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PARKERSBURG -- The Workforce Development Board of the Mid-Ohio Valley has been awarded a grant through the Appalachian Regional Commission to help counties impacted by coal-related job losses.
The $1.5 million from the Regional Commission will serve 5,133 individuals annually or 15,399 over the three-year project period with career exploration simulations in Calhoun, Clay, Jackson, Mason, Pleasants, Ritchie, Roane, Wirt and Wood counties.
The award is part of a recently announced $47 million package supporting 52 projects in 181 coal-impacted counties through the commission's Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization Initiative that directs federal resources to economic diversification projects in Appalachian communities affected by job losses in coal mining, coal power plant operations, and coal-related supply chain industries. This is the largest single P.O.W.E.R. awards package to date since the initiative launched in 2015.
Additional support for Seeing West Virginia's Future Through a Different Lens is provided by other funders, including Workforce Development Board, the Workforce West Virginia State set-aside fund, Secondary Education, Building and Skills Trade and the Department of Labor.
"Our coal-impacted communities are a vital part of Appalachia's 13 states and 423 counties. When our coal communities thrive, our entire region is uplifted," Gayle Manchin, regional co-chairman of the commission. "This latest round of POWER grant funding will not only help struggling coal communities to once again compete in a global marketplace, but also expand support for the creation of new jobs through growing Appalachia's food economy."
Seeing West Virginia's Future Through a Different Lens was created to engage secondary education, trades, and local business in developing a talent pipeline for manufacturing, trades, and associated employers, Bill Monterosso, executive director of Workforce Development Board Mid-Ohio Valley, said.
"By utilizing Virtual Reality as a hands-on tool for career exploration, we are better suited to bridge the gap between students' career goals and future employers," Monterosso said.
Including today's award package, the Regional Commission has invested $366.6 million in 447 projects impacting 360 coal-impacted counties since P.O.W.E.R. was established in 2015. A new evaluation conducted by Chamberlain/Dunn said a majority of P.O.W.E.R. projects met or exceeded output and outcome targets, with the commission's investments projected to have helped create or retain more than 39,600 jobs and prepare over 100,000 workers and students for new opportunities in entrepreneurship, broadband, tourism and other growing industries.
The mission of the Workforce Development board is to facilitate a quality skilled workforce that advances the economic development of the region by meeting the needs of employers and job seekers.