Arkansas may participate in program offering job training for food stamp participants
by March 2, 2016 2:05 pm 285 views
As state lawmakers prepare for the upcoming special session to tweak the so-called “Arkansas Works” program to incentivize work, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Wednesday (March 2) that Arkansas is one of 10 states selected to take part in a new program that allows Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) food stamp participants to receive help with job training and finding employment.
According to USDA officials, the SNAP to Skills, a first-of-its-kind, peer-to-peer effort to help state agencies design improved employment and training programs for adults receiving food stamp assistance order to help them find employment and ultimately move off the SNAP program.
“Fortunately, the economy is improving in most areas of the country, but it is still very challenging for people with limited education or more basic job skills to secure full time work and better paying jobs,” said USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack. “Helping SNAP recipients move off the program due to higher job earnings produces a double win for the individual household and for the economy as a whole.”
In March 2015, USDA announced the launch of 10 separate long-term SNAP E&T pilots, made possible by the 2014 Farm Bill, to test and study innovative strategies that will run concurrently and in addition to the SNAP to Skills project. States selected for SNAP to Skills include: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina and Tennessee. In October 2015, USDA announced that the Seattle Jobs Initiative would create an intensive technical assistance program to help states to build better, stronger Employment and Training (E&T) programs.
These 10 states were chosen to participate based on their existing level of commitment and interest in expanding the SNAP E&T program, their ability to build effective partnerships with local training providers, and the availability of strong, job-driven workforce development programs in the state. The project will last two years, ending in September 2017.
USDA officials said SNAP E&T is a tool in each state’s workforce development system that can provide employer-valued skills training to low-income, low-skilled Americans. With two-third of jobs created over the next decade expected to require at least some education or training beyond high school, expanding access to education and training for SNAP participants who have limited skills or earn low wages is critical to helping participants transition into economic self-sufficiency, officials said.
The employment training programs may include job search training, education activities (including basic skills training, English language learning, vocational training, postsecondary education), self-employment or on-the-job training, and job retention services.
According to the USDA, SNAP is a vital supplement to the monthly food budget of more than 46 million low-income individuals. Nearly half of SNAP participants are children, nine percent are over 60 and more than 40% of recipients live in households with earnings. In 2014, SNAP kept at least 4.7 million people, including nearly 2.1 million children, out of poverty, officials said.