FULL EMPLOYMENT COUNCIL

Hello, board members, elected officials and stakeholders!

Last week, FEC hosted a convening of workforce development leaders from 12 of the largest urban epicenters in the Midwest to exchange information and share best practices. This collaboration is the Midwest Urban Strategies consortium and I wanted to take a moment to fill you in on the important work we are doing to impact both workforce development and economic development in the region.

Best regards, Clyde McQueen

President & CEO of the Full Employment Council, Inc.

The group met Oct. 17 through 19, 2018 to discuss business and hear from partners of the Greater Kansas City Workforce Development System including Local Initiative Support Corp. (LISC), leading healthcare employers in the Kansas City area, and a representative from the office of Senator Roy Blunt. The three-day convening offered the leaders the opportunity to share the successes and strengths of each workforce development board in order to replicate them on a regional scale. Read more...

Workforce leaders from 12 of the largest cities in the Midwest met in Kansas City on Oct. 17 through 19 to exchange information and share best practices. Together with their host, Mr. Clyde McQueen, President CEO of the Full Employment Council and chairman of the consortium, these 13 workforce development leaders from the largest urban areas in the region have joined forces to form Midwest Urban Strategies, a partnership made up of urban workforce system leaders from: Chicago, Illinois; Cincinnati, Ohio; Cleveland, Ohio; Columbus, Ohio; Detroit, Michigan; Gary, Indiana; Indianapolis, Indiana; Kansas City, Missouri; Minneapolis, Minnesota; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; St. Louis, Missouri; and Wichita, Kansas. This partnership is the first of its kind in the United States. The collaboration between these urban cities is intended to reduce unemployment, underemployment of area residents through 21st Century training and career development systems by capitalizing on the diversity and unique opportunities of the region as well as the individual urban centers. The U.S. Department of Labor is also an active member of the group, providing technical assistance and guidance on national and regional workforce priorities.

The group met in Kansas City, Missouri on Oct. 17 through 19, 2018 to discuss business and hear from partners of the Kansas City Workforce Development System including Local Initiative Support Corp. (LISC), leading healthcare employers in the Kanas City area, Congressman Emanuel Cleaver and a representative from the office of Senator Roy Blunt. The three-day convening offered the leaders the opportunity share the successes and strengths of each workforce development board in order to replicate them on a regional scale. As federal policy and funding is shifting, these models are emerging as a scalable, replicable and sustainable. Through these collaborations, the public workforce system is actively impacting economic development through wide-scale project planning and implementation.

By leveraging each city’s unique strengths in training approaches, employer engagement, and resource sharing, the group has been awarded over $20,000,000 in funding nationally from the U.S. Department of Labor and private sources to identify and apply best practices that serve the region collectively. Most recently, over $7,000,000 in funding was secured to service dislocated workers in the region. The members of Midwest Urban Strategies bring the comprehensive force of their partnerships to the table to build a stronger economy for the entire Midwest.