How Torrance Adult School and the South Bay Workforce Investment Board work together to make the community better
In order to provide the best possible employment opportunities for its students and graduates—and to help bolster the economy and workforce of the community at large—Torrance Adult School closely monitors needs and trends in local industries, and partners with businesses and organizations to help achieve those goals. One invaluable partnership is that between TAS and the South Bay Workforce Investment Board (SBWIB).
The SBWIB is one of 45 regional Workforce Development Boards (WDBs) in California. These organizations—comprised of business leaders, educators, and government officials—identify skill gaps and develop strategies to enhance the employability of the regional workforce. Their efforts range from big-picture actions, like influencing policy at the regional and state levels, to helping individuals with access to career counseling, job placement and wrap-around services for workers-in-training.
“The benefit of us at Torrance Adult School working with the South Bay Workforce Development Board is that there is a direct pipeline to students who need additional skills or who want to transition to a new career path,” says TAS Director Wayne Diulio.
“Maybe the person needs transportation to get to the school, or they need a certain pair of working shoes or boots in order to get the job that they require. Maybe they need a place to live for the next 30 days and we can provide rental assistance. It could be a number of things.”
Jan Vogel, Executive Director, South Bay Workforce Investment Board
Jan Vogel has served as the SBWIB’s executive director for more than 40 years, and expounds on the organization’s activities from the macro to micro levels: “(WDBs) are a conduit to ensure training and workforce activities are taking place in the local geographic area that they represent, overseeing that the funds are paid properly, and developing partnerships within that community to make sure the programs are a successful, effective and efficient,” he says.
“Maybe a person has enrolled in a class, but they need support services in order to continue, then we would work with them,” Vogel says, talking about more direct help the SBWIB provides. “Maybe the person needs transportation to get to the school, or they need a certain pair of working shoes or boots in order to get the job that they require. Maybe they need a place to live for the next 30 days and we can provide rental assistance. It could be a number of things.”
managed the Torrance
One-Stop Business &
Career Center since it
opened in 2017.
The SBWIB maintains Torrance’s One-Stop Business & Career Center (they have others in Inglewood and Gardena), where job seekers can avail of free computer use and printing services as well as access free training, workshops, job counseling and employment opportunities. Guadalupe Gasca, who manages the center, says TAS and other adult schools are integral to the SBWIB’s mission.
“Whenever a person who comes into the center needs additional training, we always look to the adult schools first,” she says. Not only can Gasca be sure they will receive quality career training, but the relatively low cost of adult school programs compared to other institutions is also helpful. “For the same cost we can send two people instead of one using adult schools,” she says.
As a prime example of how the partnership between TAS and the SBWIB provides life-changing services for denizens of the South Bay, she shares a story of an unhoused individual who came to the center seeking assistance. Staff there helped the person meet some of their immediate needs, and eventually connected them with medical billing and coding vocational training at TAS.
TAS Director Diulio speaks highly of students referred to the school by the SBWIB: “The students we receive from the South Bay Workforce Investment Board are often more serious and clearly have a higher completion rate of training and a higher rate of job placement.”
For more information on how Torrance Adult School can help you achieve your goals, visit www.tusd.org/tas or call 310-533-4689. To learn more about the South Bay Workforce Investment Board, go to www.sbwib.org.
Written by by Jeff vonKaenel and Ken Smith
| Regions | Classes |
|---|---|
| South Coast California | Careers in Business-Technology |
