$200,539 State Strategic Innovation Grant Will Be Used to Strengthen Education and Training
(Delaware and Chester Counties, PA • May 2, 2018)—The Delaware County Workforce Development Board, in partnership with Delaware County Community College, recently received a Pennsylvania Strategic Innovation grant for $200,539 from the Commonwealth’s Department of Labor and Industry.
The grant, one of 16 announced by Governor Tom Wolf last month, will be used to improve career pathways and Allied Health programs by developing a seamless noncredit-to-credit educational pathway approach that will benefit students and employers in Delaware and Chester Counties.
Through their partnership, the Workforce Development Board and the College will develop a plan to reach more potential students and will revise the College’s curriculum to facilitate awarding more credits to students for previous workplace experience, also known as prior learning. In addition, the grant will be used to implement a pilot program in the Allied Health career fields of medical billing and networking.
Strategic Innovation grants are designed to provide state funding for creative educational and training programs that prepare more workers for jobs that are in high demand by employers and that pay family-sustaining wages. In April, Governor Wolf announced the award of the nearly $3.5 million in Reemployment Fund dollars to 16 Strategic Innovation projects across the Commonwealth.
“These funds will help Pennsylvanians develop the job skills needed to succeed in today’s workforce by employing creative and inventive workforce development strategies,” Governor Wolf said. “Strategic Innovation grants allow for well-coordinated approaches between state and local partners to provide high quality services for both job seekers and employers, focusing particularly on increased employment opportunities for Pennsylvanians with barriers to employment.”
The Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry awarded the grants through Local Workforce Development Boards across the Commonwealth. The grants encourage innovation in establishing career pathways, expanding the state’s pipeline of workers, increasing opportunities for youth workers, engaging employers directly to ensure that the skills gap is being addressed, and strengthening data sharing across state agencies and workforce development partners.
Delaware County Community College serves more than 23,000 credit and non-credit students online and at eight locations in Delaware and Chester Counties. The College, which celebrated its 50th anniversary last year, offers more than 50 associate degrees and 35 certificate programs.
