people. However, this would involve the help of corporate partners.

    Proposal Review and Certification - Duane Wayman reported on the accomplishments of this committee, including the certification of new programs. He stated that some of the youth funding was combined with blue collar funds and that staff had met with contractors to resolve all the issues. Future meetings of staff & contractors to review the 1st quarter performance are scheduled for Oct. 19,24, & 26th, 8:30 a.m. - 4 p.m. at Belmont Hall, Smyrna. All members are invited to attend. 

    Performance information was logged onto the VCNet in September, new forms are being provided, and new data is being logged into the system.

    Duane then commented on ITA certification and the consumer report which allows providers to access training program information via the internet. He acknowledged Jim McFadden and the OOLMI /DOL team for the success of this informational / data service.

    Youth Council - John McMahon reported that this committee had met to review youth proposals. A total of 19 proposals were reviewed, allocating $3.5M. The committee met from 8:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. He thanked the members for their participation and hard work performed throughout the day. This committee met again on Sept. 6 to review the outcome of the first meeting, and to make suggestions for improvements in future review meetings.

  6. Bob Strong (DOE) gave a status report on the school-to-work program, followed by a report from JoAnne Miro (DOE) on Career Awareness Work Stations, which are one-stop centers for school students (similar to the one-stop for adults) to access educational and job opportunities information. This project is a joint effort of the DOE, DOL, DOC, and HSS.

Janis McCullough (OOLMI/DOL) gave a demonstration on how to access the internet for information on the delawareworks.com, the VCNet, the Delaware's Career Network, and the OOLMI.net.

  1. Jim McFadden, (OOLMI) gave an overview of the WIA partnership and the Consumer Report System, followed by a demonstration from Mike Hojnicki (DOL) on how to access the Web for WIB consumer information. He stated that all information is entered by the provider and it's up to them to keep all information current. A performance report is provided, and a map of their location. A comparison with other programs can be made also.

  2. Lou Masci, (DET/DOL) commented on grant opportunities forthcoming in the near future, in which the WIB should participate. He stated that this would be a joint project of the WIB and the Philadelphia Office, to apply for approximately 15 grants. These grants will consist of alien certification programs and technology programs.