Narrative: III. b. 4. A.

WIOA’s primary measures of performance measure each core program’s effectiveness at producing desired outcomes. Proposed §677.190(a) directs that state and local final adjusted levels of performance each year will take into consideration characteristics of the participants as well as state and local economic conditions through the application of a federal statistical adjustment model. Therefore, the state and local areas will be assessed based on a comparison of the actual performance level with the adjusted level of performance each quarter and annually.

The State’s review of Regional/Local Plans will contain a component regarding to how these plans support and relate to the State’s Vision, Strategies and Goals, and how they relate to realistic achievement of performance measures. More specifically, how they relate to the State’s Continuous Improvement Process. In general, this assessment contains the following components:

· Management Commitment, do they indicate an explicit commitment from all Partner Programs Leadership at the Level of “Decision Maker”?

• Do they indicate a link into the “Common Intake” model, “Co-Enrollment” Process, and Sector Based Business Engagement Effort?
• Do they include a component for developing and maintaining well trained and highly qualified operators (and contractors) providing services in all Partner Programs?
• Is there a component for evaluation of service providers?
• Is there a defined methodology for evaluating outcomes for all Partner Programs and a continuous feedback cycle for those evaluations?
• Are there mechanisms to quickly and accurately identify non-conforming actions in all sub-parts (staff, contractors, partners, supportive services, etc.)? These measurements must be both Valid (measures what it is supposed to measure) and Reliable (measures consistently).
• Do the plans contain a defined methodology for quickly and accurately addressing root causation for failures in a positive and proactive fashion?

These components mirror the State’s approach to continuous improvement and are applied to all individual and group goals and objectives.

The state will use the following criteria to evaluate local workforce development area common performance indicators:

1. Exceed: Outcome for each measure must be greater than 100 percent of the performance level.

2. Meet: Outcome for each measure must not fall below 80 percent of the performance level.

3. Fail: Outcome for any one of the measure is less than 80 percent

of the performance level.

Action: In instances when the state or a local area fails a performance measure, immediate technical assistance will be provided by the appropriate office to improve the proficiency of staff members in providing WIOA services and provide an opportunity to develop strategies to improve the program’s ability to meet performance measures.

Note: Performance evaluation thresholds listed above are subject to revision pending final approval of the WIOA regulations governing performance measures.

Adult, Dislocated Worker and Youth:

Core Programs will be assessed, in coordination with LWDBs, One-stop Operators and Core partners/providers, through financial and administrative monitoring of all sub-recipients of funds expended under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014 for Title I (Adult, Dislocated Worker and Youth programs), Adult Education and Literacy Act, Rehabilitation Act Title I, and Wagner-Peyser Act. Other programs and activities will include, but not limited to discretionary grants such as the National Dislocated Worker Grants (NDWG) and the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) program under the Trade Act of 1974, and the Trade Adjustment Assistance Reauthorization Act of 2015. The State will provide policy guidance to each entity responsible for the administration of Core Programs.

The assessment and evaluation process will include completing annual on-site monitoring reviews of each Core Program to ensure compliance with the Uniform Administrative Requirements of WIOA Section 184(a)(4). These reviews include the appropriate administrative requirements for sub-recipients and applicable cost principles.

The assessment will ensure established policies achieve program quality and outcomes, and meet the objectives of the governing federal laws and regulations. This includes the provision of services by One-Stop Operators, eligible providers of training services, and eligible providers of youth activities; and makes certain that sub-recipients and contractors have demonstrated substantial compliance with federal requirements.

The State will ensure compliance with provisions in WIOA for all Core Programs as well as implement a more robust monitoring and oversight process across all levels. Comprehensive and effective monitoring is key to providing opportunities for technical assistance, training, and sharing of proven strategies and practices, which will lead to improved quality of service to job seeker and a stronger workforce.

Adult Education:

Programmatic/Fiscal Onsite Monitoring: Programs are identified for onsite monitoring through a comprehensive risk analysis based on the following factors: (1) desk monitoring; (2) need to verify data quality and program expenditures; (3) consistent low performance on NRS indicators in several categories; (4) prospective noncompliance with grant requirements identified through review of programmatic and fiscal reports, or ongoing communications with the program; (4) unresolved audit findings; (5) ongoing lack of progress in resolving required actions from prior monitoring visit; (6) significant staff turnover in the program; and (7) recent or newly established programs.

The goal for State onsite monitoring visits are to:

• ensure that programs meet AEFLA requirements;
• improve the quality of federally-funded activities;
• provide assistance identifying and resolving accountability problems; and,
• ensure the accuracy, validity, and reliability of data collection and data reporting as well as policies and procedures for program accountability.

Vocational Rehabilitation:

Louisiana Rehabilitation Services (LRS) will monitor the services provided within the guidelines of the existing corporative agreements and evaluate if modifications will be needed when they are renegotiated.

To ensure the quality of supported employment services provided to eligible consumers by monitoring the vendors. The monitoring will utilize site reviews and include quality indicators to evaluate the assessment of employment outcomes and an evaluation of the provision of services. The monitoring will be carried out by the state and field office staff.