TWC Transmittals

The Texas Workforce Commission division of Adult Education and Literacy is led by State Director Anson Green. Below is a collection of “TWC Transmittals” from Anson that contain general grant-related information, policy clarifications and helpful guidance for AEL-funded programs. This compilation includes select TWC Transmittals dated April, 2018 forward and is updated regularly as new TWC Transmittals are generated. Messages are in date order beginning with the most recent correspondence. To help find topics, you can use your browser’s “Find” function (command + f) to find words in titles listed on this page.

Quick Menu

November 14, 2018: AEL Monthly Performance Report for September 2018
October 18, 2018: Release of TEAMS Version 3.8
September 28, 2018: Deliverable 6.8
August 30, 2018: Action Required - AEL Enrollment Target Negotiations
August 29, 2018: Professional Development Plan Template and Revised Staff Qualifications and Training Chart
August 14, 2018: Report Templates
August 14, 2018: Cash Draw and Grant Closeout Packages Due ASAP
July 10, 2018: Revise Draft Approach to Collecting MSG for IET Participants
July 6, 2018: New Year Now Open in TEAMS!
July 2, 2018: Send Out Q4 Narrative Template
May 17, 2018: TABE 11/12 Guidance
April 26, 2018: Performance quality improvement awards

November 14, 2018: AEL Monthly Performance Report for September 2018

As I shared on our last all-grantee phone call, I will begin sharing the monthly performance report (known as the MPR) for all statewide performance. 

In sharing this, we are working to increase transparency of performance across the state as envisioned under WIOA, as well as help you gauge your performance in the context of other grantees across the state.

The performance numbers for your program use the same methodology, and thus are the same, as the program status sheets.
As you read this the explanations are probably obvious: -P = Less than 95% of target; MP = 95% to less than 105% of target; +P = 105% or more of target

We encourage you to use the MPR to work with your staff and / or consortium partners for program improvement and to identify peers for opportunities such as sharing best practices.

For now, we will only be sending these via email transmittal. They will not be posted on our website.

October 18, 2018: Release of TEAMS Version 3.8

We are excited to announce the release of TEAMS version 3.8 on Monday, October 22.  TEAMS will be down beginning Friday, October 19 at 6:00 PM as we begin moving the release to the live system.

This release contains, for the first time ever, the ability to see an individual’s periods of participation, including when a participant has exited. 

In advance of the release, we invite you to view this pre-recorded webinar that outlines these changes.

The webinar can be viewed here: http://twc.adobeconnect.com/pczgfz29wfgv/

Thank you, and we look forward to this next exciting phase of TEAMS!

September 28, 2018: Deliverable 6.8

Please find attached the template for deliverable 6.8, Assurance of Full Services Implementation for Adult Education and Literacy Programs.

I missed this in our timeline and as a result we are extending the deadline to October 15, 2018.

Thanks for your patience and thank you for your continued great work!   I visited with several of you this week and am ending the week very impressed!

[Download Attachment]

August 30, 2018: Action Required - AEL Enrollment Target Negotiations

Attached to this email you will find your target negotiation tool for PY18-19.  Please read the instructions below carefully.
Please send all questions related to completing the tool to Carrie Tupa and Adam Leonard, with a copy to freda.jackson@twc.state.tx.us, charmagne.coston@twc.state.tx.us, and your assigned program specialist. 

Overview of the Target Negotiation Tool
The target negotiation tool provides a summary of the targets used in the proposal process for RFP 320-18-01, updated targets with the revised allocations, and TWC staff recommended targets.

• Base Targets from AEL RFP 320-18-01: These are the targets that were provided in the target setting tool when completing your application under RFP 320-18-01
• Base Targets using Allocations: These are the targets, using the same methodology applied in RFP 320-18-01, updated for revised final allocation approved by the Commission on 7/3/18
• Alternate Targets Suggested by Staff: These are TWC staff recommendations based on recognized statewide and local trends as well as updated legislative targets and planning

Process

• Select your grantee from the dropdown menu in Cell A2

• Rows 5 and 6 will display the planning estimates from the RFP and the Approved allocations

In these rows:

• Column B is the amount you have to spend on direct services (your total allocation minus performance funding and professional development funds)
• Column C is the amount you have to be spent on EL Civics (IET and non IET)
• Column D is the amount that we anticipate you spending on Career Advancement Models (IET EL Civics, Intensive and IET) using staff recommendations

• In the yellow cells, enter your proposed target negotiations for EL Civics, IET EL Civics, Intensive and IET.  Total served will automatically adjust based on the values you enter in the other columns.  If you propose keeping the staff recommended amounts, please still enter those amounts in the cells and save and return following the instructions below.

