Congresswoman Kaptur Praises Major Federal Award to Lorain County Community College

LORAIN (September 29, 2014) – Congresswoman Kaptur congratulated Lorain County Community College today on receiving a major federal award for expanded job training in advanced manufacturing technologies.

LCCC received a $5.1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor to act as the lead college in a consortium of 11 Ohio schools that will offer enhanced work-based training opportunities in the growing field of advanced manufacturing.

“Lorain County Community College stands above the crowd once again,” said Congresswoman Kaptur. “The Department of Labor clearly recognizes the LCCC’s Center for Manufacturing Excellence as a model for job growth and economic development,” she said.

Kaptur said the funding to LCCC comes in the final year of the Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training program, a four-year initiative to expand targeted training programs for unemployed workers, especially those impacted by foreign trade.

“Our region has clearly borne the brunt of job losses due to globalization and unfair trade agreements, but manufacturing remains the backbone of our economy and advanced manufacturing is the innovative edge. By helping students acquire the demand-driven skills that today’s manufacturing job market values, this award will open the doors to good jobs,” said Kaptur, who serves as ranking member of the Energy and Water subcommittee of House Appropriations.

Kaptur said the grant means current employers will find more partnership opportunities with LCCC. “Moreover, potential new businesses can locate in Lorain County with the assurance of finding a deep and well-trained workforce,” she said.

The grants announced nationally today mark the last installment in a $2 billion initiative that was launched as part of the Recovery Act, President Obama’s stimulus program. “Congratulations to the leadership at LCCC for winning in a highly competitive round,” Kaptur said.

“The investments in Ohio will help prepare local workers with the skills needed for in-demand careers and advance the role of community colleges as engines of economic growth,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez. “They ensure that workers have access to training for the specific skills employers need to stay competitive in the global economy.”

Grantees nationally use this funding for a variety of activities, including:

• hiring or training instructors for courses and certification programs in high demand, such as welding. LCCC, for example, is home to the National Center for Welding Education and Training, a public-private partnership that address training and recruitment issues in an industry facing current and future shortages of qualified workers;
  
• developing new curricula and training models to add additional classes and certifications;
  
• expanding career pathways in which stackable credentials are linked to industry skills that lead participants to higher-skill jobs. The ‘stackable credentials’ criteria are a focus of the National Association of Manufacturers skills certification program at LCCC that emphasizes basic skills in such sectors as aerospace, alternative energy and computer technology.

LCCC provides training in alternative energy through its associate degree program in wind turbine technology, makes advanced manufacturing technology available directly to students, businesses and community members in its digital personal fabrication laboratory (“Fab Lab”), and trains students for high-demand jobs in information technology sectors, including health care, digital forensics, manufacturing, banking and transportation logistics.

LCCC is also a member of the Manufacturing Advocacy & Growth Network (MAGNET), a regional collaboration of manufacturers, educational institutions, and economic organizations that champions manufacturing technologies.

The other 14 colleges that will share the remaining $19.8 million in grants in Ohio include four institutions that each received $2.5 million:

• Northwest State Community College in Archbold (industrial automation and advanced manufacturing);
  
• Cincinnati State Technical and Community College (supply chain management and logistics);
  
• Clark State Community College in Springfield (advanced manufacturing); and,
  
• Eastern Gateway Community College in Steubenville (welding and industrial maintenance).