Welfare-to-Work (WTW) Plan Referral to Community Colleges

CalWORKs Employment Services (CWES) refers clients to community colleges for education and/or vocational training.

Welfare-to-Work Plans

Below are the allowable activities to be entered into a WTW Plan for clients attending Community Colleges:

• Voc/Ed Training

Note: Unpaid college-sponsored internships are assumed to be embedded in this activity and do not require a separate verification or entry on the WTW Plan or in CalSAWS.

• Work Study
• Other approved WTW activities such as employment, Domestic Violence (DV), mental health counseling, etc.

Educational Plan

The educational plan lists the required classes for the client’s WTW Plan.  The consortium college liaison will inform clients of High Paying In-Demand Careers (SCD 2621) to assist with developing their educational plan. The college liaison provides their education plan or any educational plan to the Associate Employment Counselor (AEC)/Employment Counselor (EC).  The educational plan assists the AEC/EC in developing the WTW Plan for a duration beyond the current class schedule. The WTW Plan will be aligned with the duration of the educational plan.

Refer to Welfare-to-Work (WTW) Plan Student Training and Education Program (STEP) Provisions .

Client Referrals

For client referrals to colleges, the AEC/EC must send a secure email of the Welfare-to-Work Activity Referral Form (SCD 1723) to the designated person at the college. In addition to the email for post-assessment clients, CWES staff must email the WTW Plan. The SCD 1723 to the college should include:

• Client's Name (NOT on the subject line)
• CalSAWS Case Number
• Last four digits of the Social Security Number (NOT on the subject line)
• Phone number, if different in CalSAWS
• Name of the WTW activity
• If the client is post-assessment
• Vocational goal
• Time remaining on the 60-month CalWORKs clock
• Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) hours
• Compliance plan, if on a compliance plan.

For non-enrolled clients interested in High Paying In-Demand Careers (SCD 2621) or a career technical education/vocational program, the AEC/EC will review the client’s educational level, reference the Approved Education and Training Matrix to identify which consortium community college offers that vocational program and discuss with the client about furthering their education.

Clients who want to enroll at a specific partnered community college and have identified their desired High Paying In-Demand Careers (SCD 2621) or vocational program and would like the college’s guidance may be referred to an off-site Assessment. These career choices have different prerequisites, and our educational partners will assess for suitability. On the Welfare-to-Work Activity Referral Form (SCD 1723), under the Client Referral Information section, indicate the client’s career interest in the Vocational Goal field.  Example:Example: Medical Assistant.  Please asses if appropriate.

The AEC/EC will assign 10 hours per week for off-site Assessment activity for a 30-day period in CalSAWS for the specific community college. In the Customer Activity Detail page, select “Full” for the Assessment Type drop list, “Original” for the Assessor drop list, and “Vocational” for the Assessment Category drop list.

Concurrent enrollment in another activity, such as LinkedIn Learning, community service, etc., is required for off-site Assessment.

Reminder: Student Training and Education Program (STEPS) participants are not required to have their educational program approved by an Assessment Counselor. Assessment is optional for STEP participants.

Actions Taken by the Community College

The service provider performs the following to reflect the results of the referral:

Note: For Post-Assessment, the Assessment EC will add a Journal Entry and notify the assigned AEC/EC.