• Your formal TWC targets are:
  Column B: EL Civics
  Column C: IET EL Civics
  Column F: Intensive
  Column H: IET
  Column L: Total Participants Served
  
  Columns K and M are informational only and not official TWC targets

• Errors: Before you submit your tool, you will want to check for errors. 
  1) Error in Cell D13 – If you have an error in cell D13 you must remedy it.  Since EL Civics funds can only be spent on EL Civics services, the total targets in these columns must add up to an amount that will expend these funds.
  2) Error in Cell F13 – Your proposed intensive target needs to be at least 35% of your total IET EL Civics and IET targets.  If you are proposing a smaller amount, you must provide a justification when you send the tool back.
  3) Error in Cell H13 – The sum of your proposed IET EL Civics Target and IET target need to be at least 90% of the sum of the base IET EL Civics Target and IET target (in row 10), meaning you can only decrease the total of these amounts by 10% from what is in the base targets.  If you are proposing to decrease these targets by more than 10%, resulting in an error, you must provide a justification when you send the tool back.
  4) Error in Cell I13 – The amount to be spent on Career Advancement Models (cell D12 + cell G12 + cell I12) needs to meet or exceed the amount in cell D6. 
  5) Error in Cell L13 – The total amount of participants to be service (cell L12) needs to be at least 95% of the Base targets (cell L11), meaning any adjustments you make from staff recommendations cannot result in a reduction of total served by more than 5%.  If you are proposing an alternative, you must provide a justification when you send the tool back.

Returning the Tool
Send the tool, saved as “Program Name_PY18 AEL participants Served Target Negotiation Tool for Grantees”, to Adam Leonard, adam.leonard@twc.state.tx.us, with a copy to Freda Jackson, Freda.jackson@twc.state.tx.us and Carrie Tupa, carrie.tupa@twc.state.tx.us. 
Include any justifications for negotiations outside of the recommended range in the body of your email. 

Due Date
We cannot approve any negotiations until we receive all negotiations and can review for statewide levels, so please return your tool as soon as possible via the instructions above, but no later than Monday, September 10. 

Questions

Please send all questions related to completing the tool to Carrie Tupa and Adam Leonard, with a copy to freda.jackson@twc.state.tx.us, charmagne.coston@twc.state.tx.us, and your assigned program specialist.

[Download Attachment] 

August 29, 2018: Professional Development Plan Template and Revised Staff Qualifications and Training Chart

Below you will find the template to be used to develop your local Professional Development (PD) plan as well as a revised Staff Qualifications and Training Chart.

Since this template has evolved considerably over the last few weeks, we are extending the due date for this grant deliverable (6.2) to October 31st, 2018.

Our expectations are that your local team responsible for PD, accountability/quality assurance/instruction/DL will work with your assigned PD Specialist and TWC Program Specialist to ensure that not only is this seen as a compliance document to satisfy a deliverable, but more importantly as a planning tool developed after extensive local data analysis and discussion.

As you identify target areas based on your analysis, create goals that will aide in addressing and/or improving targeted areas of concern. Please see this as a living document and as goals are being met, it should be revised to ensure that continuous planning is in place.

As always, please feel free to reach out to your assigned staff if you have any questions.

[Download Attachment 1] [Download Attachment 2]

August 14, 2018: Report Templates

Thank you for your patience as we worked to develop a more purposeful and efficient template for the following deliverables as well as revise due dates:

6.1 Detailed Project Plan & Expenditure Projection—Due September 15th, 2018
6.7 Sub-Recipient Monitoring Report—Due last day of month following end of quarter: October 31, January 31st, April 30th and July 31st.
6.11 Quarter Narrative Report—Due last day of month following end of quarter: October 31, January 31st, April 30th and July 31st.

The attached spreadsheet contains all three deliverable templates along with instructions for how to complete. The first deliverable due is the Detailed Project Plan & Expenditure Projections (6.1). You should submit the entire spreadsheet even though template for deliverable 6.11 and 6.7 will be blank at this time. Moving forward, you will continue to use your Detailed Project Plan to build and report quarterly narrative and sub-recipient monitoring reports. Please make sure you save a copy to your own device and name using your contract number for easy tracking when submitted.

