WorkOne Northwest: NWI Workforce Board

What is the Northwest Indiana Workforce Board (NWIWB)?

The NWIWB is a board of business, education, labor, community, faith-based and economic development leaders responsible for the strategic vision of workforce development and governance of WorkOne in Northwest Indiana. They are also responsible for managing connections to key resources in the workforce and education arena and supporting efforts on programming that plant and nurture the seed of entrepreneurship. The board works to determine current, and future skill needs together with economic developers, employers, and economists.

Counties the Board Represents

Jasper, Lake, La Porte, Newton, Porter, Pulaski, and Starke

Vision

A Northwest Indiana workforce that is highly skilled, motivated, and diverse, earning sustainable or higher wages, and actively engaged in skill advancement and life-long learning.

Mission

To mobilize and integrate the leadership, services, and resources of the community to support workforce development.

This will be achieved by:

Strategically planning and developing policy for workforce development;
Overseeing regional workforce development system;
Developing and allocating resources for workforce development; and
Participating in related economic development activities

Goals

Increase skills of current workforce to align with economic development strategies and key industry clusters
Improve employer access to qualified workers and awareness of training resources
Ensure youth in NWI are positioned for continued education/learning and workforce success
Encourage and support an entrepreneurial spirit
Assure compliance and efficient operations of a workforce development system.

What Do They Do?

Provide direction for regional workforce development
Develop a regional plan to implement the state workforce plan in the region
Coordinate plans with economic development
Coordinate responsiveness of regional service and training providers to maximize “supply side” effectiveness
Engage employers on a section-by-section basis – ideally a partnership with economic development
Treat economic development leadership as a primary customer
Competitively procure the staff to the Workforce Investment Board (WIB), the One-Stop (WorkOne) Operator and the Fiscal Agent
Monitor competitive procurement of service providers
Advise the One Stop Operator on functions normally part of WIB responsibilities under the Workforce Innovation Opportunity Act (WIOA)
Monitor One-Stop (WorkOne) performance

Contact Us:

Northwest Indiana Workforce Board
c/o Center of Workforce Innovations
2804 Boilermaker Court, Ste. E.
Valparaiso, Indiana 46383
(219) 462-2940

Criteria of Board Membership Selection

Chief Executive Officers, Operating Officers, Fiscal Officers, Human Resource Managers or Plant Managers. Individuals in key decision-making roles within their corporations.

51% of private sector members must come from businesses with 50 or more employees. Other private sector members must come from businesses with at least five or more employees.

NWIWB By-laws (Download PDF)

Equal Opportunity is the Law. (La Igualdad De Oportunidad Es La Ley.)
Equal Opportunity Employer/Program. Auxiliary aids and services are available upon request to individuals with disabilities. The TDD/TTY number is 1-800-743-3333; Relay Indiana is 711. EQUAL OPPORTUNITY OFFICER: Becky Fry, Center of Workforce Innovations, 2804 Boilermaker Court, Ste. E, Valparaiso, IN 46383, (219) 248-7488 EO COMPLAINTS EOOfficer@cwicorp.com