Michigan Works! Association Receives $100,000 Planning Grant from Michigan Justice Fund to Help Improve Workforce Re-Entry Service Delivery

LANSING, Mich. (Jan. 25, 2023) – The Michigan Works! Association, the state’s primary workforce development organization supporting the 16 Michigan Works! agencies throughout the state, has received a $100,000 planning grant from the Michigan Justice Fund to help improve workforce re-entry services in support of economic mobility for individuals with criminal convictions.

Individuals with criminal convictions often face complex barriers to sustainable employment, including mental health, credential completion, housing access, and lack of work history. Through the planning grant, the Michigan Works! Association and key stakeholders will work to identify additional unknown hurdles to upward economic mobility for formerly incarcerated individuals, while working to scale successful models for the delivery of services through the workforce development system.

“Ensuring justice-involved individuals receive the necessary support to remove systemic barriers on the path toward long-term employment is and should be a key feature of our workforce system,” said Ryan Hundt, CEO of the Michigan Works! Association. “Our organization is grateful for this planning grant opportunity, where we will convene the voices of workforce developers, community partners, and most importantly, formerly incarcerated individuals to shape our workforce re-entry services in a more efficient, equitable manner.”

The Michigan Works! Association is one of seven entities statewide to receive a planning grant from the Michigan Justice Fund, as part of $2,750,300 in total grants recently announced to support the organization’s strategic vision of supporting returning citizens and building capacity for grassroots organizations.

“The Michigan Justice Fund is thrilled to be supporting efforts to better address the needs of individuals re-entering the workforce after incarceration across the state,” said Ashley Carter, director of the Michigan Justice Fund. “We are excited to partner with the Michigan Works! agencies on the innovative programming that will be developed with this grant.”

The Michigan Justice Fund is a collaborative of statewide and national funders that makes investments to promote the dignity and prosperity of Michigan residents by stemming the flow of individuals into the criminal legal system, supporting the investment of public dollars into community-driven alternatives to incarceration, and ensuring people who are returning home after incarceration receive the support they need to flourish. Since its inception in 2020, $18.3 million has been committed to the Michigan Justice Fund and more than $9 million has been deployed to organizations throughout the state. 

Marshall business leader appointed to Michigan Works! Association board

LANSING, Mich. (Oct. 7, 2022) – The Michigan Works! Association today announced the appointment of Marshall business leader Jacquelyn Murray of Marshall Excelsior to its board of directors.  

“Jackie Murray’s tremendous business and workforce experience will be an asset to the Michigan Works! Association board,” said Ryan Hundt, Michigan Works! Association CEO. “Our board provides critical insight to ensure positive outcomes for job seekers and employers and we are honored to have her join us.”

 Murray is the director of human resources at Marshall Excelsior, where she has worked since 2018. She is a huge advocate for those in the workforce, and quickly became involved with  several organizations that focus on workforce development, including the Michigan Works! Southwest Workforce Development Board. Her passion has been repeatedly demonstrated through her leadership and actions that focus on connecting employers with a talented workforce. Murray holds her degree in Organizational Management from Cornerstone University and is the proud mother of seven adult children and grandmother of three.

The Michigan Works! Association’s Board of Directors is a mix of public and private sector representatives who guide the organization and enable it to effectively achieve its mission. The Board is committed to holding the association and its regional Michigan Works! members accountable to the highest possible standards in program delivery. The Board is also committed to collaborating effectively with its partners to ensure the best outcomes for its customers.

“I believe that each person holds value and it’s up to leaders to show that. By equipping individuals to be successful in their work lives as well as personal lives, triumph can be obtained at so many levels,” Murray said. “This can be achieved by exhibiting trust, empathy, commitment and accountability. Providing resources to those who need and desire it, while empowering them to grow, creates an advancing path now and in the future.”

Established in 1987, the Michigan Works! Association fosters high-quality employment and training programs serving employers and workers by providing support activities and a forum for information exchange for Michigan's talent development system. For more information, visit http://www.michiganworks.org, or call (517) 371-1100.

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Flint business leader appointed to Michigan Works! Association board

The Michigan Works! Association today announced the appointment of Flint business leader Leanne Panduren of ROWE PSC to its board of directors.  

“Leanne Panduren’s tremendous business and workforce experience will be an asset to the Michigan Works! Association board,” said Ryan Hundt, Michigan Works! Association CEO. “Our board provides critical insight to ensure positive outcomes for job seekers and employers and we are honored to have Leanne join us.”

Panduren has been with ROWE since 1994, and currently serves as CEO, President and chair of the board. She is a professional civil engineer by trade and her career has centered around assisting municipalities in completing a wide variety of infrastructure projects.

The Michigan Works! Association’s Board of Directors is a mix of public and private sector representatives who guide the organization and enable it to effectively achieve its mission. The Board is committed to holding the association and its regional Michigan Works! members accountable to the highest possible standards in program delivery. The Board is also committed collaborating effectively with its partners to ensure the best outcomes for its customers.

“After several years serving on the Workforce Development Board for Thumbworks and then GST Michigan Works, I’m very excited to continue my service at the state level and engage with workforce leaders from around the state,” Panduren said.

Established in 1987, the Michigan Works! Association fosters high-quality employment and training programs serving employers and workers by providing support activities and a forum for information exchange for Michigan's talent development system. For more information, visit http://www.michiganworks.org, or call (517) 371-1100.

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Northern Michigan workforce development leader appointed to Michigan Works! Association board

The Michigan Works! Association today announced the appointment of Networks Northwest CEO Terry Vandercook to its board of directors.  