For your convenience, a pre-recorded webinar with detailed instructions can be located at this web address: http://twc.adobeconnect.com/p981iw2lm3vi/ .

If you still need assistance in completing the template, reach out to your assigned Contract Manager.

Again, thank you for your patience.

[Download Attachment]

August 14, 2018: Cash Draw and Grant Closeout Packages Due ASAP

CDER will be down starting close of business, August 23, 2018 through September 3, 2018 for FY18 closeout. For this reason you will need to ensure that any cash draw requests and/or Grant Closeout Packages are submitted by August 20, 2018. Take into consideration that cash draw requests can also take up to 3 business days to process. Please do not wait and risk missing the deadline!

We strongly encourage that you share this with your finance department and anyone else in your institution who will be impacted.

July 10, 2018: Revise Draft Approach to Collecting MSG for IET Participants

In preparation for the summer institute, I wanted to provide an update on a change we are making related to performance accountability for IET’s.  This change will be reflected in a future revision to AEL 01-18, Educational Outcomes for Adult Education and Literacy.

MSGs For IET Participants
BACKGROUND Historical IET program performance has revealed that certain programs models have inconsistent and / or weak provisions of basic education (reading, writing, math, English language), sometimes resulting in high failure rates among students. 
This weak performance reduces the likelihood of students successfully completing postsecondary education and training and entering employment. 
Grantees must ensure a rigorous and intensive contextualized education provided in IETs to best support the educational and career advancement of the student.
TWC research on educational outcomes (largely the Pretest-Posttest (Type 1a MSG) uncovered that, despite weaknesses in certain program models, overall, students in IET programs perform better in both MSG and Credential attainment rates than students not in IET programs.  For PY’16 –‘17, rates for MSG for all participants were 48% compared to the Non-IET participant rate of 34%.

DRAFT REQUIREMENT
For program year ’18-’19, grantees must be aware that to support the educational and career advancement of IET participants, providers must report and document MSGs that measure both basic education and workforce training performance.
MSGs that measure basic education include:

• Achievement on a Pretest-Posttest (Type 1a). For IET participants, testing may be in only the basic education domain identified as most critical for the participant to succeed in the workforce training as documented by the common learning objectives of the IET; and
• HSE Achievement (Type 2).

Note: The Postsecondary Enrollment MSG (Type 1b) does not apply to participants enrolled in IET because participants in IET do not exit AEL services.
MSGs that measure workforce training include

• Postsecondary Transcript or Report Card in IET (Type 3);
• Progress Milestone in IET MSG (Type 4); and
• Skills Progression MSG (Type 5).

Collecting MSGs that measure basic education competencies will

• better ensure students’ successfully pass workforce training and complete IETs and earn a Recognized Postsecondary Credential;
• support the potential for continued postsecondary education or training and career advancement; and
• support advances in overall MSG attainment for Texas.

The revised AEL letter 01-18 (not yet published) will be distributed at the institute and will clarify how IET programs can support participant MSG gains through the alignment of both basic education and workforce training competencies to the IET common learning objectives. 
I wanted to provide early notice so that you could revise your IET implementation strategy accordingly.

July 6, 2018: New Year Now Open in TEAMS!

I’m pleased to announce that the new year is open in TEAMS for data entry!  Please note some important information related to the new year:

Continuing Grant Recipients
If there has been any change in the configuration of your grant, you will have a new grantee ID in TEAMS, and will either need to have your access updated or get a separate account.  The primary POC should have received an email with specific instructions from Carrie Tupa.  For further information, please contact your program specialist.  If there has been a change in your grantee ID, you cannot rollover classes.

All Grant Recipients

• Updates to the participant profile have been initiated for the new PY that ensure more accurate data entry through validation checks.  A summary of these changes can be found in the attached document.
• As mentioned on the grantee call this week, it is imperative that you properly set up your providers and sites.  Many of you should only have 1-2 providers.  A provider is the entity who is actually providing direct services.  If you are providing services at a specific location, that should be set up as a site not a provider.  We will be sending separate emails to some grantees who have this set up incorrectly in previous years. 

Please let your program support specialist know if you have any questions, and here’s to a great new year!

[Download Attachment]

July 2, 2018: Send Out Q4 Narrative Template

Attached you will find your last quarterly narrative for RFP 320-14-10.  I greatly appreciate the hard work you have all done to build such a successful system for adult learners under TWC first AEL statewide grant award!  You have all really delivered in many ways.    

