NEWS

CAP Tulsa • 4606 S. Garnett Road, Suite 100 • Tulsa, OK 74146

Media Contact: Callie Jo Morey, Communications Coordinator • 918.382.3241

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October 1, 2015

For Immediate Release

CAP Tulsa Receives $13 Million Grant from U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to Train Low-Income Parents for Healthcare Jobs

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has awarded CAP Tulsa a $13 million grant through the Health Professions Opportunity Grant for an expansion of the CareerAdvance® program, which trains low-income parents of young children for jobs in the healthcare industry. Under the new grant, CAP Tulsa is expected to enroll nearly 650 people over the next 5 years.

Known as a national leader in the field of early childhood education, CAP Tulsa has been at the forefront of the growing two-generation approach to poverty alleviation, focusing on providing training and employment support to the parents of young children to improve the parents’ economic well-being and simultaneously improve the educational outcomes for their children. As part of the grant, CAP Tulsa’s CareerAdvance program is being evaluated by national academic experts from Northwestern University, Columbia University, and the University of Texas.

“CAP Tulsa’s mission is focused on breaking the cycle of poverty. We believe that by focusing on early childhood education and preparing very young children for school, they will be able to very successful in the future. At the same time, however, we hope that we can set them up for even greater success by also working with their parents on improving their education, skills, and employment.

This grant will allow us to work with multiple community partners and employers which will benefit Tulsa by providing qualified, skilled and highly desired workers for local healthcare occupations, yielding livable wages for families, and improving the education of both children and parents together in families.

Parents are able to focus on their own education, training, and skill development needs as well as be better employees when they know that their children are being well cared for and receiving high-quality early education.” Steven Dow, Executive Director of CAP Tulsa.

“CAP Tulsa serves as a national model for how two-generation education programs can harness parents’motivation to see their children succeed in school--and at the same time, fulfill their ownambitionsto improve their education and careers.Our research at Northwestern University has shown that through a combination of coaching, peer support, and financial aid, CAP Tulsa’s CareerAdvanceparents persist and receive educational certification at unprecedented rates, which will open more opportunities for them and their children.We are delighted that this grant will allow us to continue this groundbreaking work.” P. Lindsay Chase-Lansdale, France Willard Professor of Human Development and Social Policy,Northwestern University

CAP Tulsa will partner with Madison Strategies Group, Tulsa Technology Center, Union Public Schools, Tulsa Community College, Workforce Tulsa, Oklahoma Department of Human Services, and other community partners to provide training and supports and with area employers to help place and create connections for program participants.

"TCC wants to strengthen the connection between education and employment and we are able to do this by participating in this innovative partnership," said TCC President & CEO Leigh B. Goodson. "This collaborative program is changing the way adult education and workforce development aredelivered and is helping our students reach their goals, get into the workforce and succeed."

The program’s training and education opportunities will be available to CAP Tulsa families and low-income families with young children in the Tulsa metro area. Participants will receive individual job coaching, job placement, performance-based incentives, peer support, life skills development and assistance with child care and other needs. Participants who are admitted into the program will be part of a long-term national research study to assess and evaluate how family life improves based on income and education factors.

“Participants in the progrm will have access to state-of-the-art training and employer placement options which leads to higher persistence and completion rates” TTC Superintendent Dr. Steve Tiger commented.

CAP Tulsa’s workforce program, CareerAdvance, began with seed funding provided by the George Kaiser Family Foundation (GKFF). In 2009, CAP Tulsa was one of 32 programs selected by HHS to receive a Health Profession Opportunity Grant, which has helped Tulsa program participants earn over 200 healthcare certifications in the last five years.

Karen Pennington with Madison Strategies Group, which operates WorkAdvance in Tulsa, shares“we're excited to partner with CAP Tulsa and expand our successful transportation and manufacturing model to the healthcare sector. We look forward to helping employers gain access to well-trained and credentialed Tulsans who are ready to begin new careers in healthcare."

Mayor Dewey Bartlett weighed in on this new opportunity for Tulsa residents and notes that “There is a need for skilled professionals in the healthcare industry as it contributes directly to the strength of the Tulsa economy. By combining education for children with career training for their parents, CareerAdvance is destined to have a big impact on Tulsa’s future growth and prosperity.”

Income-qualified families that are interested in this workforce development opportunity can visit to submit their contact information to receive more details about the program. Classes and training will begin in the spring of 2016.

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CAP Tulsa is an anti-poverty nonprofit in Oklahoma and a nationally recognized provider of research-based, high-quality early childhood education for low-income children age birth to 4-years-old. CAP Tulsa’s mission is to help families with young children in need achieve economic self-sufficiency. Our vision for the future is that children grow up and achieve economic success so that their children are not born into poverty. Our method is to combine early childhood education of the highest caliber with innovative family financial and health services. CAP Tulsa is proud to be a Tulsa Area United Way agency.