United States Department of Agriculture Catalyst Kitchens North

United States Department of Agriculture Catalyst Kitchens North Carolina Community Prosperity Summit June 25, 2019 Nick Espinosa SNAP Employment & Training Food and Nutrition Service, USDA 1

United States Department of Agriculture Key Focus Areas Ø Self-sufficiency – Ensuring that people who can work are able to succeed in the labor market and ultimately reduce their need for nutrition assistance. ü For SNAP E&T, this means expanding and strengthening employer-driven, evidence-based programs. Ø Integrity – Ensuring waste, fraud, or abuse doesn’t undermine SNAP’s mission. Ø Customer Service – Ensuring that SNAP serves participants, States, and all stakeholders well. 2

United States Department of Agriculture WHAT IS SNAP EMPLOYMENT & TRAINING? v The purpose of SNAP E&T is to help SNAP recipients to meet work requirements, and to gain skills, training, or experience to increase their ability to obtain regular employment. v The program is administered at the federal level by the U. S. Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS). v All states are required to operate a program. 3

United States Department of Agriculture WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT v SNAP E&T is part of a skilled workforce solution. v Labor market information must drive training programs. v Career pathways provide opportunities to meet individuals where they are and help them to advance. v Participant supports must be provided to mitigate barriers to success. v Leverage expertise from multiple sources. 4

United States Department of Agriculture Agency Commitment to Helping States Succeed 5

United States Department of Agriculture SNAP E&T FLEXIBILITY 6

United States Department of Agriculture PROGRAM DESIGN States can design SNAP E&T programs to suit the needs of the population and how decide how services will be delivered. Services can be provided by: v SNAP eligibility agency; v State labor agency; v WIOA service providers; v Community and Technical Colleges; v Community Based Organizations (CBO) (Goodwill, YWCA, etc. ); or v Employers. 7

United States Department of Agriculture ALLOWABLE SERVICES SNAP E&T activities or “components, ” include one or more of the following: v Job Search activities; v Job Search training; v Workfare programs; v Work experience or training; v Educational programs to improve basic skills and literacy; v Programs designed to increase self-sufficiency through selfemployment; v Programs to provide job retention; or v Other employment, educational or training programs. * 8

United States Department of Agriculture SNAP E&T FUNDING 9

United States Department of Agriculture USE OF FUNDING Grant Funds – Capped at $103. 9 Million: v Planning, implementation and operation of state E&T programs. Typically this represents administrative and program staffing costs. v States can also use grant funds to purchase direct services from CBOs and colleges. Fifty Percent Funds – Not Capped: v Administrative costs that exceed the state’s funding under the annual E&T grant. v SNAP E&T participant expenses that are reasonable and necessary for participation, such as dependent care, transportation and books and supplies. ABAWD Grants – Capped at $20 Million: v Limited to states that guarantee or “pledge” to offer a qualifying work activity to ABAWDs in entering their third month of SNAP eligibility. v The use of funds is the same as the regular grant funds. 10

United States Department of Agriculture THIRD-PARTY PARTNERSHIPS 11

United States Department of Agriculture THIRD-PARTY – WHAT IS IT? A third-party partnership simply means that E&T services are provided by third parties, such as community colleges, community based organizations, etc. Main Feature: Funds to pay for the services come from the partners rather than the state or labor agency, and can be reimbursed at 50% by federal SNAP E&T funds. 12

United States Department of Agriculture PARTNERSHIP “HOW TO” 13

United States Department of Agriculture STATE PROCESS - SNAP E&T PARTNERSHIPS 14

United States Department of Agriculture PROVIDER STEPS TO BECOME A PARTNER v Conduct a self-assessment; v Develop a proposal; ü Description of services, ü Target population and anticipated number of participants to be served, placed in employment, and ü Budget, including non-federal source for 50/50 reimbursement. v Contract; and v On-board. 15

United States Department of Agriculture Liberty’s Kitchen provides pathways for New Orleans youth to create and achieve their vision of success through workforce training, leadership development, and support of healthy lifestyles. ü Target Population: Youth, 16 -24 ü Services: Vocational Training, Job Search, Work Experience and Job Retention ü Contract: $1. 9 Million ü Outcomes: Graduates are hired or re-enrolled in education at a rate of 90% upon graduation, and 80% retain those jobs at six months. 16

United States Department of Agriculture Café Reconcile provides pathways for New Orleans youth to create and achieve their vision of success through workforce training, leadership development, and support of healthy lifestyles. ü Target Population: Youth, 16 -24 ü Services: Vocational Training, Job Search, Work Experience and Job Retention ü Contract: $1 Million ü Outcomes: Graduates are hired or re-enrolled in education at a rate of 82% upon graduation, and 67% retain those jobs at six months. 17

• Maximize dollars already being spent to serve SNAP recipients • Expand the types of services available without added State expenditures • Allow CBOs and colleges to expand capacity and serve more individuals • Create a new funding stream to pay for much needed participant supports • Ideally, begins to align programs and systems Challenges Benefits United States Department of Agriculture • Must establish in advance • Can be administratively complex • Must verify SNAP eligibility • Anticipating service levels throughout the year • Tracking non-federal funding sources • Financing can be especially difficult for smaller CBOs 18

United States Department of Agriculture BOTTOM LINE 19

United States Department of Agriculture SELF-SUFFICIENCY 20

United States Department of Agriculture OPPORTUNITIES 21

United States Department of Agriculture TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE v FNS SNAP to Skills Project – 10 states selected. v FNS SNAP to Skills Learning Academy. v State flexibility to use federal E&T grants to hire consultants and build program capacity. v Availability of state exchange funds for peer-to-peer learning. v SNAP to Skills Website: https: //snaptoskills. fns. usda. gov/ v USDA Policy and Guidance: https: //www. fns. usda. gov/snap/et-policy-and-guidance 22

United States Department of Agriculture 23

United States Department of Agriculture QUESTIONS? ? ? 24

United States Department of Agriculture Nick Espinosa – USDA FNS Southeast Region nick. espinosa@usda. gov (404) 562 -1910 25