Training grant awarded to ECWIB (2/19/04)

A regional organization has been awarded a $258,000 state grant to help train area manufacturing workers.

Indiana Gov. Joe Kernan made the announcement about the grant Wednesday in Muncie to the East Central Workforce Investment Board Inc.

The $258,822 from the Indiana Department of Workforce Development’s is an Energizing Indiana’s Workforce grant.

The ECWIB, which serves Jay, Blackford, Randolph, Delaware and Henry counties, will use the funds to enhance the region’s capacity to develop and attract advanced manufacturing jobs.

Some of the funds will go to Ivy Tech State College’s distance learning system, as well as upgrading computer labs at WorkOne centers located in the county seat of each participating county.

Funds also have been designated to train as many as 60 individual workers in advanced manufacturing techniques.

“That is our job as a workforce investment board — to anticipate where our industry is going and plan and prepare the infrastructure to deliver the trained workers,” ECWIB chairman Jim Riggle said at Wednesday’s ceremony.

Barbara Street, the CEO of East Central Opportunities Inc., said this morning that the funds must be spent by a June 30 deadline — limiting the amount that can be allocated directly for the training of individual workers.

Currently there are eight slots open for workers in Jay County, nine in Randolph County and seven in Blackford County.

Kernan, who made Wednesday’s announcement at Keihin Aircon North America Inc. in Muncie, also discussed an initiative to match those seeking jobs with employers — Indiana@Work. The Indiana@Work (Continued on page 2)

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program was announced during the governor’s state of the state address in January. It is a joint program of the Indiana Department of Commerce and the department of workforce development.

"Manufacturing has always played a critical role in our economy, and as we move forward, advanced manufacturing will play an equally important role," Kernan said in an e-mailed press release. "As our economy continues this transition to higher-tech employment, we must prepare our workforce to meet the needs of employers and compete for jobs."

For more information on Indiana@Work, Energizing Indiana's Workforce or other DWD-related programs, visit DWD's Web site at www.workforce.IN.gov.[[In-content Ad]]