APPRENTICESHIP ILLINOIS COMMITTEE NOVEMBER 2021 UPDATES
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National Apprenticeship Week
is next week: November 15-19, 2021!


National Apprenticeship Week (NAW) is a nationwide celebration that brings together business leaders, career seekers, labor, educational institutions, and other critical partners to demonstrate their support for apprenticeship. 
It's time to celebrate Illinois apprentices and employer sponsors! Join an event and learn more about how apprenticeship is growing Illinois talent.

Posting to social media? Use #NAW2021 and #apprenticeshipIL
Apprenticeship Illinois
Committee Chair's
NAW2021 Kickoff Message
Apprenticeship takes center stage next week, when Illinois and the nation celebrate National Apprenticeship Week. Events around the state will call attention to the successes the Apprenticeship Illinois committee and workforce partners have achieved during the past year, and command us to move forward clearly and decisively in our plans to expand a workforce strategy that has value for businesses and employers, job seekers and employees, economic development interests, and others. Apprenticeship commits us to being agents of the change we envision in workforce. If, as employers, we want productive and aspirational workers, we must invest in their development. If, as job seekers, we want deeply satisfying careers and generous compensation, we must dedicate ourselves to the learning and personal characteristics that will help us reach those goals. If, as workforce professionals, we want to close the skills gap and mitigate the critical labor shortage that faces us, we must redouble our efforts to clearly articulate career pathways and make appropriate matches between job seekers and employers. Summarily, those efforts represent the essence of apprenticeship: shaping the unformed clay of raw human potential into something that serves individuals, commerce, and society in meaningful ways. Visit ApprenticeshipIL.com, attend one of the in-person or virtual National Apprenticeship Week events, and proselytize about the merits of apprenticeship. Prepare. Train. Retain.

Michael Conley, Apprenticeship Illinois Committee Chair
NAW2021 Illinois Calendar of Events



Download the NAW2021 schedule here or check the website.

New events are being added daily.
Get to Know Apprenticeship Illinois Webinar Series: Register Now!
Interested in NAW2021 National Events?
Events are also on the Apprenticeship IL Event Calendar

Mon, Nov 15: Apprenticeship 2025: A Bold Vision for the Registered Apprenticeship System, hosted by the Urban Institute.

This event will provide an overview for all four of the newly launched Registered Apprenticeship Technical Centers of Excellence - Diversity and Inclusion Center, Strategic Partnerships and System Alignment Center, Apprenticeship Occupations and Standards Center, and Data Performance and Best Practices – and how they will collectively accelerate progress toward a stronger national apprenticeship system by 2025. Register here.

Tues, Nov 16: Youth Apprenticeship: A Vision for the Future, a Plan for Today, hosted by JFF.

Join JFF during this NAW virtual event to discuss the promise of apprenticeship for in-school and out-of-school youth, and learn how leaders across the United States are implementing and expanding these programs in their schools, regions, and states. Register here.

Wed, Nov 17: The future of work and the workforce: A conversation with U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh, hosted by Brookings.

The Center for Technology Innovation at Brookings will host the U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh for an in-depth conversation on the future of work and the American workforce. Secretary Walsh and Brookings Senior Fellow Nicol Turner Lee will discuss policies to help reorient the labor force to existing market demands and cultivate a 21st century workforce, ensure the economy produces good jobs for all workers, and address issues of equity and inclusion that are critical for historically marginalized populations like people of color, rural, and workers with limited formal education. Register here.

Thurs, Nov 18 Best Practices for Recruitment, Retention, and Leadership for Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations, hosted by the DOL Women’s Bureau.

This webinar will share best practices from current and former Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations (WANTO) program grantees and features Wendy Chun-Hoon, Director of the Women’s Bureau and Angela Hanks, ETA Acting Assistant Secretary. Register here.

Friday, Nov 19 Modern Apprenticeships for a Modern Age: Employers Advancing Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility in the U.S. Registered Apprenticeship System, hosted by JFF.

Join JFF and DOL as they cap off NAW with an exciting event to celebrate the launch of the JFF’s new national Center of Excellence to Advance Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) in Registered Apprenticeship. Register here.
Looking for a NAW2021 Proclamation?
Find printer-friendly PDFS of municipal proclamations as well as Building Trades proclamations on the NAW Illinois webpage.

