Linda Audet Presentation

Virginia's Career Readiness Certificate

Virginia's Career Readiness Certificate (CRC)

is an assessment-based credential

that gives employers and career seekers

a uniform measure of key workplace skills.

What is DCE?• Virginia Department of Correctional Education• Provides educational services to incarcerated

individuals across the state– Academic– Vocational– Cognitive

• Service areas– Adult prisons

– Juvenile facilities– Community Corrections

The Career Readiness Certificate program was part of Governor Mark Warner's Education for a Lifetime initiative and continues under Governor Kaine.

Oversight of the CRC is the responsibility of the Commissioner of the Virginia Employment Commission (VEC);

administration of the CRC is handled by the Virginia Community College System.

The Career Readiness Certificate is a portable skills credential,

assuring employers that a job applicant

actually has the basic skills they seek.

Virginia's Career Readiness Certificate

helps employers by certifying that a recipient possesses core skills in

applied math, reading for information, and locating information —

skills that are required by at least 85% of all jobs profiled by ACT Workkeys in the country.

Virginia’s Career Readiness Certificate 3 Levels

Bronze core employability skills forapproximately 30% of available jobs

Silver approximately 65%

Gold approximately 85%.

Upon release, individuals who carry with them a Career Readiness Certificate will have a credential that provides meaningful evidence of their job skills and promotes their employability in a competitive market.

w Why the CRC FOR DCE?

By testing individuals who are enrolled in Career and Technical programs in a fourth area, Applied Technology, DCE students will have additional support to “level the playing field” when competing for employment upon release

Southside Virginia Community

College

• provide assessment materials

• score assessments • provide certificates• provide access to

state CRC database

• provide trained assessors to administer the 3 CRC assessments

• provide test/test administration security

• award certificates

Enrolled or previously enrolled in a DCE academic, vocational, transition or cognitive program, or a tutor

Educational functioning level of 8 th grade or better in both reading and math based on the Test of Adult Basic Education (TABE)

Scheduled for release within 1 year or less

SELECTION CRITERIA

Over 5,200 Virginia workers have earned their CRCs in the last three

years DCE has added over

1000

to that figure within the past year!

http://www.crc.virginia.gov/skillsbank/

ZIP CODE

DATES

CITIES

LWIAs

PDCs

REGIONS

COMMUNITY COLLEGE SERVICE REGIONS

CERTIFICATES (LEVELS)

SCORES

Preparation

•Conventional Prisons

•Usually 5 90-minute classes per week.

•Certified DCE instructor plus 1 qualified offender tutor for each pair of students.

•Schedule may vary according to institutional needs.

Preparation

Community Corrections

•DCE program varies with type of institution

•Detention and Diversion Centers

•20 week programs

•Day Reporting Programs

•Non-residential

ImplementationTRAINED ASSESSORS

DEVELOPED & DISSEMINATED --

● POLICY/GUIDELINES FOR TEST ADMINISTRATION

● MONITORING AND REPORTING PROTOCOLS &

FORMS

SCHEDULED & CONDUCTED BLITZ TESTING (Central Office Assessors)

RESULTS From 12/01/05 thru 11/30/061st year of the program-Total Assessed: 1061

Bronze 308

Silver 613

Gold 156

Curriculum

• Workplace Essential Skills

• Aztec Learning Systems

• Most pre-GED math workbooks

• Teacher-made materials