Tennessee Higher Education Commission
Richard G. Rhoda, Executive Director

On August 7, 1998, President Clinton signed the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA)-comprehensive reform legislation that superseded the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA) and amended the Wagner-Peyser Act. The WIA reformed Federal job training programs and created a new, comprehensive workforce investment system. The reformed system was intended to be customer-focused, to help Americans access the tools they need to manage their careers through information and high quality services, and to help U.S. companies find skilled workers.

Streamlined Services Through the One-Stop Delivery System:

Programs and providers co-locate, coordinate, and integrate activities and information, so that the system as a whole is coherent and accessible for individuals and businesses alike.

Empowering Individuals:

WIA provides financial power through Individual Training Accounts, while simultaneously offering greater levels of information and guidance, through the one-stop delivery system.

Universal Access:

All individuals have access to the one-stop system and to core employment-related services. At the one-stop, students have universal access to information about job vacancies, career options, student financial aid, and instructions on how to conduct a job search, write a resume, or interview with an employer.

Increased Accountability:

The goal of WIA is to increase employment, retention, and earnings of participants, and in doing so, improve the quality of the workforce to sustain economic growth, enhance productivity and competitiveness, and reduce welfare dependency.

Strong Role for Local Workforce Investment Boards and the Private Sector:

In a coordinated effort, business-led boards act as "boards of directors," focusing on strategic planning, policy development, and oversight of the local workforce investment system.

State and Local Flexibility:

States and localities have increased flexibility, with significant authority reserved for the Governor and chief elected officials, to build on existing reforms in order to implement innovative and comprehensive workforce investment systems tailored to meet the particular needs of local and regional labor markets.

Improved Youth Programs:

Youth programs are linked more closely to local labor market needs and community youth programs and services, and with strong connections between academic and occupational learning.

The Workforce Investment Act establishes requirements that a provider of a training program must meet in order to remain eligible to receive adult or dislocated worker funds under this title. There are two sets of requirements -- the first set relating to a providers initial eligibility and the second set relating to a provider maintaining subsequent eligibility.

Initial Eligibility

With respect to requirements for initial eligibility during the early stages of WIA implementation, a training provider that was a postsecondary education institution certified under the Higher Education Act and provided a program leading to a two or four-year degree or certificate, or that was an entity that carried out an apprenticeship program registered under the National Apprenticeship Act, was automatically eligible to receive funds if they filed an appropriate application with the local board. Providers of programs not meeting either of those two conditions had to satisfy alternative procedures that were established by the Governor for initial eligibility. That procedure was to include appropriate levels of performance if the provider had previously provided training services and other appropriate criteria.

Presently, the local boards certify all applications for initial eligibility to the statewide list. The local board submits the applications to the Tennessee Higher Education Commission (THEC) and THEC distributes a single list of providers identified from all local areas, making it available through the One-Stop System. Subsequent to the initial eligibility period, all providers (including those that were automatically eligible) must meet performance criteria established by the Governor to maintain eligibility.

Subsequent Eligibility

The performance criteria include levels of performance for all individuals participating in the provider's program relating to: the rate of completion; the percentage of all such individuals who obtain unsubsidized employment (which also may include the percentage of those who obtained such employment in occupations related to the program); and the wages at placement of such individuals. The criteria also include levels of performance relating only to students receiving WIA funds who participated in the provider's program. These criteria include the percentage of those participants who completed the program and obtained unsubsidized employment, the retention rate in such employment and the wage rate of those participants who completed the applicable program 6 months after employment; and the rate of licensure or certification as appropriate of those who completed. Each provider also must submit information relating to the costs of the program. The local boards may modify the performance criteria for programs of providers in the local areas by increasing the levels of performance above the minimum levels established by the Governor.

The performance information for each eligible program of a provider relating to these criteria are provided annually to the local boards. The Governor or the local boards may require providers to submit other additional program-specific information. The local boards or the Governor also may accept performance information consistent with the requirements of the Higher Education Act to fulfill these requirements. On-the-job training (OJT) and customized training are not subject to these requirements; however, the Governor may require such institutions to provide performance information to the one-stop operator and may establish performance criteria.

A participant may select any eligible program in the state if all other criteria relating to initial and subsequent eligibility for training services are met. An essential feature of the Workforce Investment Act was the "Customer Choice" orientation of the program. Individuals seeking assistance through WIA funding have the freedom of choice in selecting the training program that best fits their personal and career needs. As such, it is important that customers receive accurate information regarding the performance records of all training providers eligible to participate in the WIA program. Informed customer choice requires a stringent system of accountability for all certified training providers. Since the goal of the Workforce Investment Act is to obtain gainful employment, providers must demonstrate through performance data that in addition to simply completing a certified program, the obtained credential subsequently leads to increased employment opportunities.

Along with the goal of informed customer choice, analysis of performance data is also necessary to ensure the integrity of the Workforce Investment Act. To protect the WIA program from saturation with fraudulent or ineffective training providers, the Workforce Investment Act requires subsequent eligibility decisions based on annual performance standards. Only those programs compliant with mandated performance standards are eligible for continued placement onto the Statewide List of Eligible Training Providers.