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ETA News Release: [06/07/2005]
Contact Name: David James or Mike Volpe
Phone Number: 202-693-4676 or x3984
Release Number: 05-1005-SAN

U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao Awards $276,000 to Job Path Inc. for Tucson Biotechnology Project

Grants Totaling $12 Million Will Fund 12 Health Care and Biotechnology Training Projects Nationwide

TUCSON, Ariz. — U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao today announced a grant of $276,393 to Job Path Inc. The grantee is one of 12 winners selected from nearly 230 applicants competing for funding under the President's High Growth Job Training Initiative. More than $12 million is being awarded nationwide to address opportunities to build a world-class health care and biotechnology workforce.

“Health care and biotechnology are two of the fastest growing fields,” Secretary of Labor Chao said. “This $276,393 grant to Job Path, like the other 11 projects funded through this competition, will help workers prepare for good careers in professions that are in high demand.”

Job Path will partner with Pima Community College and the local biotech industry to build an educational pipeline for biosciences, continue development of curricula and implement innovative approaches to experiential learning. Job Path will create a Biotechnology Summer Institute for high school students to serve as a feeder into the community college's introductory and core biotechnology programs. The project will also recruit and enroll participants from untapped labor pools and transition workers from declining industries. An internship program will provide participants with school-to-career opportunities.

As a result of this project, 50 students will graduate from the Biotechnology Summer Institute; 40 Pima Community College students will complete introductory classes and advance to biotechnology prerequisites; 60 biotech graduates will move on to employment or higher education and 30 graduates will get paid internships.

“Regional partnerships among employers, educators, and the workforce investment system will be the key to meeting businesses' demand for workers with the skills to succeed in the competitive, global economy,” Emily Stover DeRocco, assistant secretary of labor for employment and training, said.

Of the 12 grants awarded as a result of a Sept. 17, 2004, Department of Labor Solicitation for Grant Applications, four will fund biotechnology industry training, six will fund health care industry training and two will provide cross-industry training. Funds will advance projects in Arizona, California, Florida, Indiana, Michigan, New York, South Carolina, Texas, Utah and Wisconsin.

Through the President's High Growth Job Training Initiative, the Department of Labor has been conducting executive forums with leaders of expanding industries to identify critical workforce gaps and issues. Solutions are competitively chosen and are carried out in cooperation with employers, educational institutions and the public workforce system. For more information, visit www.doleta.gov/BRG/JobTrainInitiative/.

NOTE: Complete list of grantees