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"The region is already at the epicenter of efforts to train young adults for jobs in the booming manufacturing industry. The Eastern Connecticut Workforce Investment Board’s Manufacturing Pipeline program has been recognized as a national model for recruiting unemployed or underemployed workers who don’t necessarily have experience in the field."

Passing Bipartisan Workforce Development Funding

U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney's e-newsletter

A video of Rep. Courtney speaking on the House floor about the A Stronger Workforce for America (ASWA) Act to reauthorize the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), and about the MPI.

Announcing the award of the CT Dept. of Labor's (CTDOL's) application for a USDOL Equitable Transition Models Demonstration Grant. EWIB will partner with CTDOL to build on EWIB best practices to develop innovative activities that increase career development services, work-based learning opportunities, and employment for marginalized youth and young adults with disabilities.

Op-ed by EASTCONN Executive Director (and EWIB Board member) Eric Protulis and Director of Adult & Community Programs Kristin Hempel (2/21/24), "For youth, CT's Quiet Corner is becoming the Forgotten Corner" cites EWIB's youth pipeline programs and Summer Youth Employment Program for their effectiveness serving at-risk and disconnected youth. The op-ed urges State lawmakers to increase funding for these and other programs that increase youth employment and engagement. EWIB President/CEO Michael Nogelo is quoted saying, Investments in programs that engage opportunity youth in career pathways provide a positive return for our young people, our employers and economy, and our communities.

Passing a Bipartisan Tax Bill to Bring Relief for Families & Small Businesses

Congressman Courtney's 2/2/24 e-newsletter

A video of Rep. Courtney speaking on the House floor about the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act and efforts by EWIB's Eastern Advanced Manufacturing Alliance (EAMA) RSP and EAMA RSP member Westminster Tool to advocate for the restoration of the historic tax treatment of research & development investments under the bill.

More Bipartisan Wins

Congressman Courtney's 12/15/23 e-newsletter

More Bipartisan Wins highlights the advancement of two workforce bills. Federal resources through the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) have fueled the success of EWIB's Manufacturing Pipeline Initiative. The bipartisan Stronger Workforce for America Act (ASWA) and the Bipartisan Workforce Pell Act advanced this week would expand training opportunities to more learners and ensure employers can access high-quality candidates for years to come. This newsletter followed the Congressman's earlier press release highlighting the draft legislation and quoting EWIB President Michael Nogelo describing the Committee's passage of the ASWA bill as an important first step toward updating our nation's primary...

Reports on EWIB scaling up the Youth Manufacturing Pipeline Initiative (YMPI) to encourage more high school students to learn manufacturing skills. Congressman Joe Courtney (CT-2) is quoted as saying of the YMPI, “This thing is really going to percolate into the other high schools. They’ve got to make this generational. They’re going into the elementary and middle schools, too.”

Givens Louis-Jean, a participant in Connecticut's Manufacturing Pipeline Initiative, trains for a well-paying job. This program, funded by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, aims to fill the nation's skills gap. However, the program's effectiveness is debated, as lawmakers grapple with reauthorization amid a tight labor market and economic shifts.

While commemorating National Manufacturing Month, I realized something special was happening in Connecticut while sitting in on a class at Grasso Tech in Groton. I was there to talk to students enrolled in the Eastern Connecticut Manufacturing Pipeline Initiative, a program that has trained and placed over 4,000 people in jobs that pay well over minimum wage since 2016.

"The CT Youth Employment Program is an Eastern Connecticut Workforce Investment Board offering that EASTCONN, a nonprofit regional educational service center, conducts in partnership with New London Youth Affairs and Norwich Youth & Family Services to offer jobs to Eastern Connecticut participants between ages 14 and 24."

Program to create 6K critical jobs

The Bulletin

"CareerConneCT was modeled after the Manufacturing Pipeline Initiative from Franklin-based Eastern Workforce Investment Board, which is being granted $7.85 million, and is expected to have a similar economic impact."