Ohio Directs More Than $6 Million in Appalachian Grants to Five Workforce Projects in Coal Communities
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, Lt. Governor Jim Tressel and Ohio Department of Development Director Lydia Mihalik announced in Columbus this week that more than $6 million in funding from the Appalachian Regional Commission will be directed toward five projects supporting workforce and economic development in communities impacted by the downturn of the coal industry.
Among them, Shawnee State University in Portsmouth will receive a $2 million grant to modernize and expand its industrial chemistry program through state-of-the-art equipment, an enhanced curriculum, and new certificates, degrees and professional development programs. The university will also implement Chemistry Outreach Programming for K-12 students. Over the three-year performance period, the project is expected to serve more than 5,600 K-12 students, 25 organizations and 10 businesses, and develop three new programs of study in the industrial chemistry field.
The funding is part of the federal Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization (POWER) Initiative, which helps Appalachian communities respond to coal-related job losses. Projects in this round include training programs to increase workforce resiliency, student-to-career pipelines, and infrastructure improvements to allow the expansion of local industry. "For generations, the hardworking people of Appalachia have helped power both Ohio and the nation as a whole, building strong communities around industries that were essential to our growth," DeWine said. "As our economy continues to evolve, we have a responsibility to ensure we're investing in those same communities and the people who call them home."
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
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