At the March COG Board of Directors meeting, The Community Foundation President and CEO Bruce McNamer and DC Appleseed Executive Director Walter Smith released the Maximizing WIOA’s Potential Report. The report – which was produced by The Community Foundation, DC Appleseed, DC Fiscal Policy Institute, Job Opportunities Task Force, Maryland Center on Economic Policy, and The Commonwealth Institute – analyzes the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) plans in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia and identifies opportunities for cross-jurisdictional collaboration on workforce development.

Per the Department of Labor, WIOA was designed for all states to improve their workforce training and education systems. The WIOA report aims to help local governments share best practices on workforce development that better meet the needs of job seekers, employees, and employers and ultimately achieve a more effective and coordinated regional workforce system.

In support of regional collaboration related to workforce development, COG recently released its 2017 State of the Region Human Capital Report, which looks at the region’s population, households, and employment, and provides a picture of the region’s talent needs now and in the future. In 2017, COG plans to work with partners to advance workforce development initiatives in the region.

Together these reports provide a foundation and direction for strengthening the region’s economy by focusing on one of its most valuable assets – its workers – and making sure they are prepared for in-demand jobs.

MORE: View materials and listen to audio from the March COG Board meeting.