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STEM PROPOSAL NARRATIVE <br />A. SUMMARY <br />The Santa Ana WORK Center (SAWC) in partnership with Santa Ana Unified School District Career <br />Technical Education (CTE) is seeking $170,000.00 to provide training and work experience for 20 youth <br />16-21 years old in areas of customer service and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) <br />careers. <br />The program will serve 10 in -school and 10 out -of school youth between the ages of 16-21 years <br />old interested in a STEM related career. At least 10% of youth enrolled will be foster youth, youth on <br />probation, and youth with disabilities. This program will provide four through ten of the 10 WIA <br />elements. A central strategy will be to provide paid work experience and iob shadowing to program <br />participants in order to expose them to STEM related careers. Occupational skills training in Customer <br />Service will be provided through the Career Technical Education Partnership (CTEp) — Regional <br />Occupational Program (ROP) where students will receive certification in 10 components attached to their <br />Customer Service certification program. Youth will also receive "The National Professional Certification <br />in Customer Service" (NPCCS) from the National Retail Federation Foundation, a research and education <br />arm of the National Retail Federation (NRF), the world's largest retail trade association. In addition, <br />youth will receive work readiness skills that include workshops on labor laws, labor market information, <br />resume writing, interviewing skills, and financial literacy. Staff will provide leadership development <br />opportunities through peer centered activities encouraging responsibility in teams or individually to <br />present and educate their peers on what they have learned about STEM careers, work experience and <br />more specifically their chosen STEM occupation. During the course of the program, youth will receive <br />guidance, support and mentoring from SAWC staff, ROP instructors, and their work experience <br />supervisor. For those youth in need of more comprehensive guidance and counseling beyond the scope <br />of the program, referrals will be provided to connect them with the help they need. While enrolled in the <br />program, youth will receive supportive services as needed and once they have completed the program, <br />staff provide follow-up for 12 months as appropriate to provide retention, supportive services as well as <br />resources to ensure successful outcomes. The planned outcomes for the Program include 100% Customer <br />Service certificate attainment for all participants. The CTEp Customer Service certificate provides <br />instruction in the following areas: Customer Service, Career Planning, Workplace Professionalism, <br />Attitude, Communication, Collaboration and Teamwork, Critical Thinking, Workplace Legal Issues, <br />Time Management and Conflict Resolution Of those youth that are basic skills deficient, 40% will <br />increase their basic skills deficiency through tutoring referrals, financial literacy activities and writing & <br />reading exercises. These additional areas of instruction are embedded into the program. Placement in <br />education and/or employment will be accomplished upon program completion as youth enroll into an <br />education program pursuing a STEM career and/or employed in a STEM occupation. <br />B. QUALIFICATIONS <br />The SAWC, as a comprehensive One -Stop Center, has over 30 years experience in administering various <br />Federal and State funded youth and adult programs. We are a state recognized, award -winning entity with <br />a proven record in leadership, workforce innovation, service integration and quality services. As a One - <br />Stop Center, we are versatile in our service delivery and are capable of addressing the needs of diverse <br />populations resulting in the awarding of multiple funding streams. We have the ability to effectively <br />leverage resources across an extensive network of partner agencies and community organizations and <br />have demonstrated fiscal stability and program sustainability over the past 30 years. The SAWC has an <br />exceptional track record in successfully implementing the following programs: WIA Adult, Dislocated <br />Worker, Youth Formula Grants, Rapid Response, National Emergency Grants, Governor's Discretionary <br />Grants, Department of Labor Welfare -to -Work Grant, Faith -based Initiative Grants, Housing and Urban <br />EXHIBIT A <br />