WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT


Essential Services Help Workers Find a Foothold on Their Own Life Paths


By Sara Wildberger


Expansion Program (HAEP), creating ap- prenticeships in senior living and related allied health occupations. Part of this involved ensuring apprentices had services that would help them succeed as they trained and established themselves in their new career paths. Administering this critical help is Family Scholar House, based in Louisville, Ky. “The mission of Family Scholar House (FSH) is to end the cycle of poverty and transform our community by empowering families and youth to succeed in education and achieve life-long self-sufficiency,” Sarah Brady, workforce development coordinator, writes in an email interview. “FSH assists disadvantaged single par-


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ents—women and men—and former foster youth in addressing challenges in completing the post-secondary education and credentialing necessary for careers and transition out of poverty.” Helping with these barriers to success in-


volves looking beyond the typical scope of a career entry program. For instance, FSH “provides 279 affordable apartments on our five Louisville-area campuses, on-site child- care, coaching, advocacy, access to tech- nology, transportation, and record-setting emergency assistance during the pandemic for basic needs, such as diapers, meals, and pantry items.” The HAEP program apprentices can face many of the same challenges, needing services ranging from helping through cre- dentialing processes to domestic violence assistance. Yet these essential services aren’t typically handled by employers. A subgrant from HAEP led to the cre-


32 SENIOR LIVING EXECUTIVE MAY/JUNE 2021


n 2020, Argentum received a grant from the U.S. Department of Labor to develop the Healthcare Apprenticeship


ation of the FSH Response Center—staffed six days a week by professionals providing connections to emergency and basic “wrap- around services.” In 2020—the pandemic year—FSH


served 11,233 Kentucky households, pro- viding 67,951 services, including helping 95 people graduate from college—37 of these going into health careers. Also in 2020, FSH received a national


Rise Prize, one of only five mature organi- zations to be recognized for a two-genera- tion program model to end poverty. The following is excerpted from a longer email


interview.


Q. If an individual needs support and can’t find it, what effect could this have on the person, the workplace, and the family? A. Lack of support can hinder an indi- vidual's ability to show up, succeed, and advance in the workplace. When an individ- ual struggles to secure consistent childcare, their attendance at work suffers. If their car breaks down, and they can’t afford to get it fixed, they lack transportation to get to work. Examples like this cause employees with potential to fall between the cracks and not succeed in the workforce.


Change Agent Profile


Sarah Brady Workforce development coordinator Family Scholar House


This is where Family Scholar House steps in to meet individuals where they are and provide comprehensive support and wrap- around services as they navigate life both inside and outside of work. This includes assessing their physical and


mental health, conducting benefits assess- ments to see what benefits they can access, and identifying supports already in place that empower the individual. Our programs put safety nets in place


such as emergency assistance, connection to community resources, and career coach- ing, so that many of these situations can be quickly resolved.


Q. Is there a type of support that may come as a surprise to employers but that workers need?


FSH Advocates are experienced in problem-solving many challenges that can interfere with workplace success and are available to listen and offer options and resources to help. Examples include connection to food pantries, child- care resources, transportation assistance, domestic vio- lence assistance, and free tax preparation.


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