As stated on the last conference call, the deadline for the submission of these were extended to Monday, July 16th.

Also, a reminder your 4th quarter Data Sign Off (DSO), and Sub-Monitoring report are also due July 16th.
  
Please let me know if you have any questions.

[Download Attachment]

May 17, 2018: TABE 11/12 Guidance

We have had several discussions about the TABE 11/12 on our grantee phone call, and recently requested feedback from you all via survey monkey. We have finalized our guidance on the implementation of TABE 11/12 and are working on an AEL letter to outline these requirements.

In the meantime, I wanted to provide you with this information so that you can plan accordingly in your programs.

Why do we have to switch to the TABE 11/12?
The TABE 9/10 is no longer approved for use in the NRS beginning February 2019, with a sunset period until June 30, 2019. Additionally, Data Recognition Corp (DRC), the publisher of TABE, has already begun discontinuing their support of the TABE 9/10, which is why it is imperative that local programs begin the onboarding of the new test as soon as possible.

When will we be required to make the switch from the TABE 9/10 to TABE 11/12?

• Baseline test using TABE 9/10: AEL grantees and providers may continue using the TABE 9/10 as a baseline test, if appropriate, through December 31, 2018. In order to use the TABE 9/10 as a baseline assessment during this time, the program must be able to progress test the participant before the end of the program year (June 30, 2019); as a reminder, you must pre-test and post-test on the same version of TABE.
• Progress test using TABE 9/10: AEL grantees and providers may continue using the TABE 9/10 as a progress test through June 30, 2019.
• Baseline test using TABE 11/12: AEL grantees and providers must begin using the TABE 11/12 as a baseline test for new participants beginning January 1, 2019.

We haven’t purchased the TABE 11/12 yet. What should we do?
You should begin the process of purchasing, training staff, and preparing implementation processes for the TABE 11/12 as soon as possible. The test is substantially different, in administrative requirements, answer forms, increased rigor, and use of the locator; therefore, it is important that you begin preparations immediately to ensure that staff administering the test are prepared to administer the TABE 11/12 no later than January, 2019. Additionally, if you plan on implementing the paper-based test, there are necessary supply purchases that you must make (enough scientific calculators of the same model type to administer the math portion; a scanner that meets certain technical specifications to scan in the score sheets).

Timely preparation is key to avoid disruptions or administrative delays in testing as the 9/10 is phased out.

If you are unfamiliar with the new TABE, or just need a refresher, Mike Johnson, Texas’ DRC representative, will be hosting an open webinar on May 24, 2-3 CST.
To join the webinar, go to https://tcall.webex.com and “Search Meetings.” Click “Join” once the session starts. If joining by a mobile device (tablet or phone), please download the WebEx app from your preferred app store. Once you are in the webinar room, you have the option of calling in on your phone or using a headset and joining using your computer’s audio.

Will TEAMS be ready to collect the new TABE scores beginning July 1?
Yes.

When will training for test administration be available?
Dates are being finalized and registration information will be announced by TCALL and TWC soon!

April 26, 2018: Performance quality improvement awards

This year, the Texas Workforce Commission’s three-member Commission approved the use of Adult Education and Literacy (AEL) State Leadership funds for performance quality improvement awards to recognize exemplary program performance in three areas: employer partnership, college integration, and high school equivalency achievement. The purpose of these funds is to support AEL grant recipient project performance and innovation by disseminating information about proven models and promising practices.

Awardees will be recognized at the 2018 Annual Texas Workforce Conference scheduled for November 28-30, 2018 in Houston.

To submit a nomination:

• Complete one or more of the nomination forms for the College Integration Award and Employer Partnership Awards.
• Email the nomination form and any attachments to awards@twc.state.tx.us.
• The nomination email must include a courtesy copy to the grant recipient grant signatory authority.
• The submission deadline is Thursday, June 7, 2018.
• Need help? Email awards@twc.state.tx.us or call Awards Committee Co-chairs Reed O’Brien, (512) 463-5624, or Fabiana Ramirez, (512) 936-3297.

Nomination guidelines, instructions, and forms can be found at: http://www.twc.state.tx.us/adult-education-and-literacy-performance-quality-improvement-awards
Note: You may need to do a hard refresh on your screen to see the 2018 nomination forms.