Governor Pritzker's Proclamation (PDF)

City of Belleville (PDF)
City of Bloomington (PDF)
City of Geneva (PDF)
City of Peoria (PDF)
Town of Normal (PDF)
City of Rockford (PDF)
City of St. Charles (PDF)
City of Vandalia (PDF)​

Pictured: IWIB Apprenticeship Illinois NAW2021 Proclamation (PDF)
Celebrating Apprentices and Sponsoring Companies
Meet Tyler and Mark and Check out Hoffer Plastics' Break the Mold Campaign
Meet Scott from Hermann Ultrasonics and Apprentice Konrad from Elgin Community College



Meet Christina, Elgin Community College apprenticeship at Mauser Packaging Solutions

Watch these amazing High School District 214 students talk about their experience with manufacturing, fabrication, welding, machining and more while in school, setting them up for their next college and career steps and growing Illinois talent in manufacturing.


Meet Steel who works for TEQ a Sonoco Company in Huntley, IL, talk about what he's learned during his McHenry Community College apprenticeship program
Chicago Sisterhood of Carpenters team at the Dupage Habitat for Humanity’s Women Build
Find more apprenticeship success stories online.
Apprenticeship News and Resources
First Food Truck Apprenticeship in America in Illinois
Soulcial Kitchen's founder and director, Brigadier General (Ret.) John E. Michel announced a new registered apprenticeship program last week. It was featured in St. Louis Mag and on Fox2 AM Show for being the first-ever food truck apprenticeship approved by the U.S. Dept. of Labor. The program provides training and hands-on experience for cooks who are looking to break into the business. The program consists of 2,500 hours of comprehensive training, including 250 hours of work experience. Topics covered include safety and sanitation, food-truck kitchen operations, kitchen management, menu development, legal concepts and requirements, and leadership training.

Southwestern Illinois College Becomes a Registered Apprenticeship Sponsor
Southwestern Illinois College earned its certificate of registration in the U. S. Department of Labor’s National Apprenticeship Program. As a registered apprenticeship sponsor, SWIC will be able to help employers in the region develop apprenticeship programs to serve their hiring needs with a minimum of red tape. SWIC will coordinate apprenticeship programs in the occupations of General Machinist, Shipping and Receiving Clerk, Dock Worker (warehousing), Welder, Pharmacist Assistant, and Aircraft Maintenance Technician. (link)

Curious about Apprenticeship Return on Investment?
Check out this resource created by the US Dept. of Commerce: Return on Investment Calculator (link) and see it in practice in Michigan (link).

Have you heard of the Partnership on Inclusive Apprenticeship (PIA)?
PIA collaborates with employers and apprenticeship intermediaries to design inclusive apprenticeship programs that meet employer talent needs and enable people with disabilities to gain credentials and skills to succeed in growing industries (link).

National Association of Workforce Boards on Apprenticeship
Apprenticeships Supporting the Health Care Workforce, NAWB (link)

How Workforce Development Boards Can Support Apprenticeship, NAWB (link)

Great Listen!
Hear Chynna Hampton, Director of Workforce Development, HIRE360 on WVON-AM Chicago HIRE360 (link).

Gov. Pritzker Joins Heartland Community College and Rivian for Unveiling of New Electric Vehicle Skills Training Program
"The first set of students in the energy storage program began their training during the fall semester. Once they complete the program, students will be able to go through apprenticeship programs or straight into jobs in the electric vehicle industry."

Want to share a news story or an event in this monthly newsletter? Let us know!
USDOL-Illinois Office of Apprenticeship Contacts
Did you know that apprenticeships in Illinois are registered by the U.S. Department of Labor's Illinois Office of Apprenticeship? Illinois is one of 23 Office of Apprenticeship (OA) States in which all registered apprenticeship program registration and oversight is done by federal U.S. Department of Labor staff through state field offices.

Kim Jones, Illinois State Director
U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Apprenticeship
O: 312-596-5505 - C: 312-451-1455
Email:  [email protected]

Find the OA Illinois Apprenticeship Training Representative in your region here.
16,780
Registered
Apprentices
486
Registered Apprentice
Programs
What is the IWIB Apprenticeship Illinois Committee?

The Apprenticeship Illinois Committee is one of 4 content-focused committees of the Illinois Workforce Innovation Board or IWIB and provides leadership on:
 
  1. Expanding apprenticeships geographically and to new industries.
  2. Increasing diversity, equity, and inclusion in apprenticeships.
  3. Formalizing apprenticeship coordination across partnering state agencies.
  4. Growing statewide capacity to provide apprenticeship opportunities to job seekers and businesses.

The Committee has public quarterly meetings and has work groups on Marketing, Youth Apprenticeships, Pre-Apprenticeships, and Apprenticeship Systems.


Next Public Quarterly
Apprenticeship Illinois Committee Meeting
Thursday, December 9th, 9-11 a.m.
Details are on the IWIB calendar.

Find the Apprenticeship Illinois Resources You Need
National Apprenticeship Resources