Celebrating our 20th Year of Capacity Building
In 2003, the Chicago Jobs Council launched its first training programs.
A lot has happened in the last twenty years. In that time, we’ve worked with thousands of direct service providers, including through a recession and a pandemic. From our modest beginning of hosting a "brown bag" workshop series, CJC has grown to be the premier entity in the Midwest region dedicated to strengthening and developing the skills of the workforce development field through professional training opportunities. Our work has recently taken a more concerted direction towards the work of anti-racism as laid out in our recently developed framework.
Here are a few highlights from our twentieth year of building capacity in the field of workforce development.
2023 Public and Customized Training Wrap-Up
As we look back on 2023 at the Chicago Jobs Council, there’s a lot of work to be proud of.
Last year we hosted a total of 29 training sessions with 820 workforce development professionals. We had the opportunity to connect with organizations about their specific needs, and developed and facilitated 20 customized trainings. We also returned to in-person training for the first time since 2020; we were delighted to welcome our colleagues back to the CJC office.
We had another cohort complete the Chicago College and Career Advising Credential, with 18 professionals equipped to coach young people on their post-secondary trajectory. The youth coaches in this program dug deep to explore their implicit bias, build their coaching skills, and learn about different pathway opportunities for young people.
After extensive research and development, we launched the Career Readiness Curriculum. This free open-source curriculum applies behavioral science, coaching, and a racial equity lens to our traditional work readiness topics. We’ve already heard from our colleagues in the field that they’ve begun implementing this curriculum at their agencies and we can’t wait to learn more about how folks use this tool.
SNAP & TANF Employment & Training Initiative
In 2023, the Chicago Jobs Council, in partnership with the Illinois Department of Human Services, offered training to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Employment & Training providers in Illinois. These trainings helped workforce professionals build their capacity to better meet the employment needs of disadvantaged job seekers, low-income workers, and employers, and increased day-to-day engagement with clients.
We launched 41 trainings and a total of 437 individual providers were trained in 2023 throughout Illinois. These training topics ranged from client services such as Career Coaching, Recruitment & Referrals, Documentation of Case Notes and employer engagement training topics such as Engaging & Deepening Employer Relationships, Job Retention, and Making the Right Employment Match. The emphasis placed on both client services and employer engagement training topics acknowledges the importance of employer relationships and partnerships to make employment more accessible to customers accessing SNAP and TANF Employment and Training services. This makes for a person-centered and well-rounded workforce development approach to this work.
91% of those who attended trainings reported they are more confident about performing job duties, and 95% learned (or re-learned) new concepts or strategies to apply in their work. The need for more convening spaces amongst providers was evident as 91% reported they expanded their knowledge of, or connections with, other organizations in the field. Lastly, 100% reported they would recommend a CJC training to a colleague in the field.
Are you an IDHS grantee/provider? Feel free to check upcoming professional development opportunities made available free of cost via the SNAP & TANF Employment & Training Initiative (only for current IDHS grantees). Click here!
What Training Participants are Saying
Every year, we have an annual survey as an opportunity for us to collect feedback, incorporate new ideas into our training programs, and to make sure we are always responding to the current needs of the field.
While we primarily use this feedback internally and as a way to grow, we also appreciate hearing about what has worked well over the years. Here are what some participants have said of their time working with CJC:
“Over the past 17 years, the Chicago Jobs Council has provided excellent trainings in the area of Business Services and Case Management. All of my team leaders have also benefited from their exceptional leadership.”
“I've worked with CJC for over 9 years and have never been disappointed. The staff and leadership is outstanding and are always willing to assist and advise. I have attended numerous monthly workshops, taken in-person trainings and attended fundraising events that have contributed to my professional development.”
“I have been affiliated with CJC since 2005… My program manager and I attended our first training and were pleased. During the next few years, we obtained several CJC credentials, and improved our outcomes. Although I am currently inactive in workforce development, I still enjoy CJC trainings that help me in the education field.”
“Being part of the inaugural CCCAC cohort through CJC has been one of the highlights of my professional career. Our cohort was unique in that it began in-person in February 2020, was interrupted by COVID, continued as informal community gatherings over zoom in summer & fall 2020, and then completed online in January-February 2021. We created bonds that have lasted years later."
It’s been a big year for us at CJC and we’re so grateful for the community of practitioners we work with. As we’re looking ahead to 2024, we can’t wait to continue this work with you. We hope to see you soon at an upcoming training.