​The 2017 WIOA Summit was an exciting time for workforce and education to come together. There were over 500 attendees at the summit. Both days were packed with participants ready to network, learn, and contribute to the development of partnerships. The event was hosted by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, Illinois Community College Board, Illinois Department of Employment Security, Illinois Department of Human Services, and other Regional and Local WIOA partners. Participants came together to explore ways to bridge education with workforce to better serve Illinois citizens and prepare the next generation of Illinois workers.

The first day of the WIOA Summit kicked off with a Plenary session “Statewide WIOA Core Partner Leadership Panel Discussion: Laying the Foundation for Alignment, Collaboration, and Service Integration” with representation from each WIOA Core Partner. The rest of the day was filled with sessions and two more Plenary sessions, “Improving Client Outcomes Through Collaborative Business Engagement” and “Why Businesses Embrace Apprenticeships”.

Day two of the WIOA Summit took participants right into the content with breakout sessions throughout the morning and then a breakout into facilitated regional team planning. The WIOA Summit was closed with a session by the President and CEO of the Philadelphia Youth Network, Chekemma J. Fulmore, titled “Building Partnership that Works”.

All of the other materials from the Summit can be found on the Illinois State University WIOA Summit Resources page.