Lowe's Foundation Skilled Trades Workforce Investment Eclipses $25 Million Through New Cohort of Community and Technical College Gable Grants Recipients
Summary
From Arizona to Maine, 11 schools receive support to scale training and remove education barriers for sought-after trades careersMOORESVILLE, N.C., July 23, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Lowes Foundation today announced nearly $8 million in Gable Grants to a second cohort of community and technical colleges. "From funding new skilled trades facilities and instructors to accreditation programs, the grants will support carpentry and construction, HVAC, electrical, plumbing and appliance repair training. MTC is the comprehensive technical college for the Midlands of South Carolina, serving over 25,000 students annually with an economic impact over $1 billion.Mountwest Community and Technical College (Huntington, West Virginia) will expand its Apprenticeship Readiness and JumpStart Pre-Apprenticeship programs that provide dual credit to high school students. They will allow participants to earn credentials in multiple career programs and return to their communities empowered to be meaningfully employed and help meet the skilled workforce needs in these industries.Valencia College (Orlando, Florida) will launch an accelerated plumbing program designed to help individuals in Central Florida complete training in this high-demand field. The 53-foot trailer will remove transportation barriers for hundreds of students and host an "industry ready" program to help combat the construction workforce shortage in rural south Georgia.The nearly $8 million investment is the latest in the Lowes Foundations five-year, $50 million commitment to support the training of 50,000 people for skilled trades careers.