Background
On June 15, 2016, the Californina Legislature passed a budget that included an additional $248 million for the Strong Workforce Program (SWP). The purpose of the SWP is “more and better” CTE. The “more” is to increase the number of students enrolled in programs leading to high-demand, high-wage jobs. The “better” is to improve program quality, as evidenced by more students completing programs or transferring, obtaining employment or improving earnings. Sixty percent of the SWP funds are Local Share allocation, which are given to each community college district. The remaining 40 percent is the Regional Share, which is distributed to the state’s seven macro-economic regional consortia. The Regional Share provides funding for all of the SWP projects for the SDI region.
The San Diego Imperial Counties Community College Association (SDICCCA) CEOs set policy for the SWP in the San Diego Imperial region and are the final authority for all SWP decisions.
Regional Oversight Committee (ROC)
The Regional Oversight Committee (ROC) consists of representation from all constituent groups, from all
ten community colleges, appointed by the SDICCCA CEOs. The SDICCCA CEOs designated the ROC to
review and approve all recommendations, plans, and funding pertaining to the Strong Workforce funding. The two CEOs appointed to co-chair the ROC report regularly and serve as liaisons to the SDICCCA CEOs, as well as to the State Chancellor’s Office regarding workforce matters.
The SWP Workgroups are comprised of different constituents from the ten colleges. The Workgroups develop strategies for addressing workforce development challenges and implementing the regional SWP goals and objectives. The Workgroups’ strategies, goals, objectives, and outcomes are shared and vetted with the Deans’ Council, WDC, ROC and SDICCCA. The SWP Committees are ad hoc committees focused on initiatives and challenges faced by the regional colleges not addressed by existing workgroups.