$1.25M Announced in Grant Funding for Workforce Development in the Rutland Region

Rutland, VT – The Rutland Regional Planning Commission (RRPC) is thrilled to announce a transformative $1.25 million grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Labor through the Workforce Opportunities for Rural Communities (WORC) Program. This significant funding is set to address critical areas of need in the Rutland Region and drive meaningful economic growth.

The RRPC in cooperation with the Rutland Region Workforce Investment Board (RRWIB) will lead a coalition of key education and workforce partners, including Stafford Technical Center and Vermont Department of Labor. The coalition will partner with Casella Construction, Naylor & Breen, the City of Rutland, and other regional employers to enhance technical training and create new employment pathways.

Over the next three years, the grant will support job growth in critical sectors across the Region, focusing specifically on the fields of infrastructure, construction, and clean energy. Over the course of next three years, this grant will help pilot a new ‘bridge’ model to train local high school graduates for high-growth, high-demand, high-paying jobs in the Rutland Region. Each summer, short-term professional and technical skills training will be followed by job placements with local employers, culminating with a guaranteed interview for those who complete the program. While this grant focuses mainly on creating new job training pathways for graduating high school seniors, additional training will also be offered tailored to youth who have dropped out of school, as well as New Americans who have settled in the Region.

This funding represents a major step forward in tackling several pressing challenges in our region:

Boosting Trades and Housing Development: By focusing on infrastructure, construction, and clean energy, this grant will help address critical shortages in the trades, which are essential for increasing housing development. This, in turn, will attract new workers, support economic growth, and enhance tax revenue for the region.

Youth Retention and Population Growth: The innovative ‘bridge’ model will offer high school graduates valuable professional and technical training, directly addressing youth retention and helping reverse the trend of population decline. By preparing young people for highgrowth, high-paying jobs, we aim to foster a vibrant, dynamic workforce that contributes to the long-term prosperity of our community.

Filling Workforce Gaps: Local employers have long faced challenges in finding skilled workers. This grant will help fill critical workforce shortages by providing targeted training and job placements, ensuring that our regional businesses have access to the talent they need to thrive.

Over the next three years, the grant will fund a summer training program followed by job placements, culminating in a guaranteed interview for program completers. This initiative will also extend tailored training to youth who have dropped out of school and refugees who have resettled in the region, further broadening the impact of this vital funding.

The RRPC, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Labor and our coalition partners, is eager to begin coordinating the first year of programming. This funding represents a pivotal opportunity to create new pathways to meaningful employment and strengthen the economic fabric of the Rutland Region.

For more information, please contact:

Devon Neary Executive Director Rutland Regional Planning Commission 802-775-0871 devon@rutlandrpc.org