Adult Workforce Development
Meeting People Where They Are
Our adult workforce programs support people who are entering or reentering employment, including people rebuilding after incarceration or homelessness. Common Wealth uses a person-centered and trauma informed approach to address the needs of individuals and families who face barriers to obtaining or maintaining employment. We help people strengthen income, routine, confidence, and forward movement.
Job Shop
Job Shop is a hub where community members can speak directly to a Common Wealth Employment specialist about the full spectrum of their concerns related to getting and maintaining a job. Employment specialists, volunteers, students, social service professionals, and neighborhood center staff collaborate with job seekers to address resume development, housing concerns, daycare acquisition, and more.
Work Up! Academy
Piloted in 2024, WorkUp! Academy provides pre-employment skill development, individualized coaching, and support to participants as they transition back into the workforce. Participants who enroll in WorkUp! learn about communication, conflict resolution, teamwork, computer literacy, interviewing, resumes, and job applications. Participants complete the WorkUp! Academy training to support their development before heading into a position through STEP.
Southwest Transitional Employment Program (STEP)
The Southwest Transitional Employment Program (STEP) supports job-seekers in the Meadowood Neighborhood with direct connections to a short-term paid employment opportunity with individualized support and tailored skill development. This collaborative program was engineered to maximize success with local families who desperately needed stable income and teeter on the precipice of homelessness.
Our Partners
Our programming for adults employs a coordinated care model, where we collaborate with multiple partners to help participants with basic needs, such as housing support, food security, mental health and wellness, transportation, childcare needs, and access to health care.
Meadowood
Health Partnership
Early Child Initiative (ECI)
Children’s
Wisconsin
Holy Wisdom
Monastery
UW-Madison
Writing Center
Community Agency Bridging the Gap
RISE
Wisconsin
Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
Joining Forces
for Families
Meadowood Neighborhood Center
Madison
Public Library (Meadowridge)
This is the first program that I’ve been in where I’ve been encouraged and didn’t feel that I’m getting stuck in the system. Common Wealth really wants to see people in the community improving their lives. Other programs seem designed to keep people in the system.
- STEP Participant
