Lancaster County Workforce Development Board awarded $150,000 grant targeted at youth

A $150,000 grant to Lancaster County Workforce Development Board will be used to bring back tours of industry for teachers and create new summer camps to expose students to potential careers in healthcare and manufacturing.

The grant is part of $3 million in Business-Education Partnership distribution recently announced by the state Department of Labor & Industry. Lancaster was one of 22 workforce development organizations across the state that received the federal money made available from the Workforce Innovation and Opportunities Act.

The money will support the workforce board’s Career Ready Lancaster! partnership’s three-year strategic plan to connect students to career paths in the county.

In its application for the grant, the workforce development board said it planned to bring back Educator Industry Tours in partnership with Lancaster Chamber. Local businesses would host educators in tours followed by training facilitated by Lancaster-Lebanon Intermediate Unit 13 to incorporate learning from their experiences.

According to Career Ready Lancaster’s application, the grant will also support:

• Further defining career pathways in the manufacturing and healthcare Industries in Lancaster through the Employer Action Team working with Economic Development Company of Lancaster County Center for Regional Analysis. Then reaching out to schools, jobseekers, parents and guardians to explain the opportunities.

• Lancaster County students enrolled in a manufacturing pre-apprenticeship hosted by The Manufacturer’s Association of South Central PA.

• Development of a 3-year sustainability and strategic plan for Career Ready Lancaster! that includes improving cross-sector collaboration and clear and measurable goals and transparency.