This policy establishes the requirements for identifying, documenting, and reporting Measurable Skill Gains (MSG) for participants enrolled in education or training services under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) in Illinois.

1. Measurable Skill Gains (MSG)
   1. The measurable skill gains indicator is the percentage of participants who, during a program year, are in an education or training program that leads to a recognized postsecondary credential or employment and who are achieving documented academic, technical, occupational, or other forms of progress, towards such a credential or employment (see 20 CFR § 677.155(a)(1)(v)).
   2. The measurable skill gains indicator is used to measure the interim progress of participants who are enrolled in education or training services for a specified reporting period. Therefore, it is not an exit-based measure. Instead, it is intended to capture important progressions through pathways that offer different services based on program purposes and participant needs and can help fulfill the vision for a workforce system that serves a diverse set of individuals with a range of services tailored to individual needs and goals.
   3. Depending upon the type of education or training program in which a participant is enrolled, documented progress is defined as one (1) of the five (5) gain types listed below. Please note that the first three (3) gain types typically apply to participants in education, while gain types four (4) and five (5) typically apply to participants in training.
   4. Documenting Progress for Types of Measurable Skill Gains occurs in the following ways:
      1. Gain Type One (1): Educational Functioning Level (EFL) (4 “sub-types”)
         1. Documented achievement of at least one educational functioning level (EFL) of a participant who is receiving instruction below the postsecondary level.  Programs may measure educational functioning level gain in one of four (4) ways:
            1. States may compare the participant’s initial educational functioning level, as measured by a pre-test, with the participant’s educational functioning level, as measured by a post-test.
               1. The approved pre- and post-tests must be based on the list of tests the Secretary of Education determines to be suitable for use in the National Reporting System for Adult Education. The list of approved assessments in Illinois is outlined in the Assessment Requirement section of the policy manual;
            2. States that offer adult high school programs that lead to a secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent may measure and report educational gain through the awarding of credits or Carnegie units;
            3. States may report an educational functioning level gain for participants who are enrolled in a program below the postsecondary level and who enroll in State-recognized postsecondary education or training during the program year. A program below the postsecondary level applies to participants enrolled in a basic education program; or
            4. States may report an educational functioning level gain for participants who pass a subtest on a State-recognized high school equivalency examination (e.g., HiSET or GED).
      2. Gain Type Two (2): Secondary School Diploma or Equivalent
         1. Programs may document attainment of a secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent if the participant obtains certification of attaining passing scores on all parts of a State-recognized high school equivalency test, or the participant obtains a diploma or State-recognized equivalent documenting satisfactory completion of secondary studies or an alternative diploma, including a high school or adult secondary school diploma.
            1. Secondary school diploma refers to a regular high school diploma, as defined in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).
            2. Alternative diploma must meet the requirements under ESSA. It is only for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities who take the State’s alternate assessment based on alternate academic achievement standards, which can be no more than one (1) percent of all students in the State.
      3. Gain Type Three (3): Secondary/Postsecondary Transcript or Report Card
         1. For secondary education, this gain may be documented through receipt of a secondary transcript or report card for one semester showing that the participant is achieving the State unit’s policies for academic standards.  
            1. Secondary transcript is specific to youth attending high school.
         2. For postsecondary education, this gain must demonstrate a sufficient number of credit hours—which is at least twelve (12) hours per semester (or equivalent) or, for part-time students, a total of at least twelve (12) hours over the course of two (2) completed semesters (or equivalent) during a twelve (12) month period that shows a participant is achieving the State unit’s academic standards (or the equivalent for other than credit hour programs).  
            1. For example, if a postsecondary student completed six (6) hours in the spring semester and six (6) more hours in the fall semester, and those semesters crossed two (2) program years, they would not count as a skill gain in the first program year, but they would count as a skill gain in the second program year.
            2. The State has set the following policy for determining equivalency to credit hours. The following formula, which meets requirements set forth in Title IV, should be used: 
               1. a semester hour must include at least thirty (30) clock hours of instruction;  
               2. a trimester hour must include at least thirty (30) clock hours of instruction; and  
               3. a quarter hour must include at least twenty (20) clock hours of instruction.  
      4. Gain Type Four (4): Progress Report/ Training Milestone(s)
         1. Satisfactory or better progress report, towards established milestones, such as an On-the-Job Training (OJT) or completion of one year of an apprenticeship program or similar milestones, from an employer or training provider who is providing training.
         2. Documentation for this gain may vary, as programs should identify appropriate methodologies based upon the nature of services being provided, but progress reports must document substantive skill development that the participant has achieved.
         3. The gain may be documented by a satisfactory or better progress report from an employer or training provider.  Progress reports may include training reports on milestones completed as the individual masters the required job skills, or steps to complete an OJT or apprenticeship program. Increases in pay resulting from newly acquired skills or increased performance can also be used to demonstrate progress.
         4. Milestones should be established in advance of the education or training program, or in advance of the program year being measured, to be considered an “established milestone.”
         5. Note: In the description of this type of Measurable Skill Gains, “completion of one year of an apprenticeship” is just one example of a timeframe that may be established for achieving a satisfactory or better progress report toward an established milestone, and the “one year” timeframe should not be construed as a required timeframe or the only way that a participant in an apprenticeship can achieve a Measurable Skill Gain.
      5. Gain Type Five (5): Exam Passage/ Skills Progression
         1. Successful passage of an exam that is required for a particular occupation or progress in attaining technical or occupational skills as evidenced by trade-related benchmarks, such as knowledge-based exams.
         2. Documentation for this gain may include passage of a component exam in a Registered Apprenticeship program, employer-required knowledge-based exam, satisfactory attainment of an element on an industry or occupational competency-based assessment, or other completion test necessary to obtain a credential.
   5. All participants who, during a program year, are in an education or training program that leads to a recognized postsecondary credential or employment are counted in the calculation of this indicator.  Participants who exit for any of the reasons listed in Attachment II, Tables A and B of the TEGL, are excluded from the measurable skill gains indicator. The following participants in education or training programs are included:
      1. Adult or Dislocated Worker - All Adult and Dislocated Worker participants who are in a Title I B-funded training program, or training from a DOL partner program that shares a common exit with Title I Adult or Dislocated Worker, are included in the measurable skill gains indicator (which includes funding a training program for a secondary school program equivalent). This includes all participants in work-based training.
      2. In-School Youth (ISY) - All In-School Youth are included in the measurable skill gains indicator since they are attending secondary or postsecondary school. 
      3. Out-of-School Youth (OSY) - Only Out-of-School Youth who are in one of the following are included in the indicator:
         1. the program element occupational skills training;
         2. the program element education offered concurrently with workforce preparation;
         3. secondary education during participation in the Title IB Youth program;
         4. postsecondary education during participation in the Title IB Youth program;
         5. Title II-funded adult education during participation in the Title IB Youth program;
         6. YouthBuild program during participation in the Title IB Youth program; or
         7. Job Corps during participation in the Title IB Youth program.