Oregon Workers To Benefit From $42 Million Grant Earmarked For Training
The Oregon Higher Education Coordinating Commission is administering a grant of $42 million, the final round of the $200 million Future Ready Oregon grant approved in 2022 by Oregon lawmakers.
The funding has been allocated to train talent from underserved communities to improve access to the health care, manufacturing, and technology in Oregon, where there is a shortage of skilled workers.
Oregon Training Grant To Aid Workers In Underserved Communities
$42 million in funding has been awarded to over 60 projects aimed at recruiting and retaining workers in health care, manufacturing, and technology, where state leaders say Oregon needs more skilled workers.
General state funds and federal COVID relief funding make up the grant, which includes Workforce Ready Grants and awards to community organizations with projects geared toward Oregon communities of color, women, people with disabilities, veterans, rural communities, tribal members, and LGBTQ+.
The State Employment Department indicated that nearly 17,000 jobs were added over the last year and state economists forecast that thousands more workers will be needed in the years ahead just the semiconductor industry, which employs manufacturing and technology workers.
Jennifer Purcell, director of Future Ready Oregon, said the Oregon’s Higher Education Coordinating Commission funding all three rounds of grants, covering over 90 projects, must be spent by the end of 2026 to meet federal guidelines.
Programs Awarded Future Ready Funding
Covering a diverse range of workforce training priorities over a vast geographic area, the programs that will benefit from the Future Ready Oregon funds include:
- Afghan Support Network: $623,902 for its IT-certification training program for Afghan refugees in Oregon.
- Bushnell University School of Nursing: $1 million for its program training bachelor’s degree-level nurses for work in rural Lane County hospitals.
- Clackamas Community College: $1 million for its partnership with 20 organizations to train workers in a variety of manufacturing careers.
- Klamath Union High School: $440,843 for a new health occupations program for its students.
Purcell indicated that training through those grant-funded projects will continue through 2026.