Welcome to
The WORKS System Powered by CARITAS
Where it Began
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In 2008, CARITAS staff noticed that while recovery program participants were finding jobs, they were unable to maintain employment. We discovered disparities in employment services for those with significant barriers to employment - substance use disorder, felonies, and gaps in employment history. Intensive workforce education was not readily available in Virginia. The CARITAS Works program was created with the help of a grant from Bank of America and researching nationally recognized best practice programs.
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Based on adult learning principles, the original Works program was created to meet the developmental and educational needs of individuals with barriers to employment. In 2022, The Works System Powered by CARITAS
curriculum was engineered as a full workforce curriculum and is now available to organizations and businesses.
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The Works System curriculum was constructed by:
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combining employability skills research, employment data, adult learning techniques, and information from other workforce and recovery programs and
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analyzing 8 years' worth of evidence-based outcomes from the CARITAS Workforce Programs and utilizing qualitative and quantitative information from over 12,000 instructional hours.