Regional Focus
COMPILED BY PAIGE KOCOUREK
Marshall University Receives $ 1.1 Million from Appalachian Regional Commission
The Marshall University Joan C . Edwards School of Medicine has been awarded $ 1.1 million by the Appalachian Regional Commission ( ARC ) for a new initiative that takes an innovative , multigenerational approach to workforce development .
The Career Opportunities for Appalachian Legacy ( COAL ) project will leverage the success of the Creating Opportunities for Recovery Employment ( CORE ) initiative at Marshall Health to enhance workforce readiness and job placement for 400 individuals in a 15-county region across Southern West Virginia over the course of the three-year grant . Using the evidence-based approach of CORE among a recovery population , COAL will work with individuals and families who have become disengaged from the workforce due to a decline in the coal and manufacturing industries , limited development of new industry and the pandemic .
“ By taking a holistic , systemic approach to workforce development , the COAL project champions the health and wellness of individuals and families while creating jobs with competitive wages and benefits ,” says Ashley Shaw , director of the CORE program and leader of the COAL project . “ The success of this project has the opportunity to make a positive impact on families and communities for years to come .”
The project will directly engage more than 80 businesses to match participants with employment opportunities based on the employers ’ needs and participants ’ professional
experience and skills . In addition , the project will also support entrepreneurship and social enterprise with partnerships that provide an apprenticeship model to prepare individuals for the workforce through on-the-job training while earning a competitive wage .
Likewise , COAL will work to develop and support business cultivation alongside project partners , including the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce — which includes Jobs for West Virginia Graduates , Circles Campaign and Williamson Health and Wellness — New Heights Consortium , Unlimited Future , Inc . and the Reach Initiative . The project will establish partnerships across Southern West Virginia , facilitate business education and training , host virtual entrepreneurship and social enterprise forums , sponsor mentorship for businesses and individuals for the development of enterprise and support local and regional business development incubators .
This award is part of a recently announced $ 47 million package supporting 52 projects , including a previously announced $ 1.5 million grant to Marshall University to establish West Virginia Grant Resource Centers , through ARC ’ s POWER , or Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization , Initiative . The POWER Initiative 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 .
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WEST VIRGINIA EXECUTIVE