STEMPower named 2011 Workforce Training Partnership of the Year
On Tuesday, June 21, the Mid-Massachusetts Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) Pathways Initiative was presented with the “Workforce Training Partnership of the Year Award” at the Workforce Solutions Group’s “Annual Jobs and Workforce Summit” at the Publick House in Sturbridge, MA. Each year, the award is given to a training partnership that fosters effective and innovative collaboration.
“We are extremely happy with the success we have had with this program so far,” noted Jeff Turgeon, Executive Director of the Central Massachusetts Workforce Investment Board (CMWIB); the lead partner organization for the STEM project. “All of the dedicated partners involved in the initiative including the Franklin Hampshire Regional Employment Board, the North Central Massachusetts Workforce Investment Board, the Massachusetts Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MassMEP), and Monster .com; are working together with the same goal in mind- to link program participants with employers,” he added.
In just two years the STEM project has trained and placed over 225 people in STEM-related positions at an average wage of over $20 per hour. The STEM partnership has also provided STEM Career Awareness to 1,750 adults and 4,300 youth. The initiative is one of only 5 grants awarded nationally by the Department of Labor in 2009.
The Workforce Solutions Group is a coalition led by the Massachusetts Workforce Board Association, the Massachusetts AFL-CIO, the Crittenton Women’s Union, and the Mass Communities Action Network, Mass Business Roundtable, the Center for Labor Market Studies and the Massachusetts Workforce Professionals Association.
STEMPower, the Mid-Massachusetts STEM Pathways Initiative, works collaboratively with a broad cross-section of businesses, community-based organizations and education and training partners to reach its goal of increasing the pipeline of displaced workers, veterans, and disadvantaged youth into STEM careers. This program is focused primarily on Advanced Manufacturing, Biotechnology, Renewable Energy and Aerospace sectors.
To learn how to become involved in the program as an employer, mentor, advisory council member, or on STEMPower.org, contact STEMP Project Director, Lisa Derby Oden, [email protected] . Mid-Massachusetts STEM Pathways Initiative is sponsored in part by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration. The program is an equal opportunity program.
