Located in:
- Program-specific Requirements for Adult, Dislocated Worker, and Youth Activities under Title I-B
The Unified or Combined State Plan must include the following with respect to activities carried out under subtitle B--
- c. Youth Program RequirementsWith respect to youth workforce investment activities authorized in section 129 of WIOA,—
- c. Youth Program Requirements
c. 4. Provide the Language Contained in the State Policy for “requiring Additional Assistance to Enter or Complete an Educational Program, or to Secure and Hold Employment” Criterion for Out-of-school Youth Specified in WIOA Section 129(a)(1)(b)(iii)(viii) and for “requiring Additional Assistance to Complete an Education Program, or to Secure and Hold Employment” Criterion for In- School Youth Specified in WIOA Section 129(a)(1)(c)(iv)(vii).
Current Narrative:
Due to the uniqueness of Pennsylvania’s 23 Local Areas and the varying levels of resources available, LWDBs are each required to establish a definition, along with reasonable, quantifiable, and evidence-based eligibility documentation requirements for the “requires additional assistance to complete an education program or to secure and hold employment” criterion (if this “additional assistance” barrier category is to be utilized locally). This policy was to be developed by each applicable Local Board, no later than September 1, 2017, and was required to be summarized within the WIOA Multi-Year Regional/Local Plan submissions to the commonwealth. To assist the Local Boards with policy development, the PA Department of Labor & Industry (L&I) facilitated discussions during the Spring of 2017, that included state representatives from WIOA partner agencies, to help assist local representatives to develop recommendations on definitions and with interpretations of the term “requires additional assistance to complete an education program or to secure and hold employment.”
Pennsylvania law and regulations discuss “alternative education” in the context of alternative education for disruptive youth. School districts are obligated to educate students of compulsory school age who have been excluded from school (expelled). The courts have ruled that local school officials may determine the amount and type of alternative instruction necessary and appropriate in each case involving an expelled student. Pennsylvania law defines a “private alternative education institution” as an institution operated by an individual or a for-profit or not-for-profit entity to provide alternative education programs as defined in Section 1901-c (1).