On May 12th, SCHA hosted a convening titled, “From Workforce Training to Employment: Improving Pathways for Reentry.” This event attracted representatives from businesses, workforce development programs, government agencies, and justice-impacted folks to continue the discussion around specific topics regarding re-entry workforce issues in the District. The conversation focused particularly on the alignment of workforce development programming with employer expectations and labor market demands, an issue that had repeatedly surfaced at events hosted and feedback collected by SCHA.
Brandi Petway, HR Facility Lead at Giant Foods, and Talib Shakir, Director of MORCA, kicked off the convening with opening remarks, conveying their approaches to workforce reentry initiatives from different vantage points. Participants then engaged in small and large group discussions, sharing perspectives and exploring solutions around communication pathways between workforce programs and businesses; the difficulty of balancing soft skills, hard skills, certifications, and access to wraparound services; rapidly changing technology and industries; and the unrelenting cultural stigma around justice involvement that discourages employers from second chance hiring.
In an anonymous exit survey, 95% of participants reported finding the convening useful and that they would attend future SCHA convenings. This response demonstrated strong interest in continued dialogue and partnership to advance second chance hiring across D.C. This event was made successful by our participants’ genuine passion and commitment to strengthening bonds across reentry systems and organizations, supporting justice-impacted job seekers, and improving the economy and wellbeing of the District