“Terry Vandercook’s tremendous business and workforce experience will be an asset to the Michigan Works! Association board,” said Ryan Hundt, Michigan Works! Association CEO. “Our board provides critical insight to ensure positive outcomes for job seekers and employers and we are honored to have Terry join us.”

Prior to becoming the Networks Northwest CEO, Vandercook was the operations manager for a local company where he assisted agricultural employers across the country in meeting their workforce needs through the U.S. Department of Labor’s H-2A visa program. He also previously served as chief program officer at Networks Northwest and business development manager for the Michigan Economic Development Corporation.

The Michigan Works! Association’s Board of Directors is a mix of public and private sector representatives who guide the organization and enable it to effectively achieve its mission. The Board is committed to holding the association and its regional Michigan Works! members accountable to the highest possible standards in program delivery. The Board is also committed collaborating effectively with its partners to ensure the best outcomes for its customers.

"I am truly honored to serve on the Michigan Works! Association Board and represent the workforce, businesses, and communities of Northwest Lower Michigan,” Vandercook said. “I look forward to contributing to the impactful results driving work being done through the board and its collaborative membership."

Vandercook is a Northwest Michigan native and returned to the area with his family after serving a 20 year career in the United States Air Force.

Established in 1987, the Michigan Works! Association fosters high-quality employment and training programs serving employers and workers by providing support activities and a forum for information exchange for Michigan's talent development system. For more information, visit http://www.michiganworks.org, or call (517) 371-1100.

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Michigan Works! Association Announces New Board of Directors Member

The Michigan Works! Association, the state’s primary workforce development association, today announced a new board member who will help support the nonprofit’s work to continue to move the needle on policy, education and collaboration on vital workforce development issues.

Eric Gustad, community affairs manager for Consumers Energy, Michigan’s largest energy provider, has recently joined the Michigan Works! Association board.

Gustad proudly serves the Central/Northwest Michigan region, ensuring his friends and neighbors receive the hometown service Consumers Energy aims to provide.

He is a six-year veteran of Consumers Energy, and currently works out of the Ludington Service Center. Previously, he spent over 11 years working for the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians managing their training, education, and leadership development programs. He also served six years on the City of Manistee Planning Commission and three years as a City Council Member.
In the community, Gustad serves on five different regional economic development boards. He also serves on three chamber boards and three boards for charitable organizations. Eric has a strong passion for volunteering and giving back to the communities he serves.

“The bedrock of a successful workforce development system is community service,” said Ryan Hundt, CEO of the Michigan Works! Association. “With Eric’s passionate commitment and responsiveness to the needs of businesses and residents, the Michigan Works! Association is thrilled to have Eric join our board of directors as we advance the mission and objectives of our organization.”

Eric earned a bachelor’s degree in business management from Ferris State University and currently lives in Manistee with much of his family and his two dogs.

More information about the members of the Michigan Works! Association Board of Directors can be found on the Association’s website.

Interview: Ryan Hundt, CEO Michigan Works! Association, Mackinac Policy Conference

Watch Ryan and Chris discuss Michigan Works! Association and their overall focus from the #MPC22 click play on the YouTube video below.  

Commentary: Federal change would worsen Michigan's talent crisis; we can fight back

While attending the Mackinac Policy Conference this year, talent and workforce were at the forefront of almost every discussion on the island. More than two years after a global pandemic forced businesses to drastically rethink talent strategies, employers are running out of creative solutions to address labor shortages. I heard the job creators in our state say over and over they desperately want politicians, government officials, educators and community leaders to focus on crafting relevant solutions to address the growing workforce challenges we face.

But there are changes being proposed by federal rule makers that would do the exact opposite. Michigan's ability to deliver substantive solutions is at serious risk as a result of newly proposed federal regulations that would decimate accessibility and human-power to deliver career support to approximately 675,000 job seekers annually, and to provide recruiting, retention and more talent attraction support to 32,000 businesses each year.

The U.S. Department of Labor is proposing a new "rule" — a change in the way programs are currently operated — for the delivery of these essential workforce services under the Wagner-Peyser Act. It wants these services to be provided by state civil service employees as opposed to the current model where local Michigan Works! staff are able to address the needs of companies and job seekers in their own communities.

Rule change proposal could force dozens of Michigan Works! locations to close

A federal rule change could impact the way employment services would have to be delivered and force the state's workforce development operation Capital Area Michigan Works! to close more than a dozen offices across the state.

The Wagner-Act was established in 1933 and Chief Executive Officer of the Michigan Works! Association Ryan Hundt said that act helped establish the workforce delivery system across the country.

“We can meet the labor challenges for businesses and helping them identify qualified talent and helping those individuals through the pipeline into the businesses in all regions of the state, and we also work very closely with job seekers as well to help them identify resources that they can have or they can access in order to maintain employment,” Hundt said.

Hundt said Michigan has a flexible model allowing Michigan Works! employees to be hands on.

“We have that locally responsive, flexible model where local Michigan Works! staff are the ones interacting with businesses and job seekers every single day, helping them to identify resources to be successful in today's global economy,” Hundt said.

MichiganWorks! opposes changes to Wagner-Peyser Act

MichiganWorks! West Central is opposing possible changes to the Wegner-Peyser Act that may impact their ability to assist clients, according to Jonathan Eppley, communications and marketing manager.

Eppley requested approval by the Big Rapids City Commission of a resolution opposing the proposed changes during a commissioners’ meeting this week.

US Department of Labor proposed rule could force Michigan Works! to limit services

A proposed rule from the Biden Administration is designed to help states improve unemployment processing. But Michigan Works! says the proposal would not help Michigan.

“We’re trying to get the U.S. Department of Labor to not implement this proposed rule change and let Michigan along with the other two states keep doing it like we’re doing it,” said Bill Raymond, CEO of U.P. Michigan Works.